Hi everyone,
I am currently taking an AP Studio Art course and I love the class. However, in the realm of college applications to a T20 school, will this course be considered less rigorous than a standard academic AP like AP Chemistry or Biology? Thank you so much!
Is AP Studio Art a good choice?
If you have an advanced interest in art, sure.
It’s an AP class; it’s considered rigorous. That said, it’s an elective and should not replace a core subject, unless of course, you are applying to an art school.
For non-art schools, even though this is not replacing any core classes (I am still taking math, science, english, etc.), will it put me at a disadvantage?
Not at all. And actually if you have APs other subjects, you would be differentiating yourself a bit, since relatively few people take AP art.
Ensure you hit the requirements for graduation and the college. Beyond that, take what interests you. Some take nutrition or cooking (my daughter did and got into a top 10 LAC). Others maybe journalism or photography.
You need rigor and in a wide swath of classes - but you also need to pursue what you enjoy. You’re allowed some freedom - and since it says AP in front of the course name, it’s going to be considered rigorous regardless. So it’s a win win
As everyone else has said, so long as it’s not replacing a core class, AP Studio Art will not at all place you at a disadvantage at non-art schools and can be a nice elective choice if it makes sense for you. My D17 took AP Studio Art in senior year as she loved art - it was one of her major extra curricular activities and the AP Studio Art class supported that as part of her “story.” She wound up being a math/geoscience double major at Hamilton College and I think she only wound up taking 1 art elective while she was there, but both throughout college and now starting her adult life she still does art for fun and relaxation.
Now I will caution you from D17’s experience that AP Studio Art will require a lot of hours of outside the classroom work to do well! So make sure that you account for that if your schedule includes a lot of other heavy classes. Other than that, have fun!
It’s certainly not going to hurt you, assuming a rigorous set of core courses.
Most student take gym/health, and many have an arts elective. AOs expect this - 8 core AP robots actually aren’t appealing. I suspect you’re at least as well off taking this as someone doubling up science or SS with ES or HumanGeo.
At the same time, most choir, band, etc. arts classes don’t have honors/AP designations.
Interestingly enough, my daughter’s ceramic class (not AP or anything and mostly populated by seniors) did really well in college admissions this past year. Not sure why, and none of the kids she knows will be studying art, but I thought I’d add this little data point of one for your perusal.
I’m glad you’re taking this, and that you love it. I don’t think that it would harm your applications at all. In fact, it might give you something interesting to discuss in your interviews. I’d say that this is probably a valuable experience for you. Enjoy it!