<p>I remeber there was a really big thread about this maybe a year ago so I'm sorry if this is repetitive. But the question was whether I should use ap credit or not. If I remember correctly the general consensus was to NOT use it for the core classes, like calculus and chemistry, unless I felt really solid on the subject and got like a 5. The thinking was that such critical classes to engineering simply aren't taught as well in HS. Now general education courses like English were a different story. If you could use ap credit for that then you should snag it so you can focus on the science part of your curriculum. Those statements pretty much sum up the thread right? </p>
<p>And here's another branch off question. I'm going to Virginia tech and the very first semester allows for 4 liberal arts hours. I want to study abroad in Germany so j should probably take German courses as opposed to using ap credit like history or something right?</p>
<p>I hear the same thing as well about AP credit or IB. I would like to get out of chemistry because I never liked it but then my chem teacher had us make ice cream all the time (and we just bought it in the end). I think the only thing I really learned was balancing equations from chemistry and I learned more about bounds in biology, which I also hated. </p>
<p>I think I’ll just mainly use my english one. I don’t actually need history or spanish at my college but I’m still gonna try on the tests. Still I hear my english requirement won’t be hard at all and I get to take it about comic books. How cool is that?</p>
<p>Math and physics, I have credit but I’m not gonna use 'em either.</p>
<p>I would advice to use it if it something that your not going to major in. For example, I used AP Chem credit because I dislike the topic and wanted nothing to do with chemical engineering(i wanted to do IE or ME) now i never have to see chemistry ever again</p>
<p>How about if I get a 5 on the exam, and then view MIT opencourseware lectures before college?</p>
<p>I would take the course for a free GPA boost. Otherwise, I would only skip if you think it will be a class you will never really use. For example, if you want to be a EE and can skip physics and chemistry and not really miss much, if anything, that would be taught at the college level rather than HS level that would actually be relevant to day-to-day work. However, if you’re going to go into BME it would probably be a bad idea to skip biology.</p>
<p>For undergrad I’m majoring in Mechanical but the real goal of mine is to go to grad school for nuclear. I don’t think I’m going to do to well on chemistry but say I pull a 4 out of my butt. Should I use the 4 from chemistry?</p>
<p>“How about if I get a 5 on the exam, and then view MIT opencourseware lectures before college?”</p>
<p>Further detail: I plan on skipping physics if I get a 5 and I want to be an engineer. I want to skip because of the time wasted relearning things, and not getting a boost because it is a weed-out course. Is there anything that I could possibly miss with a 5 and watching lectures from MIT that would otherwise be taught in another college?</p>
<p>I never understood why people wanted to skip physics. It’s easily one of the hardest classes at that level, and it’ll help you build the fundamental problem-solving process that you’ll build on for the rest of your academic career. Wasting time relearning things in physics isn’t actually wasting time, because you ought to know them…</p>
<p>Also, I don’t know if getting a 5 would constitute being confident enough to skip physics. You only need around 55% correct to get a 5… better to judge how well you know the material yourself.</p>
<p>If the difference in AP credit means taking 12-13 credits semester compared to 15-16, then I’d say it’s well worth it if you feel your base is sufficient. I ended up with a 3 on the calc AB exam, and I received a B+ in calc 2 last semester, and am about to get an A or an A- in calc 3 this semester. At the same time, I’ve heard of people who got 5’s on the calc AB test but barely scraped by with a C in calc 2. It all depends on you and how well you can adapt to college.</p>
<p>What I’ve heard is use AP credit for classes outside your major. I’m an engineer and I got a lot of history credit from AP/IB exams. For stuff like that, art, english, foreign language, take it and run. Free credit. </p>
<p>When it comes to classes in your major go with this idea: Could you pass that AP exam today? Right now? That’s when it comes down to how comfortable you feel with the topic.</p>
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<p>Yes. That’s a good strategy to view on a class-by-class basis. As a whole, I would review your financial situation before making an aggregate decision, for example if you’re considering declining an entire semester’s worth of AP credits.</p>
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<p>I don’t follow. You can get the credit for History and still take the German classes. You’re allowed to go over the credit requirement for a degree (this actually gives you more flexibility since the German classes could be taken Pass/Fail or Audit if they’re not needed for the degree).</p>
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<p>Chemistry is not a core class to engineering (except maybe to chemical engineering).</p>
<p>"You can get the credit for History and still take the German classes. You’re allowed to go over the credit requirement for a degree (this actually gives you more flexibility since the German classes could be taken Pass/Fail or Audit if they’re not needed for the degree). "</p>
<p>O ok. Thanks for the idea.</p>
<p>"I would review your financial situation "</p>
<p>Full ride… not worried.</p>
<p>“Chemistry is not a core class to engineering (except maybe to chemical engineering”
What about nuclear? I want to go to grad school for nuclear.</p>
<p>AP credit in calc/physics/chem is generally fine in my experience as an adviser. I’d worry if someone was giving you credit with a 3 or something, but a 4 or 5 should do it. Now if you are planning on doing EE I’d probably take E&M either way. Same with CS depending on the school. The trick is not to have so many credits you are taking 2nd year engineering classes in your first term. <em>that</em> is a bad plan in my experience.</p>
<p>What do you think I should do with my Chemistry credit? I made a solid five on the AP test, but that was a year ago, and I’ve spent a year without taking chemistry. I was planning on using it to get out of the intro class and just reviewing over the summer. Good idea? Bad idea?</p>
<p>Also, I feel real comfortable with Calculus and Physics (Mechanics, not E&M… that stuff is horrible!) and plan to use credit for those classes.</p>
<p>I think if you’re not going to major in something that requires solid and thorough knowledge of chemistry (chem major or chemical/nuclear engineering, particle physics, etc.) then knowing the general concepts of how things work should be good enough.</p>