<p>Do bad scores on AP tests affect your college admissions? or if you choose not to send them in</p>
<p>I can’t be positive. Obviously a 1 on the AP test probably won’t reflect well on the rigor of your course, especially if you did well in the class - colleges might just think it’s a poorly-taught, easy course. However, I’m not sure about whether or not you choose to send them in affecting it.</p>
<p>AP scores technically don’t have an impact on your college app since they are self-reported. But, as reesezpiecez said, they probably don’t look that good if you get a 1. But if you get a 4 or 5 they really can’t hurt. But they certainly won’t be the difference between you getting in to a particular college and not.</p>
<p>For the top colleges, AP scores will indicate the rigor of your AP classes. For example, If you earned an A in AP Calc, but only scored a 2 or 3 on the AP test, it indicates easy grading at your school for that class.</p>
<p>I’m just curious what it means if your course is not that rigorous. Like, compared to the same courses at other schools, it’s won’t be that great, but usually, AP classes are the most rigorous classes. And generally, people don’t have the option of changing schools.</p>
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It is true. However, you may be able to get some ideas about real AP standards by getting some sample tests, study by yourself and get a good score.
That said, I do think admins consider the school situation. One girl I know got two 1s in her AP tests. (she did get some 4s and 5s) but still got in MIT.</p>
<p>^^That is really interesting. </p>
<p>shravas - what I meant is that it was probably a poorly taught course. If you do well in an AP course but tank on the exam, it means that the A you got probably wasn’t that hard to get, since you still got a 1 or a 2.</p>
<p>I’ll use an example. In my school, AP Environmental Science, while an AP class, is probably the easiest science class availabe in the entire school. It has a reputation for being super easy, so many kids who otherwise would not have taken an AP course will take it in hopes of “looking good for colleges.” However, even though it’s relatively easy to get a B or an A, the majority of these kids get 1s and 2s on the exam (I am not kidding; I know several who got 1s last year), because the course was so easy that they were NOT well-prepared even though it was an easy A in school. Such a discontinuity might clue colleges in that although the course had “AP” in front of it, it was poorly-taught, and probably didn’t challenge the student.</p>
<p>I’m not saying that this is correct, but it seems logical to assume that if you bomb an AP exam, (some) colleges will assume that you don’t know the subject matter well. And if you don’t know the subject matter well and still get a B or an A in the course, then it must not have been a very hard course.</p>
<p>If you’re worried because you have low AP scores, it’s simple: don’t opt to designate a recipient of your AP exam scores until you take your last AP exams senior year. That way, you’re already accepted into a college.</p>
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<p>How does that logic work?</p>
<p>thanks for the comments.</p>
<p>my point is, if I do poorly on an AP test, most likely, I will not send in my scores to any colleges. If I dont send them in, it hints at admission officers that i scored poorly right?</p>
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<p>Or that you did not take the test.</p>
<p>Does it look bad to say you did not take the test? I decided not to take my AP physics B test because I was not prepared for it. I dont plan on pursuing any type of physics major in college…</p>
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<p>I just wouldn’t mention it.</p>
<p>thanks silverturtle…</p>
<p>As a message to other readers: It is generally a good idea to take the AP test for a given subject even if you do not feel well prepared, as the opportunity cost of taking the test is likely negligible given that scoring better than expected is a significant possibility; just don’t send poor scores.</p>
<p>also, do colleges like to see improvement GPA-wise year by year in high school?</p>
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<p>If you have a relatively low overall GPA, an upward trend is the best way to have achieved it.</p>
<p>Not to hijack the thread, but…
can you send only certain AP scores, i.e. pick and choose? Or is it all or nothing?</p>
<p>Silverturtle, many colleges do not require AP scores to be sent to them, but rather that you just type it into the common app by yourself. As a result, they don’t carry as much weight as SAT scores and transcripts, which are sent directly by CollegeBoard and your school, respectively. Many people would agree.</p>
<p>collegehappy, I will agree that at above average schools, as well as top public-state schools (like UVa), a bad score on an AP exam is near negligible on your application. However, once you begin qualifying for elite schools that are extremely selective and every other applicant looks exactly like you, a bad AP exam score could be used as a tipping factor.</p>