No APs

Applying to College
1

<p>So I know all the adcoms say, "we evaluate in the context of your school...", and it might really be true--but if I don't have APs (because my school offers 0)--and another person is competing with me with 5s all over the place--won't they give the edge to the other person? </p>

<p>Even if its true that they do evaluate applicants "in the context of their school", I'm not really prepared to be apathetic about it...maybe I'll take some AP tests?</p>

<p>I do a lot of work at the school I'm currently at and every class is Honors, so I'm not going to do the whole community college/ dual enrollment thing either (nobody--not even the 4.0/2400 kids do that here-). Basically, I'm challenged at the school I'm at even though it doesn't have APs. </p>

<p>Since I'm a rising junior, I have some time to figure how I should make up for my lack of APs...any ideas? I'm basically looking for ideas that can make me look more academically focused (which I am) </p>

<p>thanks</p>

2

<p>There is a lot of things that college adcoms look at when they decide whether to offer admission.</p>

<p>Yes, your “context” relating to your school is one thing, but also academic rigor is another. </p>

<p>For example, although your school doesn’t offer APs - you still might not convey negatively when compared to an individual that has 5s all over the place if 1) you stand out academically in your school or 2) show that you’re qualified through other means (SAT scores, extracurricular accomplishments).</p>

<p>Let’s give an example. Let’s say we have Applicant A and Applicant B applying to Anytown College (which generally looks for 2000+ SAT students).</p>

<p>Applicant A goes to a school with 1 AP course, but is at the top of her class, has a 2200 on her SAT, and is very involved with ECs when taken in relation to the rest of her classmates.</p>

<p>Applicant B goes to an elite prep school with 20 AP courses, and he took 6, which he got 4s and 5s in. He gets an 2200 on the SAT as well, and is decently involved with ECs at his school.</p>

<p>If I were the adcom, I would take both. Lack of AP courses isn’t your fault - but you have to demonstrate that you’re able to be flexible and demonstrate competence (SAT score high enough for the school you’re looking at) and go beyond your limitations (through other channels: ECs, volunteering…etc.)</p>

<p>If you’re really looking for an academic option though, you can self-study APs this year and take AP exams on your own. AP doesn’t limit you to having to have taken the test. If you’re not used to self-studying, however, you might need to find a teacher or a HS/college student that would be willing to tutor you throughout the year. I also came from a school that had very little APs (we had 5), but I eventually went to college having taken 14 AP exams. </p>

<p>In short, don’t let your circumstances limit you. Good luck!</p>

3

<p>Not all schools have AP’s or that many. Some choose not to. You can take some AP’s if your courses were good enough anyway. At D’s school there is no AP English, they feel their program is more than sufficient. Many take the English AP and pass it.</p>

4

<p>You can always self-study if there are a few subjects that really interest you…</p>

5

<p>I do believe schools when they say they evaluate in the context of the applicants HS. I know a young woman who went to a small, rural school that had no honors courses, no APs, serviced a very wide geographical, social, and economic population, did very well on SATs and ACT. Mom and Dad drove many thousands of miles throughout the kids’ childhoods to see that they had a wide range of activities including music lessons, concerts, plays, etc etc etc. She is currently a student at Harvard. </p>

<p>The point of this is that you should definitely take advantage of everything your school and your environment have to offer. But you can’t possibly “blame” your school for the program that it offers. Do the best you can do with what you have, and trust that the admissions committees will know how to evaluate your application. There is too much variety in the world for them to pit schools, geographical locations, etc against each other. Another thing entirely is whether schools evaluate students from the same school against each other. That gets into a different kettle of fish.</p>

6

<p>Feildston School in NYC totally eliminated their AP program.</p>

<p>There is a difference between your not having taken APs because your school does not offer them and your not having taken APs while your school offers Ap courses. </p>

<p>The first scenario will not be held against you while the second scenario will because it means that you have not chosen to challenge yourself with the most rigerous curriculum that your school offers.</p>

<p>If your school only offers 2 AP and you have taken both, then you have exhausted what your school has to offer. If your school offers 5 APs but you cannot take them until junior/senior year and you take them junior senior year, it’s still all good. However, if your shool offers 12 APs and you take
1, then the college may thing that you are not academically stretching yourself.</p>

7

<p>spiralcloud -</p>

<p>Your school doesn’t offer any AP classes. You feel challenged by your coursework. You are active in your school. Please believe it once and for all: THIS IS JUST FINE!!</p>

<p>Do not waste your time, trouble, and money on AP tests. Not one single college or university expects or requires you to do that. They will like (or dislike) you for many, many other more important reasons.</p>

<p>Wishing you all the very best.</p>

8

<p>If your school is challenging, it shouldn’t take too much self-study to take the APs. For instance, I took the Chem AP after finishing Chem II (my school’s highest chemistry course) and I only spent about 10 hours total doing the extra studying and taking the test. You just need to tell your teachers early, and check the AP syllabus so you know what material you’re missing.</p>

9

<p>If your school doesn’t offer AP courses, that’s not a problem.
And, you shouldn’t feel pressured to take the exams, either.</p>

<p>I took only one AP exam in my high school career, English Literature and Composition, and I scored a 5 on it. I wanted to show my colleges I was a half-decent writer even though I never got higher than the equivalent of a B in English at my school.</p>

<p>APs can help you, but they’re expensive to pay for and time-consuming to prepare for.</p>

10

<p>thanks you guys…</p>

<p>I’m not that much of a worrier usually about school-stuff, but all my friends from where I live (not my school) have usually taken between 15-20 AP classes/tests before they graduate–and they all tell me that colleges will “look down on me” for not taking enough</p>

<p>but, I think I’ll take a couple–maybe english and calc</p>