<p>It seems that nowadays, kids are starting college in high school with all of the AP classes offered. Some students are entering college with twenty and thirty credits. But what about the school districts that don't have the money to allow their students to learn the AP curriculum? Is it fair that these students essentially start off "behind" in college or does it not matter?</p>
<p>Well, income inequality is correlated with a lot of things education-related, not just AP classes. Also, the school does not need to offer the AP course for the student to take the corresponding AP exam.</p>
<p>It doesn’t put those students at a disadvantage at all. It just puts the students who took many AP classes at an advantage. But MITer94 is right, you DO NOT need to take the course to take the exam. many people self-study for exams. Usually people do this because: (A) They can’t fit that course into their schedule. (B) Their school does not offer that course. (C) They are homeschooled. or (D) They want to get far ahead by taking more AP classes than necessary.</p>
<p>Nothing is wrong with taking lots of AP classes (if the student can handle all of them). Colleges will understand if a school does not offer many AP courses. Colleges look at what is offered to a student. So if a student from one school takes 3 out of the 5 AP courses there, they will not be at a disadvantage for getting in compared to a student who took 9 out of 15 AP courses.</p>
<p>Also, most schools have a limit on how many AP credits they accept. And if you’re looking into Ivy League, there aren’t many AP courses that they accept. Most Ivy League schools only accept 5’s on the AP exams (except for maybe 1 or 2 courses, where a 4 could be accepted).</p>