<p>If you are one of the top students in your class and have good work habits, then two APs should be very manageable. My daughter took two as a freshman (Calc AB and stats) and she spent less time on homework than her little sister in 5th grade. Ask the students who are in those specific classes at your school how much time they took, and try to talk to students who are at your level of ability. </p>
<p>I’ve noticed that people on this forum tend to focus overly much on the number of APs. What’s more important is the big picture. If you’re a varsity athlete who is starring in the school play and working a part time job, then 2 APs might not be such a good idea as a freshman. If you’re taking 2 APs and have a study hall or only 6 classes total, that’s also going to be easier than if you are carrying 8 classes.</p>
<p>So if 11-12 APs can get you valedictorian, I’d probably take 1 freshmen year. Then depending on your school, take another AP social studies and maybe AP Computer Sciences in sophomore year. That way you can do about 9 in Junior+Senior years which is pretty manageable, because most of the “top” junior, depending on their school options, take 4-5 ap’s and then for senior year, 5-6 is good too.</p>
<p>I’d recommend taking AP Gov. I’m in 9th grade now…this year, I’m taking AP Chem, AP Gov, and AP Music Theory. I’m a science/music person, so that’s why I chose Chem and Music Theory for this year. Government was mostly because I was interested in learning more about it. Honestly, AP Government isn’t that difficult. 
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<p>Especially with the AP courses, I would advise that you cater them to your strengths…don’t just do something because it should be an easy AP; do it because it’s something you’re interested in, and may even want to pursue farther. For me, this means that I’m doing the Chemistry Olympiad in addition to AP Chem, and I’m considering being a TA next year for my class. In AP Government, I’m in the process of applying to a Constitutional Law class that I want to take over the summer; even if I don’t make it, I’ll still end up studying it in the summer. AP Music Theory will be continued as I keep playing my clarinet, piano, bassoon, and saxophone. </p>
<p>So basically, my point is that whatever courses you choose to take, make sure that a) you’ll be able to handle the course load and b) you’ll be learning stuff you love–all year long! I’m sure you’ll do great with whatever you choose!</p>
<p>@Azismith Thanks for the point of view! What is the course load in AP Gov and how much work do you have to do daily at home? Also, how often are quizzes and tests planned? AP Human Geography looks like an easier class, but I will end up choosing the course I’m most interested in.</p>
<p>AP Gov…let’s see. I’d say I’m spending ~1 hr. or less per day, Monday through Saturday. I’m homeschooled, so all the work is at home However, I am taking this course online. We have weekly quizzes, “position papers” on controversial political topics (our teacher has us research and write up both sides of the topic), polls, FRQ practice, etc. AP Gov isn’t that hard for me; I’m finding Chem and Music Theory much harder. As long as you can interpret charts/graphs, can write decently, and have a decent background knowledge of government, you’ll do fine with it. </p>
<p>What if I was to take GoPo senior year and take HG freshman year?</p>
<p>If you want to take AP human geography, I suggest you do that one as a freshman. </p>
<p>In our school, AP gov is for seniors. It’s not a particularly hard class but I think there’s an expectation that you have an awareness of politics and current events beyond what I think is typical for freshmen. I don’t see nearly as much emphasis on tests as in the AP history classes. I think there’s less factual material to cover, but in our school, a lot of the time is spent on projects and simulations. For example, model congress ran for some weeks and the kids had to form committees, elect leaders, review protocols. They had to research, present, and vote on various bills. In the fall, one of the big activities was a mock political campaign where they researched current issues and ran mock campaigns at school for all the state and local races. I don’t think the AP exam itself would directly test any of these activities, but they did take quite a bit of time, and required kids to be current on the news. </p>
<p>So, asking how hard the tests are for gov may be the wrong question. I’d ask, do you read high quality news sources regularly? Do you know who your state high elected officers are, what they stand for, and what issues are hot in your state and area? If your interests run along these lines, you might be ready for and have a good experience in Gov. If not, I’d suggest waiting until you are a senior, and make an effort to become more informed as you go through high school.</p>
<p>I’m predominantly interested in government and politics at the federal level. I want to take a class that will challenge me but won’t deteriorate my GPA.</p>
<p>Oh, they study federal govt. also. The model congress was a federal thing, but I think they were meant to propose a bill and select a region to pretend to be representing for which that bill would be of most interest. The fall mock elections were mock elections for real campaigns which were going on at the time, so it was state/local. I imagine there is more federal focus in those election years. My point is that this class is very much about projects, presentations, class discussions and participation, and those are based on current issues. They have a textbook or two or three, but textbooks are generally going to be out of date for this kind of thing. The whole class is really not so much about tests and quizzes like you were asking. It’s a lot different than the AP history courses which are largely about read and regurgitate.</p>