I am a high school junior and I am currently the number one student in my school. I know that taking several more AP classes would boost my GPA , but the ones I want to take are not offered in my school. My original plan was to self study these APs. The consequence is that these would not show on my transcript. My counselor told me it is possible to take certified AP classes online (which will show on my transcript), but those would not only conceal my ability to self study but also are rather expensive. My dilemma is, should I take the online classes and secure my number one position, or self study the APs and very likely not be able to become the valedictorian? What factor does the universities care more? Thank you very much and sorry for the wordiness!
I’ll take courses that I want to take, no matter if it’s for school, online or self study. There is no need to trick the system or yourself to become valedictorian. There is no guarantee wether annadcom is going to like top rank or top rigor, you shouldn’t plan your life around that.
Imagine that your school did not rank, but only indicated to colleges which students were in the top 7 or 10%. Which classes would you take then? Those are the classes you should take. And will taking these online classes interfere with your ECs?
Don’t bother self studying for APs. Colleges aren’t impressed by it. And being Val isn’t a bid deal. It’s not awarded until after school admission results are out.
There is zero advantage to online AP classes. If you want AP test scores to use for college credit or to place out of intro level classes, then self study for free. Top colleges will not care and you risk jeopardizing your good grades for no real goal. Top colleges care about the highest grades in the hardest classes, bottom line.
More AP courses may make you eligible for AP State Scholar.
If you spend all your time self-studying for APs, as opposed to getting involved in good extracurricular activities, you may find that it won’t help your college admissions all that much. Why do you want to take these APs?
AP State Scholars are not announced (and from what I can tell, they aren’t even announced broadly at all) until July of senior year. Well after college selection process is completed.
You are right. I stand corrected.
Self studying doesn’t matter to colleges. They want you in class, participating, taking tests, etc. If your only alternative is taking some AP classes online do so, but remember that even elite schools don’t expect more than 6-8 AP 's total - as Stanford puts it "it’s not a game of whoever has the most AP’s wins ".
You need to develop strong EC’s, and push them as far as you can take them.
I agree and would also add that since senior year AP scores won’t be announced until long after admissions results, and there’s no other accountability for self studying, there’s no way for colleges to confirm that you’d learned anything at all.
Depends on where you live and where you want to go to college. If you live in Texas and want to go to a Texas school like UT Austin, being Val get’s you free tuition for your first year:-)
I generally agree with this sentiment, but for two things, 1) while it’s a little unclear, OP’s school apparently treats online APs as adjunct courses, with their grades included on the transcript and affecting class rank, and 2) learning is always good, whether in class, out of clas, online…
@sherpa thanks. To clarify, I don’t know if the OP gets a grade for online courses, only that they appear on a transcript. The expense isn’t justified, IMO. If the OP scores well on the tests, and the test results are self-reported, this more effectively accomplishes the same goal. Assuming the OP is still determined to do this.
@Lindagaf - We’re in agreement. As always I appreciate your passion. 
If you’re truly passionate about the self-study classes, find a teacher that you’re comfortable with in that department and do an independent study! For example, my friend is doing a latin independent study to prepare herself for the AP Latin exam, even though my school doesn’t offer AP Latin. A lot of art students do this for 3-D Studio Art or Music Theory, and it seems to be a really good alternative. There is a junior in the APUSH class I TA for that is trying to do one for AP Human Geo next year, and all she needs to do is get the department supervisor!
Overall, independent studies are a really good way to show passion and dedication to a subject, be able to take the AP exam (as taking the class isn’t actually a requirement for the exam), and get some credit!
^excellent suggestion