Self-Studying APs: Improving Your App

<p>I was thinking of self studying for AP U.S Government because my school stupidly decided to make it a full year class of you take AP. Is it hard to do?</p>

<p>ap us gov isnt really hard to self study for.</p>

<p>Hey...I'm wondering how feasible it is to do well on these exams with the work involved</p>

<p>AP's with class
- Chemistry
- Calc AB
- US History</p>

<p>Self Study
- Micro
- Macro
- Environmental</p>

<p>(I might add one more if I cover enough of the self study over summer)
I recieved a 4 on world history (which I bsed most of the essays on), and I didn't freak out about studying. Do you guys think it's possible to do well on the 6 above mentioned? I do have the drive, and i have a big interest in math, science, and finance. Thoughts?</p>

<p>yo oasis, i don't know if u're still around or the questions have been asked already.
heres my situation:
i took calc AB this yr,and i think i did well on the exam,4 or 5, still waiting for the result in mail..
so this upcoming senior year,i plan to take ap stats exam, BC exam,maybe physics,psychology, and environmental science(big maybe).
my question is: i wanna take BC,though it's mostly AB stuff,and easy to self-study. i should take STATS, but the stats teacher doesn't prep the students for the exam, so i think i can self-study stats too. now i dont know what to choose: stats or bc.
another thing, do u think physics B is easy since i have calc background? i heard phy C is mostly calc stuff,but lot harder?</p>

<p>AP European history is fairly easy to self study. I studied out of the Princeton review book for about 10 weeks and got a 5. Sure, its a lot of information, but its mostly pretty interesting and easy to remember (minus the fact that so many of the monarchs have the same names :p)</p>

<p>Plus, the test itself was easy (IMO). For the free response essays, they give you 3 choices for the prompt, so there's virtually no danger of drawing a blank. </p>

<p>Go for it.</p>

<p>bummpity bump (this thread is so useful for all the self-study q's)</p>

<p>


</p>

<p>I think I could answer in oasis's stead.</p>

<p>After taking both BC and Stat, I think you could actually do both. BC is pretty manageable especially with a strong AB background; you only have to study the specific C portions, which I believe is primarily series. As for Statistics, it is really easy to self-study for. I managed to get a 5 after studying Barron's for two days.</p>

<p>As for your physics question, I took all 3. C is considerably harder if you lack a background in physics. From my viewpoint, B was considerably easier than the rest as the questions asked were based on the basic concepts of each topic. And yes, for C, you do need to know Calculus.</p>

<p>u said i should take env. sci after i take bio</p>

<p>and i just took ap bio, so should i?</p>

<p>My next years schedule (junior year):</p>

<p>AP Physics B
AP Lang
AP USH
AP Psychology
AP Calc BC
Concert choir
cross country/track</p>

<p>based on this info, what do u recommend that i self-study for?
-AP stat: i already took a community college class and got an A, so not so sure
-AP Env. Sci: I just took AP Bio...
-AP Chem: took honors chem freshmen year, and looking wanting to raise my sat chem score
-AP Music Theory: don't wanna spend 86 dollars on a prep book</p>

<p>@stl2cali2k1: I would not reccomend self studying music theory unless you are gifted with either prefect pitch or amazing musical analytical skills for aural examples (I am in neither category, lol.) The best class for you to self study considering your background is probably AP Enviro.</p>

<p>thnx...</p>

<p>i'll try my best lol</p>

<p>lets bump it uppp</p>

<p>Hey guys, I'm still around! :]</p>

<p>I haven't been on CC for the longest time after going to college, but I'll be around somewhat =p I think my AP knowledge still suffices for at least a couple of years, unless CB does something drastic lol, so feel free to post. I'll try my best to answer =D</p>

