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<p>AP (which stands for advanced placement) results used for placement, even without credit, are useful, in that the student can skip boringly repeating introductory level courses and gain free electives in their places.</p>
<p>Of course, students looking mainly for the credential (probably a substantial percentage, even at highly selective colleges) seem to prefer to repeat what they already know for what they believe to be an easy A, especially if they are aiming for professional schools that encourage that practice.</p>