As a junior, I have not yet taken AP Physics 1 but from what I hear AP Physics C mechanics is just more in-depth AP Physics 1 with Calc. I’m thinking about doing both at the same time but I’m unsure how much Calc I need to to know.
I’m currently taking Pre-calc and will be taking AP Calc A/B next year. Since my current pre-calc teacher will be my AP Calc teacher, he is starting the calc stuff now. His plan is to basically finish all the teaching by the end of next year’s first semester so that the second semester (of next year) is just all review.
I’m also considering whether or not doing ap physics 1 and c simultaneously is even realistic.
At most colleges, the first calculus-based physics course covering mechanics (and sometimes some other topics) lists calculus 1 (or a high enough AP calculus AB or BC score) as a prerequisite and calculus 2 as a corequisite. The course that covers electricity and magnetism commonly lists calculus 2 (or a high enough calculus BC score) as a prerequisite and calculus 3 (multivariable calculus) as a corequisite.
However, it is likely that many high schools allow students to take AP physics C while taking their first calculus course. But that may limit the use of calculus in the AP physics C course, compared to calculus-based physics courses in colleges, so not all colleges accept AP physics C scores for advanced placement (particularly for the electricity and magnetism part).
It may not be all that useful to take AP physics 1 and AP physics C mechanics simultaneously, since there is significant duplication of material.
What if I was to take AP Physics 1 and “self-study” AP Physics C.
AP Physics C isn’t offered in my school but I think it might be offered online (I don’t actually know if it’ll be available). Only problem with this is that I don’t really like online courses, specifically when the labs are far (and they usually are).
Since I have reduced lunch, my AP exam would cost only $12 and since I don’t have to show all my AP scores, this option is technically low-risk. If I happen to be terrible at AP physics C and/or if it’s wasting my time, I could just stop what I’m doing and get whatever score I get. The problem with this option is that it only helps me after getting accepted and even then, not all colleges accept the credit. I also don’t know if this is realistic.
Why not just take AP physics 1? Then take calculus-based physics in college if you need to for your major or other goals. Assuming you do well in AP calculus AB and the test (and check your knowledge on the college’s old calculus 1 final exams), you can take calculus 2 and start calculus-based physics in your first semester of college.
There are only two uses I can think of AP Physics C:
-The first is just to build up experience with physics that uses calc so that when college rolls around, my transition might be a little smoother. I will admit, this idea of using such experience as a “buffer” seems less practical than what you suggested.
-The other use is to use my exam score for credit if I attend a safety school.
This Physics C thing isn’t particularly important to me, but it is a low-risk decision.
I really don’t think you need to know much, frankly. Some basic understanding of differentiation and integration techniques, maybe extending to some trigonometrics mostly for the E&M part, a little intuition about maximization and minimization using derivatives, a good scientific calculator and that’s about it, in my opinion. It’s very algorithmic and formulaic. I’d be curious to hear others’ thoughts.
I’m not in AP Physics, but my regular physics teacher is also the AP teacher, and he told me that whatever calculus you need is taught in the course. I’m in AP Calc BC right now, and I’m guessing you only need to know basic derivatives and integrals for physics. I’m not sure if all schools teach it like this, but I assume its pretty uniform.
I self-studied both Mech/E&M this year to help prepare me for college-level physics. First off there is a huge difference between being able to answer questions related to the course on the ap exam and get a 4/5 and understanding the material completely, inside and out. This is for the later. Physics C mechanics at most requires an understanding of derivatives and integration including both the first and second fundamental theorems of calculus. AB calc while yes, not required to understand the content, does prove extremely useful while learning the derivations of specific formulas. Physics C E&M, at least in my experience, was a much more involved, requiring me to look as far as Calc 3 in some cases to fully grasp concepts, as much of E&M is 3D, rather than 2D. Mainly surface integrals, and dot and cross products. It’s not terribly difficult to understand either course, however, just study hard.
Thanks for the responses guys! I might give the self-study a shot. If it doesn’t work out, it probably wouldn’t be a problem. If anything, I’ll just use what I learned to get a smoother transition into college. I also didn’t point this out but I do plan to major in physics (or maybe chemistry instead).
AP Physics C
Grade: 11-12
Prerequisites: Physics Pre-AP/IB and Pre-Calculus or IB Math SL2
Although it may include topics such as wave motion, kinetic theory and optics, this course concentrates on topics in classical mechanics and electricity and magnetism. In the first semester, calculus is used in problem-solving and in derivations related to classical mechanics. In the second semester, calculus is used freely in formulating principles and in solving problems related to electricity and magnetism. Although laboratory experiments are performed in this course, the emphasis is on setting up and solving problems. Students should expect five to six hours of outside work per week. Calculator required.