<p>im gona copy my old post and edit, here it is
yo oasis, i don't know if u're still around or the questions have been asked already.
heres my situation:
i took calc AB this yr,and i got a 5
so this upcoming senior year,i plan to take ap stats exam, BC exam,maybe physics,psychology, and environmental science(big maybe).
my question is: i wanna take BC,though it's mostly AB stuff,and easy to self-study. i should take STATS, but the stats teacher doesn't prep the students for the exam, so i think i can self-study stats too. now i dont know what to take as a course: stats or bc.
do u recommend taking calc II at a university during my senior yr?
another thing, do u think physics B is easy since i have calc background? i heard phy C is mostly calc stuff,but lot harder?</p>

<p>thanks!</p>

<p>Physics B has no calculus at all. C is calc though. Phys B covers more topics than C.</p>

<p>-Take the BC class if you're choosing between stats or BC.
-Calc II as in BC? You should just take the BC class at school, unless you really want to take classes in both stats and BC.
-Physics B will not be any easier with calc background. You still need to know the physical concepts - it's just you wouldn't need to use calculus to get the answers to the problem. Physics C is also harder conceptually, so it would be advisable to know at least what Physics B is about before jumping into C, despite a calc background.</p>

<p>okay,i'll take BC this coming yr then =P
i also took physics honors this yr, so i might self study phy B; it shouldn't be too hard since i already have some knowledge of physics.</p>

<p>thanks!</p>

<p>So next year as a senior I will be taking: Philosophy, English, Advanced Functions, Calculus and Vectors, Data Managment, Physics, and Chemistry in a Canadian private school that doesn't offer any AP or Honours courses. I figure I will be able to take AP Calculus BC, AP Physics C, AP Chemistry and AP Biology if I combine my in class learning which is science heavy, ( I took math, Physics, Chem and Bio in Grade 11 also) by myself. If i just study from review books like Barron's or Princeton Review, could I gaurantee myslef four 5's by studying a lot or would I require outside material to fill in the gaps? Do review books provide everthing I need?</p>

<p>Also, if I start studying my APs in the summer, could I fit a fifth AP (either Psychology, Statistics, or Computer Science AB) into my schedule? How should I schedule myself?</p>

<p>Thank you very much in advance and good luck to anyone else considering teaching themselves.</p>

<p>"Guaranteeing yourself 4 5's" depends on how hard you study and how much you remember. There's always some variability with what comes out on the exams (especially on the science exams), but then again, no AP course teaches everything. If you're looking at self-studying the "meaty" AP courses such as AP Science and Calc, I would suggest looking at multiple prep books and doing a ton of practice problems. If you're diligent and don't start too late, it's not impossible to get all 5s. However, all the science APs are much more intensive than the "easy" APs, so just make sure you're learning everything you read and don't slack on practicings.</p>

<p>If you want a 5th AP, I would discourage Comp Sci unless you're really good at programming. You'll have too much to do in one year. </p>

<p>I think the more interesting question is, why are you self-studying? If you're aiming for college admissions, senior year is generally too late, since you will not get your score before you get your admissions, and colleges also have to take your word for your self-study courses (who knows if you'll just drop before May?) But if you are doing this because you want to test your ability and learn more, then more kudos to you!</p>

<p>Yeah, the reason I want to study these AP subjects is just out of interest. I'm actually really bored in school because my class has a mere 17 people and so we can only offer regular courses. I'm fortunate enough that I can sleep or space out in class, never study, do all my work the day it's due (including 9 page essays on really easy topics) and still have a decent average (thanks to a heavy english and science curriculum last year I was able to get highest in my class with a 96% average). While that may sound like bragging it actually just says how low a level my school is teaching at and how easy it is to get marks. I know I can be a good student when I want to, but having such a high average should be impossible; I by NO MEANS deserve the marks I'm getting. Next year I'll probably end up doing the same thing in class (sleeping) and so I figured I might as well challenge myself and do something with my time. I hope to pursue a career with a PhD in Physics so I suppose there's no start in trying to do well early.</p>

<p>THank you very much for your help Oasis</p>