Should I take the AP test correponding to my IB equivalent?

<p>Hey y'all,</p>

<p>My guidance counselor said that our school has a deal - if you have an A or higher in an IB class then you can take the corresponding AP exam for free. I was just wondering what everyone's input on that was. I do understand that the syllabi are not the same (and in some cases quite drastically different) and would take a look at PrincetonReview/Kaplan/whatever study guide to make sure I was prepared.</p>

<p>Like I said, what do you think college's would think if they saw my Psychology Standard Level IB (hopefully 6-7) score along with my AP Pych score (hopefully 5), would it be a plus, a minus, or just "ok, so I guess he knows psych".</p>

<p>I've already decided I'm going to take Calc BC exam (taking cc courses), but mainly was wondering about Psychology and maybe Biology next year.</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>It would be amazing if you pulled a 6-7 on an IB and a 4-5 on an AP simply because the two tests cover different materials (very different in many cases like chemistry) so it shows that your knowledge is broad.</p>

<p>I'd say try it for math for certain, but for classes like biology and chemistry only do it if you want to.</p>

<p>Thanks for the feedback.</p>

<p>I also had another question (and to others, I'd still appreciate thought on original topic): Will college see my AP score if I don't tell/show them?</p>

<p>i got have not turned in my AP scores and I have applied to 6 colleges. It isn't a requirement... I don't think. This is my senior year and I am taking AP tests of courses i have never taken. It can't hurt and for you it is free. I don't think you have to show your AP scores but if this is your junior year and you haven't taken a AP test yet I think you should go on and take it. </p>

<p>The only reason I wouldn't take it is if I got 4 5's and didn't want to have a bad score on my report. I would then send the 4 5's to a college.</p>

<p>The only problem is that the AP tests are like the SAT tests - the college sees ALL your AP scores; you can't just send the 4's or 5's.</p>

<p>I wish they operated like the ACT's!</p>

<p>You can pay $15 to withhold an AP score on your score report. </p>

<p>I am taking/have taken AP tests when they do correspond to IB tests, but not where the syllabi are too different - I'm taking History of Europe for IB, but not AP Euro (AP covers several hundred years more than IB does, and IB focuses on very different areas). AP Chem, on the other hand, was cake after a year of IB Chem. Etc.</p>

<p>Do it. I agree with Sephiroth that IB and AP Psych are completely different, but I took the AP exam and got a 5 without studying too much extra material. Working with a prep book for a week or two should get you well prepared for the exam. IB Psych SL won't get you college credit, so you might as well try the AP. I took the corresponding AP exam (for free) of every IB exam I took except history, and I'm very glad I did. Just remember to name-drop like crazy on the IB exam- they like to see specific names and studies!</p>

<p>I think AP Calc should be fine to take. IB Math is usually Calc plus other stuff. My friend took both and got a 5 on the AP Calc and a 7 on the IB Math. I'm not sure about other subjects. It probably depends on what you know on your own about the subjects. I took AP Lit for kicks and got a 4 last year. It's probably the same with the SAT II's. I took the SAT II in US History even though we had only gotten through WWI in my IB History of the America's class and pulled a 710 because I know a lot of US history.</p>

<p>One thing you may want to look at is the testing dates. There is no way I'm talking the AP Calc test this year because it's the same day as my IB Math test. I had another friend who got a 5 on the AP Calc but only a 5 on IB Math because he was so exhausted after taking AP Calc (my friend who got the 5/7 is just brillant, so you can't really trust her scores).</p>

<p>Basically you don't want to mess up your IB grades over some silly AP test. If you are looking for college credit, it might be a good idea to take the AP tests. Getting credit for IB can be hard if the class isn't HL.</p>

<p>fiddledd- you do realize you can request a make-up AP exam if you have a conflicting IB exam? Thanks to make-up exams, last May I took IB Chem HL, IB Biology HL, IB English HL, IB History HL, IB German SL, AP Chemistry, AP Biology, AP Physics C, AP English Lit, and AP Calculus BC (yep, no school for me in May). It's not really not that bad because a lot is overlap; I didn't study for any of my AP's that year except physics and calc. If the AP exam is free, I think it would be stupid not to take it. A 6 or 7 on an HL IB exam is much harder than a 4 or 5 on an AP exam, and college credit is what's important in the long run.</p>

<p>Well, I'm actually a junior this year, so I only have to worry about my Psych SL IB exam. </p>

<p>As for AP Calc BC, I'm actually enrolled in Math Method SL (which starts next year.. this year I'm forced to take precalc pre-IB) even though I petitioned the school to let me self-study Math HL (I would sit in a class and do it to get the required hours, yet they still said no). So I've been taking Calculus at the local community college (about to finish my second semester - getting A's), so I think that has prepared me enough (along with a prep book of course).</p>

<p>I think y'all have convinced me to take the AP Pych exam (because of convenience and easier to get credit), just gotta check out the date.</p>

<p>Thanks everyone so much for the advice! (Of course more is appreciated)</p>

<p>EDIT: And warbler, yep that was my mentality when I decided to create the thread, glad to see it echoed here.</p>

<p>This was mentioned on this thread but I have encountered conflicting information:</p>

<p>My guidance counselor says that the AP exam results will be put on my transcript no matter what I do. But I've heard from multiply sources that I can pay like 15$ to remove the score from what the colleges see.</p>

<p>So what's the real answer? Who's right/wrong or are they both right?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>Bring
Up
My
Post</p>

<p>There's two different transcripts; I'm not sure which one she's referring to.</p>

<p>1) Your high school transcript with your courses and grades. Some schools report AP scores on it. If so, I'm not sure there's a way to hide your scores.</p>

<p>2) College Board transcript with AP's. You can hide your scores for a fee, but don't bother. Most colleges don't require an official CB transcript until you matriculate, so just report the good scores.</p>

<p>Either way, I wouldn't stress about it too much. I really don't think a bad AP score will hurt you, especially since you're in IB.</p>