<p>I was wondering if it is worth taking the test this year. I am currently taking ap bio and we finished ch 14 and also 16 and 17. I am a junior and I dont know if there will be enough time to study everything I need. Suggestions?</p>
<p>Were you inspired by fizix's post as well? :D</p>
<p>It would be worth it, definitely. I'm in Honors Bio. and right now I'm studying from Campbell's Fifth Edition. If you could study a couple chapters a day (two or three hours), you would fly through the textbook in under a month. Since you're in AP Biology, some of the stuff would be review for you. Definitely possible.</p>
<p>What makes this a matter of 'worth it' or not? You take the test as a challenge to yourself. USABO doesn't exist to be something extra on your college applications, it's a contest and a personal challenge. If you're not even willing to take the test, you clearly don't have what it takes.</p>
<p>But to actually answer your question, there have been USABO national finalists who had not taken AP bio. It's more a matter of interest and dedication than what classes you've taken. If you work for it, a person in your situation could surely make national finals.</p>
<p>To anyone that's competing, good luck.</p>
<p>^ by worth it, what I meant was whether there was enough time to study and attempt the preliminary test, which I believe costs $75</p>
<p>
[quote]
If you could study a couple chapters a day (two or three hours), you would fly through the textbook in under a month.
[/quote]
I dunno. 52 chapters are a lot. That would require you to study 2 chapters a day. I comparison, my AP class does about one every week.</p>
<p>Ah, I didn't realize you're expecting to pay registration out of pocket. My school paid for me. You might want to look into if yours will as well.</p>
<p>Also, remember that there's still time to learn material between the open and the semi. There is no bias against someone who does kinda average on the open, then studys before the semi and does well there. There's plenty of time if you take that in mind. Study the material that makes up a larger portion of the test (check out the IBO syllabus) and go in confident. And since you're a junior, even if you don't make it, at least you'll know what to prepare for next year.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>Hey, is there for sure a way to do this if your school won't sponsor it? I'm really the only strong bio student here and the science department has NO funding so it's not likely, but I don't want to miss out on something I'd do well on because I go to a ****ty school, if that's understandable.</p>
<p>Yes, you can do it, but you'll need to find a teacher to sponsor you. If your school isn't willing to fund you, you'll also need to pay the registration fee ($75). Information for you teacher can be found here: <a href="http://cee.org/apps/usabo/index.jsp%5B/url%5D">http://cee.org/apps/usabo/index.jsp</a></p>
<p>Yeah -- it's not like there's a better time. In Honors you probably won't know enough, and after AP you'll probably forget stuff. And the preliminary rounds of olympiads in general aren't so hard, so if you're a good student you'll probably make it into the next round. It can't hurt, and maybe your parents'll pay the fee for you if you're willing to study and whatnot.</p>
<p>so for prelims, is it enough to go through barrons or whould reading through the whole campbell/reece book be better?</p>
<p>anyone? .</p>
<p>Better, yes. Necessary, no. Campbell isn't really needed until nationals. Before then, any good text should be enough.</p>
<p>In my AP Chem class students were encouraged not to read the textbook, but to go through Peterson's prep book instead. Most of them did awfully on the AP exam. If prep books can't even prepare you for an AP exam, I doubt they'd prepare you well for an olympiad.</p>
<p>Study guides are probably going to be worthless. Get a good textbook and you should be alright.</p>
<p>so, has anyone started studying for the open exams yet? If so, how far are you? I read through sparknotes and barons, and they are pretty confusing as they only give general info. Good Luck everyone!</p>
<p>I took the USABO two years ago as a sophomore and was chosen as a USABO semfinalist. I didn't take AP Biology, just Honors. The preliminary exam isn't that bad (Chem was much easier) but there are quite a few detailed questions. You can visit their website and check out a few sample problems. Another option is just to take as many biology-related tests as possible:AP or SAT subject test. The more you know the better!</p>
<p>does anyone have past USABO test questions?</p>
<p>and can anyone link me or tell me about the format of the open exam? (like how many questions?) I cant seem to find on the site</p>
<p>In the past, the open exam has consisted of 50 multiple choice questions. Future exams will probably keep this format. Sample questions are available to those willing to look for them (cee.org and elsewhere).</p>
<p>i found this on cee</p>
<p>I guess the theoretical part is the multiple choice...but these are extremely harder than the ones i've seen for the 2003 usabo. were most questions on the 2006 test like this?</p>