<p>My S is a lopsided college applicant. His GPA is not at his SAT level. He has taken 3 APs in the junior year and scored well in AP exams. I would like to know:</p>
<p>(1) does it matter at all to show these good AP scores to buttress his application?</p>
<p>(2) none of the colleges are requiring AP scores as part of their application requirements. How should we send them? Just use their normal admissions mailing address to which transcript and such are sent?</p>
<p>(3) If we do send the scores, will they even look at them?</p>
<p>AP scores are self-reported in the common app. Yes, you should write this in the application where it asks for scores. If you don’t, colleges will assume he didn’t do well. Do not send the scores. These days, the college that admits him will get an end of year summary of all the tests. From that, often colleges calculate equivalent credits. APs are used to determine who is ready your child is for college level coursework, and how many credits he has already earned before starting. </p>
<p>They really don’t boost your chances, because some HS don’t offer them, while other HS over-stress them as a way to rank higher in the Newsweek rankings. These are generally just survey courses, so it’s not always a “better” choice. It does demonstrate the rigor of the transcript. Rumor has it, kids should take a minimum of 5-6 courses if they want to get into a top-tier.</p>
<p>Lizmane: Spoke with my son’s guidance director when he applied to schools two years ago. He said that AP scores rarely play a factor in admission to a school.</p>
<p>I’ve heard several admissions counselors say that taking the AP courses is what they care about, not the scores. The Common App has you self report the scores and those scores can be confirmed by the high school since they also get official score reports. You don’t need to send official score reports at this time. </p>
<p>Most colleges say they will look at everything that gets sent to them, even if it’s more than they want. Stanford says they won’t.</p>
<p>I had a similar question. D took 3 AP tests - did well on 2. The day of the third, she fell sick part way through the test and had to leave. She had to do a makeup the following week - but only one half of the test. Needless to say, the score on this one is not good. If she reports the scores, should she report all 3 and add an explanation about the third? Or should she just not report the third score?</p>
<p>There is a place on the common app to self-report AP scores. Fill them out there, but don’t bother with sending official score reports during the application process. You will only need to send an official score report to the school he actually goes to.</p>
<p>I think if there’s a big discrepancy between the grade in the class and the grade on the exam, some admissions officers will look at that with interest. Especially if it’s the same with his SAT scores. Suggests the student is bright, but maybe struggles with class work. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s going to count favorably towards his admission. College after all is all about course work after all, not really standardized test taking. but you should definitely report it if for no other reason than to give another data point for the officers to look at. If you only tell them GPA, that’s all they’re going to see, give them as much info as possible so that they can judge the student as a whole applicant.</p>
<p>arisamp, I think she should report all three, but at the end of the Common Application I’d just have a short sentence that your daughter fell ill during the third test. Alternatively the GC could address it in their letter.</p>
<p>I think more often admissions officers will assume a poor grade reflects a poor teacher.</p>