<p>Loading up on AP classes in junior and senior year is common here.</p>
<p>Curmudgeon - in addition to the large selection of AP classes, the schools around here do offer dual credit with the local community college (conveniently located across the street from my son's high school), but it is generally limited to English with some exceptions and counselor approval.</p>
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the schools around here do offer dual credit with the local community college (conveniently located across the street from my son's high school)
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My that would be convenient. ;)</p>
<p>But students of schools without such coursework advantages don't be too distressed. IMO colleges really do mean that they want to see you take the most challenging curriculum available at your school. Just be sure the colleges know the limitations of your curriculum. D included a listing of all AP courses offered at her school, a copy of the dual credit policy and courses offered, a reference to her testing out of the "normal" dual credit College English, a reference to her courses taken, her EPGY course and her Self-Study AP. </p>
<p>Again, IMO this put her in equal to or better stead with the adcoms and her "going beyond what was available at her school" was commented on favorably by a good few. That's my one data point, and in true CC tradition I'm more than willing to extrapolate broad generalizations from it. ;)</p>
<p>curmudgeon,</p>
<p>If by dual-credit you mean classes taught at the high school by high school teachers: our two schools offer a pretty high number of AP courses but no dual-credit at all. However, seniors (in some case juniors) do take university courses at the flagship down the street when they have topped-out of math, or they want to study a foreign language that is not offered at the high school. It turns out there is a complication doing things that way, though: if a student has those courses added on to the high school transcript to fulfill a hs graduation requirement, many colleges will not recognize them for advanced credit. My son had enough credits to finish hs by his junior year, so he did not have his univ. courses show on his hs transcript, so his university gave him advanced credit for them. (He doesn't want the credit to graduate early, but he might want to use them to do a combined BS/MS in four.)</p>
<p>OTOH, my sister-in-law is a high school biology teacher in another city in the same state. She went through a lot of effort to be trained to teach AP Bio (years spent convincing the principal it would be better than the dual-credit offering they already had), finally got it listed on the class roster, and a grand total of two or three kids signed up for it. The reason: our state does not pay for the AP exams, and the dual credit is free. So here, it tends to be one or the other.</p>
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<p>Same thing at Rhodes. </p>
<p>At D's high school, the college prof's came to them and taught the same college course they taught at the main campus, with the same books, and same syllabus.</p>
<p>At D's school AP's and AP tests were free and college dual credit courses were fairly expensive. Not compared to EPGY but after books maybe $400+ a course. (I'll check on that. It may be less.) Edit : $260 + books or supplies or fees/semester for a 4 hr course . So a full set of 4 courses per year would be over a grand , just tuition. Tough for many families. Makes an AP test look quite reasonable, huh?</p>
<p>My son took/is taking two: AP USH last year and AP English this year. His school only offers four AP classes (AP Art and AP Calc were not for him).</p>
<p>The independent high school our kids attend does not permit more than 3 per year, although they offer 20+. It is understood that some of the non-AP courses offered are as challenging (possibly more so) than AP classes. This is where is becomes important for the area college reps to have a good handle on the individual high schools.</p>
<p>At my sons' high school, a technology magnet - 4-5 AP courses junior year, 4-5 senior year. Typical AP courses taken: Computers A or AB, Calc AB and/or BC, Physics C, US History, English, Literature, AP Bio or Chem, AP Statistics, AP Spanish (far fewer take this), and AP Psychology.</p>
<p>They have excellent passing rates, as well. OTOH, it's very difficult to do dual enrollment with this program, so the kids typically don't have dual-enrollment credits.</p>
