<p>Obviosuly colleges know that APs like Physics C and Calc BC are tougher than Physic B or Calc AB? But do they know that classes like AP Environmental Science and Statistics are just glorified honors classes if that? does anyone have a ranking system on how hard they think the AP classes are?</p>
<p>Yes, they know that AP classes that can be taught in 1 semester are not as difficult as those that require a year of instruction[ calculus, physics, chemistry] .</p>
<p>Beyond the general reputations of these AP classes, admissions people can gather school information during their visits. So they may find out that AP Environmental Science at one school is actually a super intense class while it is a slacker one at another.</p>
<p>environmental and stats are pretty honors level across the board, i think. that's certainly the case where i go.</p>
<p>I don't know about other places, but at my school records are kept meticulously. They input in your AP scores along with hundreds of other students who submitted over the years from your school. They'll keep track and see if a 90 in AP Psych at Springfield High translates into a 4 or 5, or is it lower. This allows them to understand your grade better.</p>
<p>yeah i realize that. there are lots of people on this board who say Stats is just a normal AP class, but at my school, you have to be brain dead to get below an A. And I believe most people get 4s or 5s on it, or i hope that anyways. Reddune, i doubt my school does that, but that is a great idea to help reform curriculum.</p>
<p>Our only two easy AP classes are AP US and AP Stat- and AP US being the more difficult of the two. </p>
<p>Our Calc AB class is absurdly similar to the BC class (same teacher for both and you end up doing almost the exact same thing because he teaches extra concepts in AB and we use the same books as BC). AB is an all year class, just like BC.... It's interesting that it's easier at your school.</p>
<p>The rest of the AP classes are difficult... especially AP Physics C (my school doesn't have AP physics B).</p>
<p>AP Physics B here is surprisingly easier than AP Bio, which is RIDICULOUS at my school.</p>
<p>Why do you think a school would care about ranking certain APs?</p>
<p>Different people are strong in different areas and different teachers can make a class "harder or easier". </p>
<p>The entire concept of which APs are "better" is irrelevant.</p>
<p>AP classes are not ranked. My school also makes sure the difficulty of each AP class is the right difficulty from year to year. At the end of each year, they look at each student's grade in an AP class and their AP test grade. They're looking for correlations of students with A's who get a 5, B's who get a 4, C's who get a 3 and so on at a MINIMUM. Preferably, they always ask the teacher to make the class even harder so usually people with a B will easily get a 4 and even a 5. (It happens a lot.) I'm in AP Environment and it is my only AP class. Though I would never compare its difficulty to classes like AP Calc BC or AP Physics, the classes are simply not in the same league. My philosophy is that students should only take AP classes in subjects they plan to major in. Everything else is just taken to "impress colleges." Please, start taking advanced classes in things that you are actually interested in.</p>
<p>The difficulty varies from school to school, teacher to teacher, region to region and in case you didn't realize, student to student.</p>
<p>EDIT: to poster below me- I wouldn't consider Calc AB a "Lite" class. The standards of students on CC are simply set so high. Everyone has to remember that each college, even the Ivy League, puts each application in the perspective of the student. I went from pre-algebra freshman year to honors calculus senior year. I'd think colleges would see that as an enormous achievement that shows proficiency. It's not what classes you take. Are you dedicated? Are you actually INTERESTED in the course you're taking?</p>
<p>AP Stats is not a glorified honors course; it is roughly equivalent to a Stats course taught in college. But, to answer your question, yes, adcoms know which are the so-called AP Lites (Stats, Enviro, Psych, Human Geog, AB....). They are "lite" bcos they only cover one semester/quarter worth of material at the college level, in contrast to the big three sciences which cover (close to) a full year of college-level material.</p>
<p>But, as Tyler notes above, an Enviro or Stats class be extremely rigorous if the teacher makes it so. Stats at our HS used be perfect for senior-itis since it was a real easy B and not-to-hard A. But, few kids scored well on actual AP exam. That teacher retired, and has been replaced by a "hard" teacher, altho he's an excellent math teacher. With HW every night, and practice tests obtained from the local college, our current Stats class now achieves many high AP scores (but disgruntled seniors). :rolleyes:</p>
<p>If admissions people are unfamiliar with your school, they probably would not know the difference.</p>
<p>But, if they're familiar with your school, they probably would know the difference.</p>
<p>from what we have been told by a number of admissions people, AP Environmental is considered an "easy" AP (even though it may not be in most schools)....AP Stats is only looked down upon if it is chosen INSTEAD of calc; if it is taken along with or after calc, it is fine....Otherwise, the core AP's still hold: History (US, Euro), English (lang, lit), Science (Bio, Chem, Physics), Math (Calc AB, BC)......Beyond that, it's apparently considered "fluff" by top schools.....</p>
<p>
[quote]
My philosophy is that students should only take AP classes in subjects they plan to major in. Everything else is just taken to "impress colleges." Please, start taking advanced classes in things that you are actually interested in.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I took a number of APs in classes I wasn't really that interested because I knew they'd fulfill requirements for me when I went to college. Because of all my work in high school I was able to bypass about 50% of my liberal arts requirements and take many more classes of what I was actually interested in.</p>
<p>Also, I don't know what college stats classes you guys took, but the average grade in my statistics for engineers course was around an 80% and pretty much everyone agreed it was harder than calc 1, 2, and 3 as well as differential equations.</p>
<p>is Psych considered a fluff?</p>
<p>My school doesn't even offer AP statistics...only dual credit. However, I know we have AP Calc, but I'm not sure whether it's AB or BC; it's simply labeled "AP Calculus."</p>
<p>This thread REALLY bothers me. you all are assuming every school is exactly the same. an AP is an AP in the eyes of admissions</p>
<p>you can't say any AP class is fluff</p>
<p>here are some of the AP's people have criticized in this thread, and how they are at my school:
AP Envi Sci- many people struggle to keep a low B in this class, and if you look at collegeboard only 11% if people get a 5
AP stat- considered harder than AP Calc BC
APUSH- everyone gets a 5, but that is because it is the AP with the most homework, hardest tests, and the best teachers. it is probably one of the top three hardest classes offered at my school</p>
<p>it all depends on the school and the teachers. any AP is respected by any college</p>
<p>i would agree with ilk07. seriously ap stats is really hard in my school (i take it). the teacher does not play around and it has been said that her test are harder than the ap test. i am not in ap enviro but i have seen the kids in that class freak out because of all the work they have to do. please dont make dumb generalizations like all schools are the same...they are not!</p>
<p>APUSH at my school is considered suicide, and is up there in the most difficult classes to take period. Without curves everyone gets low C's,but the information is covered very well and there hasnt been a year where someone has gotten below a 4 on it since I've been in HS.</p>