I just got my AP scores back, and I made a 5 on my AP Calculus AB test. Should I take Math 151 for the GPA booster, or go straight to Math 152?
If you are planning on engineering then I suggest taking 151 to help your GPA when you apply for a major.
I would take Math 151 for the GPA boost but also it’ll prepare you more for 152. I’ve heard from multiple people that it isn’t a good idea to take the AP credit and skip ahead with math courses at TAMU, even people who would get 5’s would still kind of struggle in 152.
My son scored a 5 on his AP course and decided to skip Math 151 and move right to 152. He was very glad he did. Even Math 152 was not challenging for him. If you feel you know the material, then I suggest using your AP credit. My son even used one of his Physics credits to skip PHY 208. Some of these early courses are weedout courses so don’t assume you will get an “easy A”.
FYI, my son was accepted into Mechanical Engineering with no problems.
My daughter had a 5 in AB and BC. She chose to skip 151 and 152 against my advice. She still got an A in Diff EQ, so it can be done. She is a science major though, not engineering so keep that in mind.
My son also had fives in Calc AB and BC. He also skipped both the freshman Calc classes. He got As in both Honors Engineering Math 253 and Honors Diff EQ 308.
It probably depends on how strong you feel in Calc. and also how strong you feel about your approach to study. My S didn’t use his AP credit. He didn’t have full confidence in his ability and also said he appreciated getting to learn to be a college student in classes with familiar material. He aced all of his math with no regrets about the AP credit. It is a very individual decision.
My son also got a 5 on both AB and BC. He did what the school recommended which was to take credit for 151 only and not take credit for math 152. Calc 152 turned out to be very easy for him as did math 251. He wishes he had taken credit for both 151 and 152. It would have saved time and money.
But as @spectrum2 said it is a personal decision based upon your comfort level.
If you got a 5 skip it bruh. You’d be wasting your time otherwise.
Thanks for the feedback guys. I never really struggled at Cal 1 in high school; I pretty much breezed through without studying much. I was just wondering if the workload would be too much for the first semester of freshman year. Definitely a lot to think about!