<p>Son took 8 APs, and 1 IB that could have been an AP (same class, preparation for a different test). It was two in 10th grade (Euro, Chem), two in 11th (APUSH, Physics AB), and 5 in 12th (Calc BC, Physics C, English Lit, Gov/Pol, and Latin SL IB. There was one other kid in his class of 550 who took 9 APs, and one who took 8, but lots who took 6 or 7. Six or seven kids took at least one dual-enrollment class, though.</p>
<p>My daughter, who switched schools in 11th grade, from a school with no AP program at all to a very AP-centric school, was basically frozen out of most AP classes in 11th grade. She wound up taking 4: APUSH in 11th, English Lit, French, and Gov/Pol in 12th.</p>
<p>They had completely similar college admissions results, by the way.</p>
<p>Our high school was located very close to a nearby CC. However, students were only allowed to take a dual enrollment class if the school did not offer a comparable class, including non honors, honors, and AP. IOW, a student could take Creative Writing through the CC up until last year, when the school opened up a new non-honors Creative Writing elective. Now they must take it through the school.</p>
<p>I'm not sure why the school is so picky, but my suspicions are- 1. students were opting for some classes through the CC rather than AP-ing them because the AP classes were perceived as "harder", 2. students can take classes online through Virtual Classroom, or take classes at night at the CC and the school did not like the idea of students leaving halfway throughout the day, 3. I'm not sure, but maybe the school "lost" money when students took classes at CC rather than through the school.</p>
<p>Just about anything a student wants to take, AP or otherwise, is available through Virtual Classroom here in Florida, which has eradicated the need to leave campus and drive to a nearby CC; also many students take community college classes in the summer.</p>
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1. students were opting for some classes through the CC rather than AP-ing them because the AP classes were perceived as "harder"
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LOL. That is the exact opposite of around here. AP English Lit is the only (somewhat) direct overlap and the dual credit course is considered harder by a factor of 3. D took the AP in the 9th (maybe 10th) and sailed through while she had to work at Brit Lit. In fact , in recognition of that perception, Dual Credit grades are weighted higher than AP which are weighted the same as Honors.</p>
<p>It is hard to compare one locale to another and this situation again points out that the student needs to be proactive in describing the courseload and the difficulty of the curriculum. It's not something that you need to trust the overworked and overwrought school GC to do. Well, trust is O.K.. Just verify. ;)</p>
<p>My daughter took 3 APs and four courses at our local Junior college,which was encouraged by our High School.</p>
<p>DD's school offered 4 or 5 AP's (but the classes still had schedule conflicts). There was no official age/grade level restriction, but there were prerequisites, so effectively one could not take those classes earlier than in 11 grade (school did not allow to take high school classes while in middle school, and did not allow testing out). The entrance criteria for AP classes were not too restrictive.There was a dual enrollment option, but the students were responsible for costs and transportation to the CC in a nearby city.</p>
<p>DSs' school offered lots of AP's (more than 20) but was very restrictive: one had to get an A for the prerequisite class, and in some cases there was also a test and/or a teacher recommendation required. The students could also take university classes if they exhausted all school's offerings (they got no university credit, but it was free). Yes, some of the students were taking 6-7 AP and post-AP classes per year (more if you count each semester of the university classes as a separate class). No, it was not common (maybe 5 or 10 % of kids did that)</p>
<p>Neither school paid for the AP tests.</p>
<p>Son took 2 junior year and is taking 2 senior year plus a community college course. He made 5's on the tests from junior year even though he received a B in one of the courses. He is not applying to HYSP.</p>
<p>4 kids - youngest is a senior and oldest graduated 7 yrs ago. I have been around the block....
HS - earliest can take an AP is junior year. As long as pre-requisited are met AP 's are open to the entire student body. School gave 1 AP test/senior last year. HS pays for exam and students are required to sit for them.
