<p>Are they? </p>
<p>For example, if you have high AP scores (5s) and only an average GPA, which would count more? Which would impress the colleges more? If you have an AP diploma, is that better than your high school degree? Why/why not?</p>
<p>i would have to disagree. If you have a ton of 5's, if would only make sense for you to have a decently good GPA. If your GPA is only average, colleges will question you character/study habits. They might get the impression that you dont take school seriously, etc. I don't really know what else to say because I don't know what your definition of "average GPA" is.</p>
<p>I don't agree. A student may have straight As because his or her school gives out easy As.
On the other hand, a student may have a B average for a certain AP subject in school but scores a 5 in the AP exam. This means his/her school has a tough grading system and no grade inflation.</p>
<p>I'm surprised that college admissions don't put a lot more weight on AP scores, as they probably give the college the best idea of how the student will perform at that particular university.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I'm surprised that college admissions don't put a lot more weight on AP scores, as they probably give the college the best idea of how the student will perform at that particular university.
[/quote]
That is not true. Anyone can cram for the AP exam and get a good score on it if one has a little bit of brains.</p>
<p>Well, the same can be said for the SAT II. Even SAT I scores can be brought up significantly due to prep and studying. The point is, AP courses are somewhat similar to college courses. They must mean something if colleges are willing to yield credit to students who did well on them. I think AP scores should be much more important than they are.</p>
<p>Well, maybe because not everyone has AP test scores when they apply? I'm just guessing, but what I mean is that my school is IB, and IB classes are more generally two years, with an exam at the end of the two. I only took one IB exam this past year (junior year). It was actually kind of for practice, some people didn't take any. Next year I will take 7 exams, however that will be around end of May '07. Obviously college application stuff will be over by then. Like I said, they have seniors address the envelopes to the college they are going to (if the know), but that's just to see if they will get credit. </p>
<p>So what I mean is maybe they don't weight it much because it would be hard to compare some candidates with others that way. But IB kids probably make up like 5% so who knows, maybe it doesn't matter that much. Just a possible thought.</p>
<p>The problem with AP tests is that they're basically a representation of the quality of your AP teacher's instruction methods and the curriculum he covers. Unless you take it upon yourself to cram the AP material, you're pretty ****ed for instance if you have a horrible AP teacher.</p>
<p>Look, I got an A- and a B+ in my AP Physics C class, which means that I basically performed alright with regards to the standards my AP teacher set for us. However, I ended up getting double 2's on the AP tests respectively so obviously I didn't even have a BASIC understanding of the concepts involved in physics. On the other hand, some kid an elite prep magnet school gets like C's in his Physics class but gets double 5's on the AP test since he has an amazing teacher. Is it fair that this guy should be looked upon more favorably than me just because he was lazy in his classes and basically leeched off his AP teacher's awesomeness???</p>
<p>That's why AP scores are used to give "PREPARED" students credit in their respective classes for college accordingly. There's no need to penalize poor rural area students who have exposure to a weak AP curriculum by denying them college acceptance based on their AP scores and similarily, there's no reason to reward upper middle class or rich students who go to elite prep schools for having terrific AP teachers in college admissions.</p>
<p>However, AP's CAN HELP you if you outperform your school's expectations/reputation on the AP test. Certainly, a homeschooled student living on a ranch in Wyoming who gets double 5's on the AP Physics C tests should be showered with praise and commendation by colleges.;)</p>
<p>APs are a reflection of ~three hours of your life. Perhaps you had the flu? Or maybe got lucky and it hit on your favorite topics a lot? no one can know. A GPA on the other hand reflects and entire year, and high school career, of work and study. When combined with a rank, a GPA is a far easier thing to make assumptions about.</p>
<p>Well its an interesting study. GPA and rank for american universities will always be something that you have to have to be considered for many great schools. However, it is becoming more apparent that the strength of your curriculum and scores to back it up are also necessary to get into some elite universities. However, the SAT will always trump AP scores and in many cases GPA as well. </p>
<p>I think one day we will reach a day where we will be more like international systems and determine grades based on standardized scores rather than arbitrary grading policies by certain high schools.</p>
<p>I dont think all AP scores are a true reflection on the teacher. Many people on CC self study exams and easily get 4/5's without really having any personal instruction.</p>
