UC's and AP tests

Applying to College
1

<p>well i have the option to take Physics Honors (i'm in my junior year now) and have the teacher cover AP material with me friday and saturday nights to take the AP test (he said 3 students did this last year and got 5/5/4) OR take the AP physics class and take the AP test (well duh)</p>

<p>so i was wondering (i'm only applying to UCSD, UCLA, and UCB):</p>

<p>1.) is it better for me to take the honors course or the AP course? would taking an AP course look more rigorous (and therefore better) to UC's?
2.) i know that AP scores are self-reported and many people say that they are meaningless, but do AP scores matter? say if i got a 3 would that differ from a 5? do UC's even care about my AP scores?
3.) is it better to take the AP test junior or senior year? either way if i pass, i'll get the college credit, but if i take it junior year, the UC's will actually see my results (but then again, is the AP score even taken into consideration when evaluating my scores?)</p>

<p>I have 2 800's for SAT II but my GPA is pretty low (if i get straight A's this year i'll have 3.7UW 4.1 UCW)</p>

2

<p>Do you want to spend your weekends doing physics?</p>

<p>Do you really?</p>

3

<p>If it is the Physics B test then you could do it if you want. There isn't that much more stuff than in Honors.</p>

<p>If it is either of the Physics C tests, then heck no. That s*** is hard. It is hard to pass even if you take the AP Physics C class.</p>

4

<p>What is you gpa for grades 10-11? That is all the UC's look at. AP classes will always look more impressive, but they may not be weighted differently from an Honors course. Both are usually given a .5 bump. Check with your HS counselor how UC's credit honors courses from your HS- it can vary.</p>

5

<p>Physics B test is much harder than either of the Physics C tests. The Physics B test covers the basics of everything while Physics C only focuses on certain aspects. The Eletricity and Magnetism exam has harder material than mechanics, but a much better curve.</p>