Senior year AP tests, which count and which matter?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - GENERAL
1

Hello, I’m a current high school senior deciding which AP tests I should take. I’ve already been accepted into UCI Honors program but I’m still waiting on Berkeley and LA so these are the three possible colleges I’ll be attending. I’m planning on majoring in computer science. I am currently taking AP comp sci A but my teacher does not teach at all, so I am by no means ready for the test. Should I just not take it? I will be taking Calc BC for sure and am also deciding on Stats and Physics C. Do UCs count 4’s or 3’s for Physics or Stats? Thank you for your time

2

I think it depends on the school. Check with the UC campuses because their websites have a chart of which APs count for college credit.

I mean take what you could. But then again, I would just take the exam just to show you attempted the exam at least. If money is a burden for you, then I would talk to your guidance/college counselor (whatever is applicable) to find an alternative to take it.

3

Thanks for your reply, this is my senior year and not junior year, does showing the “attempt” really matter? I thought colleges don’t care about your senior AP tests at all

4

I am not in admissions but you should have been accepted and submitted your SIR before the AP exams so I don’t believe taking the test matters. Many schools want you to take Calc, Chem, Bio, etc even if you have already taken an AP exam.

5

The AP tests can count for general ed requirements at UCs. Each campus is different. At Berkeley and UCLA the English AP can help count for English/writing requirements and US Govt/history, but I don’t believe you can get class credit with APs there. At the other campuses, APs can count for actual breadth class requirements. You will need to check both the campus-wide policy (for the general reading/writing/govt/history) as well as the requirements of the specific college you will be in, i.e. college of engineering at Berkeley and UCLA (if you applied to Berkeley L&S, then obviously look at L&S requirements), while at UCI that is the Bren School of Information and Computer Science.

6

Also, if you plan on going to graduate school, make sure that the graduate program you are interested in accepts AP in replacement for required lower division classes (math, chem, bio, etc). Some accept whatever the college accepts. Others want you to take the college level math and sciences.