question- how many ap tests should you take and self study for if your school only does not offer any?
If your HS offers no AP’s, you are not expected to self study Nor take the exams. You will be evaluated in the context of what is available at your HS.
Zero. No college has any expectation that a student self-study AP exams.
The only reason for you to take AP exams is if you are interested in attending a college which accepts AP exams as college credit, and at which the cost per credit is higher than the cost per AP exams, and then only if you are certain that you’ll get 5 or 4 on those exams.
That being said, self-studying for AP exams takes a lot of time, and you’d do better focusing on getting higher grades in the classes that your school offers. A high GPA helps a lot more than a few AP exams, even financially.
IMHO, self-studying is a lot of time spent for something of minimal value in the admissions process that could be used elsewhere.
If you have a real passion and deep interest in a subject, go ahead and learn it as an EC. But don’t do it thinking it will improve college admissions prospects.
What are the most rigorous course options offered to you?
If some of them that you took happen to cover substantially overlapping material as AP courses, then it can make sense to take those AP tests, which would not require much self studying (perhaps a little to fill in small gaps). But otherwise, self studying is typically of dubious value.
all of our classes are dual enrollment or honors automatically
If you are taking college courses while in high school, what level material are they?
For example, in math, are you taking calculus (for math and engineering majors; similar level as AP calculus), or are you taking lower level math (precalculus / college algebra or lower, i.e. high school level math that is considered remedial for college students), or have you reached higher level math (multivariable calculus, linear algebra, differential equations)?
all of our classes including math are technically at a honors level for HIGH SCHOOL. we have no option to take a certain level for a class, we all take the same classes at the same level. we take science-related classes like anatomy and physiology which are dual enrollment.
Are calculus or higher math courses offered?
Are science, history, English, etc. courses that are college frosh level or higher offered?
How high a level do foreign languages go?