HS just started dual-credit with local CC - hs teachers teach and we pay CC $110 per credit. transcript comes from CC. </p>
<h1>1 - took 3 AP's senior year as school was just expanding them. Went to college with 12 credits and was able to get 2 minors while there.</h1>
<h1>2 - took 1 AP jr year and 3 Sr year. AP English in 12th grade includes both Lit and Lang so she took a total of 5 exams. All AP's were Liberal arts - went to college with 20 credits and decided to major in Chem soph year. Will (hopefully) graduate on time in 2008.</h1>
<h1>3 - took 1 AP in Jr year and 3 Sr year. Took AP Calc and Physics and was a 3 sport varisty athlete - proved extremely challenging. The exams were during counties/dsitricts for track - not enough study time. Credits don't matter for her because she is in a prep program to go West Point next year. Will have to validate any classes there.</h1>
<p>Kids who are in a spring sport who expect to go post season may have their hands full at the end.</p>
<h1>4 took 1 AP junior year, AP Engl (both exams), independent study AP Psyc, APUSH and Calculus - dual credit, not AP.</h1>
<p>I could have paid for dual credit for english, history and psyc but she will get credit if she passes the test which is free.
My thinking is that if she can't pass the AP test she should take the classes over in college.
Last year she took Anatomy and Physiology and I could have paid for dual credit but since she in going to major in a health professions I thought why bother? She can take the class in college
If she was going to the CC it would be a good deal but since she is not.<br>
The bad thing about dual credit is the expense - there is no financial aide and at 3-6 credits/course the price tag could be hefty.
They are accepted at a lot of schools - on kids went to UPenn and they took is dual credits.</p>
<p>Our high school has some kind of arrangement with a nearby commuity college where the college teaches a course after school on the high school campus for students who wish to take it. My son never did it but I think it's great that they do that as it allows kids to participate who might have transportation issues. The school is a magnet and provides "late buses" for kids who stay after school.</p>
<p>At our suburban HS, both AP and College Now (through local Comm College) are offered. In most cases, the class is one in the same, you just pay for whichever option your prefer. AP is cheaper, but results based on May test, College Now is cc tuition and result is actual grade in class. I am still amazed at the number of people who pay both for the same class at our HS. Makes no sense to me....</p>
<p>HS offers 18 "approved AP's this year, 26 or 27 pre-audit. My college S took 11 AP's, current HS junior will take 7 be end of next year.</p>
<p>My D took nine by end of junior year and is now enrolled in five her senior year. This year seems the toughest because of college/scholarship applications and senioritis. She has not taken the most in her class. Two others have taken more APs. One will have twenty by graduation. She attends a private day school where 25% of the students are NMSFs and the same percentage attend elite colleges. I hear from parents of graduates that college is a vacation after this high school.</p>
<p>My D will complete 14 AP courses by the end of Sr year. She is taking 7 this year and it is quite a time committment. She has finished all but one of her college apps and is going to use the next break for her Scholarship essays. Between school, college apps, interviews, and ECs she has only gone to one football game and two movies since school started. Between Debate and her youth group regional involvement there isn't a weekend to spare. When she got an acceptable ACT score, she didn't bother retaking the SAT. She just wanted the morning off before we flew to St. Louis to visit WashU.</p>
<p>I can believe that college will be a vacation after this. If she takes 16 cr in first semester it will only be 4-5 classes vs 8.</p>
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It is hard to compare one locale to another..
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I'd say that it is impossible.</p>
<p>It is quite impossible.<br>
Imagine being in college admissions and sorting this out.</p>
<p>I wonder if those kids who graduate hs with 10-15 AP course really graduate from college early - and if they find it provides much benefit at all.<br>
I agree with Curmudgeon in that hs should be hs..... college is supposed to be harder not easier.
Now don't get me wrong I am a proponent of AP's - I think all kids who plan on going to college - even the "lowly 4th tier" should have the experience of at least 1 AP. But is there really any benefit in taking 15?</p>
<p>My concern is that hs's are offering more because kids and parents want them -across all subject areas. There is a group of kids/parents who think because all these AP's are offered they should somehow fit them in.
They rationalize it that they are competing for slots in top colleges against kids who took all these classes and it snowballs from there.</p>
<p>My kids went to a smallish high school - > 700 students - there is a push to get them to take no more than 2 per year. The kids are all really active and do a lot - lots of kids "are varisty athletes who are in band and perform in the school musical" - because the school is small. I will be the first to admit that my own don't follow that advice!
I just think sometimes it can be overdone. There is more to life in high school than AP classes.</p>