On admissions visits with my daughter, as I have listened to admissions officers and Honors College admissions people, as they extolled the virtues of high GPAs and test scores, I have wondered why they don’t value AP test scores more. If they are placing such a high priority on the SAT or ACT, which is taken on one day, then why not the AP exams? Why do they place such a high value on GPA? An A in an AP US History class in one high school may have taken less work from a less demanding teacher or with the opportunity for alot of extra credit points then the B earned at another high school. What if the student who earned the A in the APUSH course scored a 3 on the AP exam and the B student earned a 5? I think the AP exam would be more of an apples to apples comparison. I agree,AP exam scores should be added into the admissions decision information when available.
And, also, AP teachers should be teaching to the test. The courses are designed to cover certain subject matter and teachers have a huge amount of resources available to them to teach the AP material. My children have been blessed with extraordinary AP teachers. My son said those courses (10) gave him an excellent foundation for college.