Do AP exam scores really matter to AOs? I am a junior planning on applying to T20 schools with a major in Biology. I have A’s in all my classes, but here are my exam scores:
Biology: 4, APCSP: 5, World: 3, Physics I: 4
Predicted scores:
Calc BC: 3, Chem: 3, APUSH: 3, APES: 5, Lang: 4
Some say that schools don’t consider AP scores for admission while some say that they do. How do I know whether or not to submit my 3s to a school? Will having 3s affect my admissions chances?
A 3 in a course you got an A in suggests grade inflation- poor teaching- or both.
Are your scores typical of kids in your HS?
A grade of below a 3 indicates that the course that you took in your school was not aligned in scope and sequence with the topics/mastery level required for the AP exam. 3 could indicate close but not complete alignment (like a slower pace with a missed unit or two), 4 or 5 would indicate alignment and mastery.
As a teacher, I use a more narrow definition of grade inflation than AOs might. As a junior, my DS’s G C recommends not sending the scores to colleges now, so he did not sign up for the free score send. I’m hoping that advice is good but don’t know for certain.
it depends on the ap subject. personally I think sending a 3 would be fine for harder subjects like an ap language or ap physics 1, but not for easier ones like ap human geography, ap psych, ap gov, etc. I would definitely self report the 4s and 5s though. don’t worry about APs too much though, I would focus on everything else!
You don’t need to send scores to have them on your app - they are self-reported. The general guidance is to self-report only the 4 and 5 scores. Not every student takes every exam, so there will not be an assumption of terrible scores for the ones you don’t report. The goal here is to provide information that is additive to or supportive of your application.
You can send final (official) scores to the college you will attend in order to get credit/placement.
As a side note, you may want to try to figure out why your scores are so much lower than your grades. Some of the answers may give you some ideas of how you can improve as a student. If the course didn’t cover material, your only option would be to self-study, but if you needed more review during the year to have good recall for the exam, you might want to think about how to do that in a way that works for you. Flashcards, scheduled note review, meeting up with friends to review. This will help you in college.
No point hypothesizing about “predicted” scores.
Good scores can help colleges affirm good class grades. A “3” will not serve that purpose, so I would not submit unless required.
In my discussions with AO’s, they will be looked at, so “used”, but they don’t carry much weight. A grade earned in a year of classroom work, homework, labs, exams, etc., mean much more than a single exam.
One the Common App, and the school-specific apps I’ve seen, you can choose which scores to include.
I assume the “predicted” scores are what you’ll get this year, or sometime before Senior year. What you predict you will get in exams Senior year, after the application process, obviously means nothing in the application process.
For admission, do colleges consider AP scores? Some institutions will allow you to self-report your AP results on their applications, even though you normally don’t need to send formal AP score reports to colleges you’re applying to. The admissions committees will also see your test results if they are on your application.
I know of 2 Colleges that will consider AP scores for admissions: UC Berkeley and UCLA. It is college dependent so you need to research each schools website to determine their admission criteria.