Frankly you can’t back into this and assume your AP scores didn’t matter, because you did get acceptances. We don;t know your major and, for holistic colleges, what else you brought to the table, besides a non-spectacular GPA (whatever that means.)
Yes, 4 is respectable. The issue is that any college with massive competition is going to have plenty of kids with great applications and any holistic college will be looking at everything.
People get into a mess when they assume. Or, when they connect the wrong dots.
I guess the problem is that all of this is assumption: the point was to add one more subjective data point, not to use it as a pillar in an argument. I would put much more weight in the fact I was told that by multiple, reputable college counselors. But still, no one here really has any more certain knowledge about how AP scores are considered unless someone in the thread has worked in admissions. I think most people here are doing the same thing I’m doing, I’m just one of the only ones actually noting my sources. Really, this entire thread is assumption.
I think that this is pretty much what I said, HYPSM+ level, maybe a few more, but overall, most colleges don’t put much stock into them.
But also remember that the students who apply to the top 25 schools are also highly skewed in terms of being highly-motivated/capable vs. the general student population.
I’m not an expert, my son is a junior and we are just starting to look at colleges and such. However I have a friend that I was discussing this with just this weekend. Her daughter took three AP classes her senior year and didn’t do well. Basically bit off more than she could chew. My friend felt that her AP grades and scores really hurt her when she applied to colleges, even though her grades and other test scores were good. She is in a community college now, hoping to transfer to a larger school.
AP Bio exam is one of the most difficult only 5% nationally get a 5 score, vs about 40% for the Calc BC exam. It’s not clear to me why someone would say AP test scores don’t matter. They are probably not as important as SAT Subject tests but they clearly indicate mastery of the material relative to other high school students nationwide. Try to get 5s, don’t obsess if you get some or many 4s, try to get nothing below this. If you do consider not reporting that score
When it comes down to setting your expectations and making college related decisions, you may want to go with the emphatic assurances from some students and parents that, “It doesn’t matter.” Or, “It’s only for college credit.” Go ahead and have your “Whew!” moment.
Or, you can consider the impact AP scores can have, for the reasons cited here, and make decisions accordingly. Which gives you a better result and some CYA? And remember, OP is listing some mighty reaches.
Btw, when you don’t report, what do you suppose the tippy top adcoms think?
Do AP tests really account for mastery? There has to be people that are exceptional in many areas but choke in standardized testing situations…
Imagine being stuck in a room for 3 hours, not a long time for how much questions you’re given… From my personal beliefs, tests like these don’t capture how well you know the subject, but rather how well you performed on that given day.
That being said, I’m not saying its not important to try on your AP exams, I think it is important to take it seriously so that you can reflect on your mastery of the course, however, I still cannot belief that it could weigh so much on an administration decision…
Could OP really get rejected (especially from ivys and selective schools) for not doing spectacular on AP exams, even with eloquent/provocative essays, well-rounded EC’s (showing devotion and passion), and sufficient GPA & SATs?
Note that you don’t submit AP score for college application in most cases (only a few schools that actually use AP/SAT2 scores in place of ACT/SAT for admission). Even if you order the score report, it would be likely sent to the registrar office instead of admission office.
Compare an AP test to the final exam in a college course. Final exams tend to be 2 to 3 hours in length, and cover the entire semester, or in some cases, two semesters.
As for do AP scores count or not, colleges tend to note whether they are considered or not in the application process.
@AnniiT feel in the exact same place! want to major in bio but the test was difficult for me because I didn’t time myself well for the MC and had to guess on like 8 of them!
Just want to let college bound people know, AP tests are complete jokes compared to real college finals…what you learn in AP chem classes is what you learn in a MONTH in college chem classes.
One thing you should keep in mind is that teacher’s can see your AP exam scores. If there is a teacher you are looking to get a letter of rec from, it would probably help to do well on the AP test!
Harvard offers pre-calc, and definitely offers first semester calculus. How could they expect a 5 on AP Calc BC and offer courses for people who didn’t take calc in HS or didn’t do well on the AP exam?
And Paul states: " Just want to let college bound people know, AP tests are complete jokes compared to real college finals…what you learn in AP chem classes is what you learn in a MONTH in college chem classes. "
He is apparently speaking from limited experience. Most college finals are the same length of time as AP exams, and for the exact same courses (freshman science or math), the final exams are similar to AP exams.
Our two semesters of freshman chemistry, and two semesters of freshman physics, and two semesters of freshman bio all match with the material covered in one year of the related AP class. The only material not in AP Chem is organic, which is sophomore year.
Tell me Paul, what did you learn in freshman chemistry for the other three months - organic structures and reactions?
It so happened that Paul may have attended a school whose undergraduate chemical rigor is far higher than average…
But can schools view a student that had multiple 4s and 5s in AP tests as more attractive because they cost less to the school in the long run? (I suspect that, if they exist, they tend to be state schools)
I could be wrong. In fact I skipped out Gen. Chem classes simply because I didn’t want my AP credit go wasted, but several people on CC and some of my friends who went to top schools told me so. I personally don’t have experience with Gen. Chem classes so…I could be 100% wrong.
I could be wrong, but I was under the impression that you only had to send in the AP score report the summer after the completion of your senior year. If this is the case, I don’t see how the scores would have any impact at all on your college admissions, unless you yourself wanted to self-report the scores before that.
For the competitive schools, many, many kids have AP scores to report before fall of senior year.
And I wouldn’t rely on what some guy selling essay help has to say.
