I took the AP world history exam and feel like I either got a 3 or a 4. I am probably going to end up having 3s and 4s for other ap classes next year. However, I have a 1500+ SAT, top 10% of my class and have a great extracurricular at the national level. Considering my AP exam scores, will 3s not look good and ruin my chance of acceptance at colleges like UVA (in-state) and NYU?
Thank you so much, and good luck to others taking AP exams!
AP scores are almost always self-reported and have virtually no meaningful impact on admissions.
The very worst that a low passing AP score can do is not making you exempt from undergraduate requirements (some colleges don’t award credit for 3s or award credits that can’t be used towards major prerequisites).
I often see responses like the one above to similar questions on CC. I think that a better response is that we don’t know the impact of AP(or IB) test scores. Just like we really don’t know the impact of any item in a holistic review application. To support this, I raise two points.
1)UCB and UCLA explicitly say on their website that they consider AP/IB scores.
2)I have also been told by AOs that they read the entire application. That would include the AP score section.
I am not say the impact is large or the same at each school. Just that it is not zero.
I am surprised at those comments too. I would think that if you have them, they will help if they are a 4 or 5 and hurt if they are less than that.
^^Yes, this is what I have heard too. Self report only 4 and 5 grades.
rarely play a significant role for Stanford.
“Students currently enrolled in AP courses are not required to submit AP scores as part of our admission process. AP scores that are reported are acknowledged but rarely play a significant role in the evaluation of an application. Grades earned over the course of a term, or a year, and evaluations from instructors who can comment on classroom engagement provide us with the most detailed insight into a student’s readiness for the academic rigors of Stanford.”
This question was asked specifically at Duke info session we attended recently and the AO stated “AP scores have zero impact”, further the number of APs are not important because it is related to the number of APs offered in your high school. Of course, 5s and 15 APs should not hurt…
I wonder about this is as well. I hear stories about kids taking AP classes, getting As, and then scoring 3s and sometimes even 2s on exams. That screams grade inflation to me. Wouldn’t schools want to know if the student really learned the material and deserved that A? I know that AP scores are not officially part of what’s considered for any college, but I think they could confirm high grades on the transcript.
Low scores with top grades does not necessarily scream grade inflation, it provides context regarding the rigor of the class. When my oldest daughter took AP Chemistry, most of the class earned 1’s and 2’s, with one student earning a 3. If you compared the grades to the scores, those with the best grades got better scores, just not 4’s and 5’s.
@CTScoutmom good point…but I would also think colleges would want to know the rigor of the class. if kids are getting poor grades on the AP test then the rigor was not there. My point should have been that not all AP classes are equal across different high schools.
50 kids took AP Comp Sci A at our school last year. No 1s, one 2, less than ten 3’s. An experienced teacher who knows the test, pre-requisites, and rigorous course work means most kids in AP classes at our school do very well. My kid is getting a B in the class and will almost certainly get a 4 or 5 on the test this year.
If an applicant scored all 4s and 5s on several different AP exams, is this something you specifically would play up in your essays and application. One private counselor we met with said that she would definitely submit them and mentioned it?
Hm. Mentioning 4s and 5s in an essay seems like odd advice to me. The essay space is so limited, I wouldn’t think it would make sense to waste that space on something that’s already shown elsewhere on the app - like test scores. Plus, so many of the other applicants will also have 4s and 5s that it is not something I’d think was unique or interesting enough to highlight.
You can choose to send your grades in, ut as stated before it doesn’t matter much. However for nezxt year try to get 4 4s or 5s, because AP classes are not just to boost your chnaces and gpa, but you also want to get credit for them in college. Look at the schools you are applying to and see what ap scores do they accept to get credit for actul college classes. I know some ivy league and top tier schools only want 4 or 5s( some only accepting 5s on some classes)
@CTScoutmom, grade inflation is exactly what those scores suggest in your example. In my daughter’s AP chemistry class, the lowest score was a three and most kids scored fours or fives. I’m in the camp that low AP scores (when reported or simply not reported the class is on a student’s transcript) can raise questions at the most elite schools. How much of a factor they are in admissions is impossible to determine, as is the case with everything in holistic admissions, from essays to extracurriculars, etc.