<p>I think the problem with AP is that they curve way too much. The reason they do this is because it would look really awful if they didnt curve because so many kids would do horribly. Its just really sad how many unqualified students take these exams every year. </p>
<p>I really think AP needs to expand its scoring scale(maybe a 7 point scale like IB). This would be a way to really seperate people who benefit from the curve and the ones who actually really know the stuff.</p>
<p>Well, I question this because like in my case, I have a low GPA but not due to bad studying habits. The reason is, really, that I moved to this school from another that had lower standards of education. During my freshmen and junior years I took on all the honors courses, doubled up in math, doubled up in science, and skipped a level of french (French II to French IV). As a result of this, I have only got an average GPA - 3.5, yet I know that my SAT, AP, and SAT II scores will be very good. </p>
<p>I also believe that APs should be weighted heavier since they are way higher levels than those of normal high school courses. Also, the curves are reasonable in that they are college courses, not high school courses. The fact that high school students can already grasp 65-70% of college-year materials is quite an achievement. And like the SAT Is and SAT IIs, the AP is another form of a standardized test, but, again, of a higher level than the SAT. I think its purpose should be just as important as the SAT but with the AP being more difficult a test. That should be recognized. In fact, I think APs are better in the sense that they also have a written portion, unlike the SAT. So APs test a higher level + application, while SAT would be more of the one of luck since it's all multiple choice questions.</p>
<p>I also don't believe that the grades you get on APs are a reflection of the teacher. It is true that a good teacher will help the student to do better but if the student is for some reason unable to have proper study habits or is just not able to understand the material, then it really has nothing to do with the teacher. </p>
<p>One more thing is, suppose a student has 5s on all his/her APs and 800s through their SAT Is and SAT IIs, yet because of a low GPA he/she gets only into a mediocre college. I think that would actually stifle the student's abilities. For this reason, colleges should take APs more seriously. GPAs are not standardized, plus they are different for every school. Even the courses are not all the same..</p>
<p>actually if you have perfect test scores and a mediocre GPA you will still get into and get money from many good schools. I think another problem with GPA is with late bloomers. I know many of you have always been workaholics but I certainly have not. I didnt really start even getting interested in school until i joined debate at the end of 9th grade. Certainly my grades were pretty bad my first two years of high school. I agree with most of what the previous poster said; however I think if test scores are emphasized more URMs will be at even a greater disadvantage. If you look at the AP score reports by race it reports URM's severely under perform by percentage compared to Asians and Whites. Ignoring GPA would only put colleges in a tougher position to find a way to accept URMs.</p>
<p>evil<em>asian</em>dictator:"Look, I got an A- and a B+ in my AP Physics C class, which means that I basically performed alright with regards to the standards my AP teacher set for us. However, I ended up getting double 2's on the AP tests respectively so obviously I didn't even have a BASIC understanding of the concepts involved in physics. On the other hand, some kid an elite prep magnet school gets like C's in his Physics class but gets double 5's on the AP test since he has an amazing teacher. Is it fair that this guy should be looked upon more favorably than me just because he was lazy in his classes and basically leeched off his AP teacher's awesomeness???"</p>
<p>You just proved my point. Having a great GPA from 1 school does not mean that you are better than another student who gets a B or a C in another school. You could have an easy teacher who inflated grades. It is very hard to compare an A from one school to B from another school. The only thing is for the college to look at the AP scores since it is standardized.</p>
<p>I know you think you are given the short end of the stick since your teacher did not teach the subject efficiently. But you got A-s and B+s from such a teacher. The student from the elite prep school may have a much tougher teacher (and efficient) and may end up with Bs and Cs.
But if this student get a 5 in the actual AP exam, it will show colleges (well they know the profile of the school anyway) that the said elite college has a very high standard and a tough grading system.
I do not think it is fair for you to say that the student leeches off the teacher. A student who didn't put effort in class would not be able to pull off a 5.</p>
<p>So do you think it is fair for colleges to look solely on your GPA and not the AP scores? Because the student from that elite prep school you were talking about would be out of the running since his/her GPA would be lower that yours due to the tough teacher. This is one of the reason why colleges have profiles of the HS. They should know if your 4.0 is better or the same as a 3.5 from another school.</p>
<p>i got b's in both my ap classes and 5's on the exams. In my calc class the lowest grade was a D- and the lowest AP grade was a 4. our classes are really hard</p>
<p>No, GPA counts more than AP scores.</p>
<p>IMHO, that is.</p>