<p>Hey, I never was able to understand how AP Credits can save you money in college in terms of required graduation credits and whatnot. I hear this a lot, but I could ever figure it out. Don't colleges charge certain tuition per semester anyway, so how do the credits have effect? And are the credits even useful, especially when I know for sure that I'm going to end up graduating with much more than 124 credits? Thanks a lot for any help.</p>
<p>.... No, that's not how it works. </p>
<p>Let's say for example, I take the AP Chemistry test and get a five. At most institutions, that's about 8 credits (some 4, but I know at my local university, it's 8). Anyways, eight credits is a lot. The idea behind AP is that you take the test and get credit for college classes while you're in high school. The great part about AP though is that it's cheap- around 80 dollars. Divide that by 8 credits, and WOW. TEN DOLLARS PER CREDIT! SERIOUSLY! Even at public institutes, it's not THAT low. Even better, chem is a natural science, meaning if that I'm an English major, I don't have to satisfy that general requirement while I'm in college because I already did it. </p>
<p>Colleges don't "charge" you for taking AP credits. They only estimate your tuition per semester (it's not a blanket charge, trust me, and even so, AP credits are a completely separate category.) </p>
<p>.... Unless it's different at Columbia. Which I would doubt. (I didn't realize I was in the Columbia forum. LOL.) </p>
<p>Hope that helps. :)</p>
<p>it may not save you money explicitly (unless you can take fewer semesters, as you correctly guess). But it will save you TIME, lots and lots of time, which is itself tremendously valuable. By getting credits fors ome classes out of the way, you can either avoid intro classes and take more interesting classes, or take more electives, or simply take fewer classes and have more time to get good grades in your other classes (And sleep / have fun). it's very useful and well worth the time if you're prepared for the exam.</p>
<p>What Denzera said... and you can even graduate in 6 or 7 semesters and save a boatload of money.</p>
<p>I believe some schools, if not most of them, allow you to to enter their college as "accelerated," which means you will graduate in three years out of the traditional four based on your AP exams. If I recall correctly, Harvard requires four or five exams with a score of 5 for you to enter as an accelerated student.</p>
<p>^ Do the vast majority of Harvard students enter as accelerated, then? Because I can't imagine many students heading for Harvard that haven't taken five AP classes and exams.</p>
<p>No, they don't. Why would you get out of Harvard a year early? Harvard rocks.</p>
<p>You mean they could do the accelerated track, but they choose not to?</p>
<p>wth is QuixoticRick talking about?? sounds like a steaming pile of BS to me.</p>
<p>In terms of columbia.....this IS the columbia board so that's what we should be talking about right.....all you have to do in CC to graduate is to complete the 124 credit requirement (including all the required courses) and in SEAS you have to complete the 128 credit requirement (including the required courses and the requirement for one of the majors). However long this takes you to complete depends and varies on an individual basis....AP credits can knock off some lower level classes so you can take higher level classes. As far as i remember though there is either a limit to how many courses you can have count toward your completed credits or you can't have any count toward them. </p>
<p>Most people who go to prestigious colleges go there for the experience as well and i've had a few friends who could've graduated in 3 yrs or a semester early but decided to stay all four years because its a unique opportunity you'll never get to have again. </p>
<p>As for "accelerated programs" ....this makes me think of the "honors programs" and stuff at less prestigious (read bad) colleges. Its the way they try to attract smart students and bolster their academic environment...luring them in with less semesters and a fast track to a degree. As you might imagine good schools dont need to do this.w</p>
<p>Harvard</a> College Advanced Standing</p>
<p>"Freshmen who have taken College Board Advanced Placement exams need a total of four full credits to be eligible for Advanced Standing. Credits are earned by scoring 5 on a minimum of four AP tests. Certain AP examinations test material covered in one semester only, and for each of these, Harvard confers only one half credit toward Advanced Standing. For example, Calculus AB is equivalent to Math 1a, a semester course at Harvard, whereas Calculus BC includes material addressed in a full year of college mathematics. Thus, the Calculus AB test is valued at one half credit and the Calculus BC test, a full credit. Two half-credit exams count as one full credit toward the four required for Advanced Standing eligibility."</p>
<p>For IB it's a grade of 7 or higher on HL level on at least three exams.</p>
<p>I'm assuming that other universities have this sort of program as well.</p>
<p>Shraf - Not all schools that offer honors programs are "bad schools." Some are fine schools and offer certain privileges such as honors dorms which typically have less students partying all the time, earlier registration for classes to get higher rated professors, lower tuition rates, etc.</p>
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Most people who go to prestigious colleges go there for the experience as well and i've had a few friends who could've graduated in 3 yrs or a semester early but decided to stay all four years because its a unique opportunity you'll never get to have again.
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<p>People do it at Columbia though, though---even ones who like it. There's also diminishing marginal returns on the "unique opportunity" and "experience" as time goes on. And most people are ready to be done with college by the time second semester senior year rolls around.</p>
<p>i know a lot more people who <em>could</em> have graduated in 3 years or 3 1/2 years, than people who <em>did</em> graduate in 6 or 7 semesters. most people would rather take it easy, have a little fun, cut themselves a little slack. it also helps the grades to not be pushing yourself too hard all the time.</p>