<p>Which one is "better" for admissions? I'm thinking of dropping AP Psych next year to go and do a gender studies course at a local Top 20 university, but will colleges look at the extra free period in my schedule (since our school doesn't "officially" recognize college classes) as detrimental?</p>
<p>Take the college class without a doubt, especially if u wanna major in that field.</p>
<p>You’ll need to send a transcript from the college as well as from the highschool, so the class won’t just disappear. They’ll know the extra period is because you took a college course.</p>
<p>In most cases, I’d say AP is preferred, but if it’s a even somewhat prestigious school, and the AP you’re dropping is something lame like Psych, you should totally go for it.</p>
<p>If you live in a state that has PSEO (mn, ohio, ??) have the high scool apply the college class through that program. That way it doenst look like you missed anything. Plus the credits are free.</p>
<p>Oh, no PSEO for me. Our school district doesn’t even offer dual-enrollment at all, so I’ll be paying somewhere around $1200 for the course after parents’ employee tuition benefits.</p>
<p>Also, think about what class you’ll enjoy more. If it’s a college class with a great professor and your parents can afford it then it may be worth it. You also may have a better chance of getting college credit for a college course than AP, but that depends on what school you go to. </p>
<p>It does look good if the professor writes you a letter of recommendation. I took a college class my junior year and got the prof to write me a great letter of recommendation. I’m in at 7/7 schools I’ve heard from (haven’t heard from ivy leagues or reaches yet).</p>
<p>I’d go with the college course, especially if you’re more interested in it than you are in AP Psych.</p>
<p>I have a senior son who will graduate with 39 college credits this May (we live in Ohio). He opted to take all gen edu PSEO classes at the local community college. Our HS does dual-enrollment so the classes and books were free and the credits counted as HS credits. He made the Dean’s List this Fall (must take more than 8 cr hrs) which has looked good for him on scholarships he’s now applying for. He wants to major in engineering and was accepted into the chemical engineering program at Ohio State, Dayton, and Cincinnati.</p>
<p>If you are applying to highly selective private colleges, they will prefer AP courses and some will not accept any PSEO credits. State schools often have an automatic acceptance of PSEO classes. My son knew the colleges he wanted to apply to so we checked every PSEO course he was going to take against the 3 colleges to make sure they would apply at all 3. Dayton, being a private Catholic college, was willing to work with us to determine what they would accept. It’s a TON of work but will allow him to graduate earlier, do more internships, or graduate with a BS/MS in 4 years. We liked the options it gave him. </p>
<p>I put together a PSEO Guide of sorts if you’d like a copy. Not sure it would apply to other states but may provide you with some helpful information. Email me at <a href="mailto:patti@thechangeagent.com">patti@thechangeagent.com</a> for that guide.</p>
<p>My S did this in his senior year. He had taken a lot of APs and was seriously, seriously bored and fed up with high school. He only needed a few high school credits to graduate. So he took them in the afternoon and took courses at a local university in the morning. This was not a dual-enrollment situation; he was enrolled in the (much more challenging) university classes as a “Community Scholar” or part-time student. I don’t know if it was the best way to impress the colleges he was applying to–his high school class rank took a hit, because the college courses didn’t count toward his GPA as the AP courses would have. But he was much more intellectually engaged, got a head start on his major, and met wonderful faculty and fellow students in his field. The professors in the courses he was taking gave him helpful advice, and wrote him letters of recommendation. By the time he got his college acceptances in the spring, he had decided to attend this university fulltime (and I’m positive that the fact that he was getting As there, and had support from the faculty, helped him get in).</p>
<p>It’s true that many elite colleges won’t accept dual-enrollment credit, but you say that your local university is a “top 20 school,” so this is a different matter. Research the class carefully, though, to make sure you’re getting a good professor. Make sure you clear everything with your high school guidance counselor. Include the transcript from your college as well as your hs transcript in your application.</p>
<p>If it’s not a good university, then I’d say take the AP. But if it is a very well-known and prestigious university, then by all means take the college class. It looks better than AP, and it will look GREAT if you apply to that college (they might even give you credit for it if you go there).</p>
<p>You should talk to your school counselor about it cause they’ll explain the pros/cons to you. Ideally, taking both would be best. I was in a similar situation last year and I ended up taking AP Psych during the school year and a European History course at the local community college during the summer. </p>
<p>It also depends on what you think you can handle. College courses move a lot quicker while school AP courses stretch out material over most of the school year. Were you planning on taking the AP test for psych? What is your major? If you’re majoring in psychology…then scoring a 5 on the AP test and getting As in the class would look a lot better than a college course in gender studies, imo.</p>