If I plan on majoring in English, is it a good idea to take AP Literature?

I was planning on majoring in English and taking AP English Literature and Composition, but my school doesn’t have very good AP Lit teachers. They are either too easy and you don’t learn anything or you do learn but the teacher barely gives out any As (like 1 to 3 people). Should I risk lowering my GPA and take the class or not? Will universities look down on my application if I plan on majoring in English but didn’t take AP Lit? Thanks!

You should take it and be one of those “1 to 3 people” :slight_smile:

Yes take the class. It is hard to say whether universities will “look down” on your application if you don’t take it, but if this is the subject you are most interested in and you plan to major in it, then by all means pursue your academic strengths. If you get the teachers that are too easy, do some extra work on your own. If you get the more challenging teacher, make sure you rise to the occasion and meet the expectations. The risk of lowering your GPA is trivial in comparison to the gains you may achieve.

No matter which teacher you have, you presumably will at least get the reading list.

In another post, you had some questions about some top twenty-sorts of colleges. If your timidity towards the most advanced classes in your school – especially one firmly rooted in a potential college major – then you’re going to be extremely disappointed next March. GPA protection and taking the easy route equals rejection at competitive schools.

Definitely take it. Schools will question why you would want to major in English if you took regular instead of AP.

I agree…take it.

Take it. You may also want to supplement with a senior seminar or a college course (you could schedule it for the Spring) in Composition, Philosophy, History, English…