<p>Yes, you must take a CI-H HASS first semester to qualify to be offered sophomore standing second semester. From the Academic Guide:
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Early Sophomore Status</p>
<p>A freshman completing the first term may advance his or her class year only if he or she is offered early sophomore status by the Associate Dean for Academic Resources and Programming. To be eligible for early sophomore status, by the end of the first term a student must have completed 25% of the undergraduate program, including an appropriate Communication Intensive subject (either a CI-H or CI-HW) and a majority of the Science Requirement subjects (mathematics, physics, chemistry, and biology). No student will be considered for early sophomore status unless he or she has completed a Communication Intensive HASS subject (CI-H or CI-HW) in the first semester.</p>
<p>An eligible freshman who wishes to declare early sophomore status may do so in the Academic Resource Center (ARC) on or before Add Date of the second term at MIT. Since this change involves switching from ABC/No Record grading status to letter grades, no request for this change will be approved after the fifth week of the term. The student should carefully consider this decision, as he or she cannot later make a request to revert to freshman status.
[/quote]
From what I have observed, this means that if by the end of your first semester you have completed the physics, math, bio, and chem requirements and have passed a CI-H class. You cannot ask for sophomore standing; you are sent an email from the Dean if you qualify, asking if you want to take advantage of the opportunity. There are pros and cons to doing so, so it's worth evaluating carefully.</p>
<p>Humanities AP 5s do not count in this scheme. Your AP credits will be seen on the report you had sent to MIT and your advising folder (I think that's it) will show placement out of the appropriate GIR courses and you can sign up for the next course in the series (unless you pass out of it via an ASE during orientation).</p>
<p>(Current student experts: how'd I do? ;) )</p>