Question about AP Credits and Advanced Standing

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
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My daughter was accepted for 2025 and will be attending. We have been looking at the information on the website and would like to confirm our understanding with regards to AP credits and Advanced Standing:

The handbook says that starting with the class of 2024, Advanced Standing will no longer be offered. In addition AP credits, in the past, were only accepted for students who participated in Advanced Standing.

Taken together, it sounds like AP credits will no longer be accepted for credit. They will be used, along with placement exams to determine appropriate course levels.

We are fine with this, but if true, is there any merit to taking AP tests this spring? She is currently signed up for 7 tests and has already taken Calc BC, English, Spanish, Biology, etc - the ones that could help for placement. She would welcome the break if they aren’t going to be useful.

Thanks for any input

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There are optional placement exams for foreign languages. These can be used in lieu of AP exams for placement.

There is also an optional bio placement test and mandatory writing and math placement test.

The only AP tests that one would have to take if interested in placing out would be Psych and econ (and in very limited cases - stat and Physics C)

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My son decided not to take any AP exams this year, for this very reason. These kids have been under so much pressure. Why study for AP exams that aren’t going to be used for anything? He has a flagship state U transcript with dual enrollment classes, and some AP exam grades from tenth and eleventh grade. Most of his classes this year are also dual enrollment. Hopefully, Harvard will accept the A grades in two semesters of 300 level foreign language on the state U school transcript as placing him out of the language requirement - if not, I think he will just start another language, since he hasn’t continued that language this year.

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They won’t. He will need to qualify for the exemption via the placement test, which is really not that hard to ace. And better than starting a new language from scratch. No sense wasting valuable space in the schedule unless he has a burning desire to learn another language. And even them, I question using 4 slots out of 32 on this.

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Yeah, I don’t know how well that’s gonna go, after over a year away from that language. Hopefully this will lead to tribal language refresher course for somewhat indifferent member of the tribe. Happy parent!

Well, I’ll let him know about this. He could certainly do some brush-up this summer, to do well on the placement exam.