<p>After taking the AP tests, life's back to normal again. (I am so sleep deprived right now, I have toothpicks keeping my eye lids open) Now it's time to worry about school... and what classes to take. To be honest, I really have no idea how college is gonna be, what classes I should take to fulfill graduation requirements. But my main question right now is, what exactly are AP credits anyways? I know getting a 3 or above on AP Lang / Lit exempts you from the Writing Test. But what about the other subjects I took such as physics, psychology, econ, and bio? What exactly is credit in college anyways. My friends are telling me AP test for most UC's won't do much for me, it's just a "credit" nothing more, nothing less. I was like huhhh? It was just nonsense to me. Someone please enlighten me! I'm heading to revelle as (neuro)psychology major btw. Thanks!</p>
<p>depends on your school, so you'll have to check revelle's webpage on ap cred. when i went to sd for admit day, we got handouts about ap credit for warren =)</p>
<p>AP credits substitute for courses -- so for example, if you get a 5 on AP bio, it is possible you can skip a year or 1-2 quarters of biology, which makes life just that much easier and brings graduation day that much closer</p>
<p>on your transcript AP classes will be listed as units (AP bio 5 = you passed entire year of lower division biology with no grade) -- they do not count for you GPA but they count as if you passed some required classes -- so you get units for these classes and do not have to take them while everyone else has to work for their grade</p>
<p>which classes you can skip with AP's you have to check with your particular program</p>
<p>also, if you get your AP's to substitute for enough courses and get enough credits, you'll get a sophomore standing -- this means you now have enough units for the system to count you as a sophomore -- this gives you an advantage of being able to enroll for courses earlier than most of your peers who'll have freshmen standing -- this does not mean you have to graduate early, but all colleges have some kind of upper limit of units you can take before they kick you out with some degree -- AP's count toward this upper limit, but it is usually so high that you do not need to worry as even double-majors don't get to reach it</p>
<p>if you plan to go to professional or graduate school, some schools do not count AP credit -- they want you to take the class and they want to see you receive grade for it -- for example, medical schools usually want to see lower division biology and chemistry even though you can pass out of these (entire year or some quarters) by receiving a good AP score -- so you have to take this into consideration</p>
<p>AP's can sometimes have a detrimental effect on one's grades -- if you skip some lower division courses in your major due to AP scores, you are more likely to forget some key concepts and then struggle later in other courses on same subject</p>
<p>"AP's can sometimes have a detrimental effect on one's grades -- if you skip some lower division courses in your major due to AP scores, you are more likely to forget some key concepts and then struggle later in other courses on same subject"</p>
<p>Yeah that's what I was thinking as well. I have a tendancy to forget things, even APs that I got a 5 on last year. Skipping over may seemingly make my life easier, but like you said, in actuality, I'll be stressed out dealing with the more advanced class, struggling to recall what I've learned in the past and etc. </p>
<p>Because, I do plan on going to a graduate school, I'll probably end up taking the lower division classes (it'll be a good review too) to have a more completed transcript. I don't mind taking a few extra classes if they are going to help in the long run. So thank you both for your advice and help. </p>
<p>What would you guys do if they did take the credit though. hehe</p>
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AP's count toward this upper limit
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<p>They don't.</p>
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Maximum units for UCSD students is 200 units. If you are an approved double major or an engineering major, the maximum limit is 240 units. Any Advanced Placement (AP) work or unused abroad work may be subtracted to help keep you below the 200 unit limit.
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<p>That max unit limit really isn't very high - 184 are required to graduate. My major, aerospace, requires 219 units.</p>
<p>As for skipping courses and making your life more difficult, it depends on the subjects. For example, as a neuro-bio major, let them give you history credit ;). Take any math credit you get, as well.</p>
<p>:)</p>