<p>I heard this comment from somebody, is it true?</p>
<p>If you are going to a competitive university, you shouldn't take the AP tests and skip the college classes, because those classes are more in depth than the AP classes. So if you want a good foundation of knowledge, don't skip the freshman college courses by passing the AP exams. </p>
<p>Are AP exams still worth taking?</p>
<p>Another thing. Will colleges assign you grades for your scores on the AP exams? Like a 5 is an A, 4 is a B. If so, that would probably hurt my GPA.</p>
<p>The rigor of your AP class in high school depends upon the particular teacher. I think the majority of AP classes are at least equivalent to freshman intro classes at most universities. (That’s the reason for a standard curriculum in each AP subject.) But certainly some AP classes are considered a “joke” by students. I think the actual pass statistics on the AP exam (% achieving scores of 3, 4, 5) in your AP classes will give you your answer.</p>
<p>It is entirely up to you as to whether or not to ask for AP credit or just take the college class. If you do take the AP credit, there is no impact on your GPA. </p>
<p>Many students who do score well on the AP exam opt to take the freshman class anyway, hoping it will result in “an easy A” and helping their GPA. From posts I’ve seen here on CC, it seems that premed students are often advised not to take the available AP credit and take the intro class in college instead, as some medical schools do not accept AP credit.</p>
<p>Just a clarification: I’m pretty sure that a 5 on an AP exam is equivalent to an A in that college course, a 4 to a B, etc. but sd6 is correct when he says that you will not get a C for a class that you skip because of getting a 3 on the exam. By passing the exam with a proficient score (determined by the college giving you the credit), you are doing just what it says - skipping or “testing out of” the class.</p>
<p>Colleges do not assign a grade for scores on AP Exams. You just get the credits for the class. If you are worried about having a good foundation of knowledge, you can always take the class in college even if you have a 5 on the AP Exam. But I wouldn’t suggest it if the AP credits will fulfill your general requirements.</p>
<p>In my experience I have found that taking ap classes is useful. when you apply to colleges, some may weight your gpa depending on what aps you took and what you got in them. you are also able to skip certain classes that don’t have to do with your major. aps also provide a good foundation for college and show colleges how hard you have worked.</p>
<p>for instance, I took ap euro so I won’t have to take its equivalent in college next year, but since i will be majoring in biology, i have to take the bio and chem intro course depsite having taken the aps for both in high school.</p>
<p>AP grades corresponding to grades in a class is misleading. You get credit for the class and are exempt from taking it. You are not given a class grade. The purpose of saying that a 5 is an A, a 4 is a B, etc. is to give you an idea of what grade you would score in that class if you took the class. It may or may not be an accurate representation of the grade you would have received, however, because the rigor of college classes differs from one college to another.</p>
<p>My cousin is an engineering major, and since I probably will be, too, he told me to definitely bypass intro English, history, psych, etc. classes using my AP credits in all those, but still retake Chem, Physics, and Calc 2 despite taking AP classes in all of those by the time I graduate from high school because it’s good to have a solid foundation in those before I continue on in my major.</p>
<p>But I guess if you’re a history major or something, it would be more interesting to use all your credits and delve into more specific kinds of history that interest you specifically. So it probably depends.</p>