What it costs is the opportunity to learn something new in the schedule space that is used to repeat what one already knows.
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Well yes and no. Some schools have a max as to how many AP/dual credits you can claim anyway. So while you may not need to take something else you may not be able to get the credit either.
My one who had to retake it, has been able to double major and minor so not sure she wouldâve even added one other class instead because they still have to take a minimum of 12 hours. For my son right now the issue is he has no plans to double major or minor (yet) and will start freshman year day 1 as a sophomore but when I suggested he just take less hours in a semester if he needs to if he hasnât decided to double major by then he said he has to remain a full time student which is 12. I donât want him to graduate early. But he does seem interested in a coop and if that doesnât pan out I do hope he will take classes just for fun like my third child has done because youâre right. She didnât have to take it and because of that she took classes sheâs interested in just to take snd can start her masters this fall without having to go during summer school or take a full masters load in her 5th year like most kids do. Saving me grad school $! 
But I do see your point. I think this is one reason my son thought long and hard about whether or not her should claim his AP CS credit as a CS major or retake. But after doing very thorough research he is opting to claim the credit. Hopefully itâs not a mistake.
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Even with a cap, which my college had, they will generally still use AP scores over the cap for waivers, which I did for other exams.
In my case, the major did require MVC, so it was a moot point. And the college course did go beyond the HS version - which itself were pretty advanced. So for the data point of one, it worked out.
But I suspect if oneâs major didnât require MVc, one would simply not take it in college.
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That seems a little odd - how would they know about AP credit if the applicant is taking Calc senior year? This would almost assume that you needed to take Calc earlier so you had a score to show admissions. Surprising it would be an explicit requirement since some HS donât have Calc.
At Penn, for instance, all students in Engineering are expected to have taken at least Calc AB with a 5 (or BC of course), unless the HS doesnât offer it Thereâs a âremedialâ calculus class foe students who couldnât take calculus in HS or who got a 3 or 4 on their Calc AB exam.
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Or a 5. Penn gives no credit for AB. Math 104 is Calc I at Penn, which is basically the entirety of BC, which is what a 5 on the BC exam will give credit for.
Harvey Mudd would be the better example though. They require applicants to have taken calc in HS or at a CC before enrolling.
Yes, Calc 1 at Penn is calc 2 elsewhere. Unless things changed, you donât get credit for AB, you just donât get placed in âremedialâ calculus if you got a 5.
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Right, but getting AP credit is not a condition for acceptance right? I was responding to the need or requirement of AP credit to get accepted into a direct-admit engineering program, which is a little odd. Requiring Calc is one thing, but requiring a 4 or above on the AP test is another.
Just for kicks, I looked at Penn 104 and it looks like the second half of BC, while 103 is the first half of BC.
Not exactly. They require one year of HS calc for admission, but do not require the AP exam.
Actually, UPenn Math 104 has a prerequisite of AP calculus AB or a semester of college calculus.
Undergraduate Course Descriptions | Department of Mathematics lists the UPenn math courses. Advice for New Students | Department of Mathematics says:
In other words, the naming differs between UPenn and most other colleges:
| UPenn | Most other colleges | High school |
|---|---|---|
| Math 103 Introduction to Calculus | Calculus 1 | AP Calculus AB or first half of AP Calculus BC* |
| Math 104 Calculus Part 1 | Calculus 2 | second half of AP Calculus BC* |
| Math 114 Calculus Part 2 or Multivariable Calculus | Calculus 3 or Multivariable Calculus |
*for a complete BC course starting from the end of precalculus, not a BC course that starts at the end of AB.
But also, the naming and description above suggests that UPenn expects most students to start in Math 104 rather than Math 103. In contrast, not as selective colleges are more likely to have students starting in calculus 1 (Math 103-equivalent), and moderately or minimally selective colleges tend to have lots of students starting in precalculus or other lower level math.
It also says on the topic of repeating oneâs AP credit which some posters have advocated:
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The good thing about Penn is you can take the placement test and get credit up to Math 241.
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The placement test does not confer credit; there is a separate credit-by-exam for each course.
I meant the latter. Sorry that I was unclear.Y
I donât think you can say more than it depends. My daughter was a physics major and the department highly encouraged every major to take the departmentâs Physics 1 course even though almost every student, including my daughter, had 5s in Physics 1 AP and Physics C AP. They also encouraged science majors who took BC Calc as seniors to take calculus 1 at college.
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Are we talking about the same thing?
https://www.math.upenn.edu/undergraduate/make-and-credit-exam-advanced-placement-exams
Thatâs the credit by exam. There is an earlier diagnostic exam for placement.
Both are called âplacementâ exams. 
Never paid attention to this âdiagnostic placementâ exam because my kid doesnât need it.
Thatâs what happens when you have a mathematician doing website content.
Well you have to report what courses youâre taking when you apply to the school. You can of course be accepted and there is a placement test taken in the Spring for everyone in Engineering and for some theyâre required to take a summer class but for any student in Engineering they cannot take Calc 1 first semester. All Engineering students are expected to take Calc 2 or above. They will often send this information if a student is sent during ED that theyâre expected to take a refresher course whether it is in math or physics or during RD and for some students they do have a free summer school program that theyâre invited to but thatâs a special program.
Correct. They donât need to take the AP Exam but they need to have certain skills and if they donât then theyâll need to retake a refresher course in the summer because theyâre is no Calculus 1 for Engineers course offered. Since they donât give the AP AB credit since youâre statement was accurate as I forgot no one comes in with that credit since they donât give it to anyone in Engineering. The assumption is everyone has performed in the class adequately enough to be able to start in Calc 2 and if they canât they have them take a summer course over.
Ok, that makes more sense.
Also it would be pretty intense to cover all of BC in one semester of a college class, thatâs why my question on 103/104. For non-stem APs itâs probably a lot more common to take the credit and go to the next level. Especially say a foreign language where even in college the first course is more vocabulary and basic grammar, which students probably donât want to see again. Probably similar to AP English courses.