Should I Use My AP Credit?

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
1

I was wondering whether or not it’d be more beneficial for me to use my AP credits in college.

On one hand, I could pass the lower level classes, and take higher level classes to fulfill my pre-med requirements.

On the other hand, I could take the lower level classes, and do better in them.

I also know that most Med schools don’t accept AP credit for their pre-med reqs.

Any comments/advice is helpful!

2

@ska124 It helps to do AP and use it in college. You are better prepared, helps to satisfy any pre-req if there are any sequence (AP Chem helps to do OChem in the 1st semester itself) to be met or where there are long queue to register (like UC). Also AP Bio useful, since that enables to do more courses like Genetics, Cell or Molecular Bio, Physiology etc to satisfy premed reqs rather than doing basic bio as 1 or 2 courses in college. Indeed, many schools accept AP credit for their premed reqs.

3

The opposite thought is that you need as many GPA-booster classes as possible in college, which in this case happen to be a lot of the AP classes. However, you need to watch out for so-called weeder classes, in which case you may want to use AP credit to replace those if you can. For example, at UC-Berkeley it’s failed well-known that Math 1B (Calc 2) for many of the profs is a big weeder, so having credit for AP Calc BC was a big help.

4

Definitely use any AP history and English credits.

5
  • Shows academic strength.
  • No issues with having to mark any courses as Repeat on medical school applications.
  • Does not waste your time and tuition in college repeating what you know. ~ Should try the college's old final exams of courses to be skipped before deciding whether to skip.
  • May be more difficult because of more advanced material that you have not seen before.
  • Theoretically easier, since you have seen the material before. ~ Common choice for pre-meds.
  • Grading curve may be more difficult than assumed, because many other pre-meds repeating AP credit will be in those courses.
  • If AP credit is shown on transcript, may have to mark the college courses as Repeat on medical school applications.
  • Can be a waste of time and tuition in college repeating what you know.

What you decide could be different for each AP score for which your college allows subject credit and advanced placement.

6

This, if you can, or talk with a professor in that department (not admissions) to see what their thoughts are. I’ve seen kids repeat courses and get bored and I’ve seen kids skip courses and wish they hadn’t because the course at the U was far more in depth than AP and they were behind in their next course, esp with Calc, Bio, and Chem.

It depends far more on the school than one would think. There is no “one way is correct for all schools” answer. The default tends to be to retake the courses (not using AP credit) because a “bored A” is better than a “wow that was tougher than expected B or C” when one needs a high GPA. However, if you can take a prior final exam you’d have a better idea where you fit in. Most profs also know whether AP is a good pre-req or not regardless of what their school says about accepting credit.