AP and Honors

Applying to College
1

<p>I go to a fairly prestigious (as far as I know) private high school. The problem is, they do not offer AP courses, only regular and Honors (occasional something below that, such as Topics in Chemistry - Regular Chemistry - Honors Chemistry). Does this put me at a disadvantage of any sort during the college admissions process? Would an admissions officer recognize that an Honors course at this school would be as difficult as an AP course in an average public school, or does the lack of ‘AP’ make an applicant with a full load of AP’s look better than Honors?</p>

<p>Also, for some courses (particularly in freshman and sophomore year), there was only a regular level and no Honors. Would an admissions officer be aware of that or would he assume that I chose to take an easier course?</p>

<p>Lastly, in a relatively unrelated question, how do most people (colleges in particular) calculate GPA? Generally weighted or unweighted? How much would an Honors or AP course help?</p>

2

<p>Your school should be sending every college applied to a school profile, which would show what options are open to you and which are not. You can’t be punished for not doing something you don’t have the opportunity to do.</p>

3

<p>I don’t think this will hurt you as long as it can be confirmed and you put the information into your essay. If you take advantage of the most difficult courses offered by the school then you cant be expected to do much more than that. That said a couple SAT subject tests would be in order. As far as calculating GPA I have no idea.</p>

4

<p>Many, many colleges have regional admission reps who are familiar with the schools in their regions. Your school is probably well known.</p>

5

<p>Thanks for the replies.</p>

<p>UTPG, I am planning on taking a total of 5 Subject Tests, but since colleges generally require 2, would they still consider my other 3 scores if I choose to send them in? Would it be worth sending them all in (considering my school’s lack of AP courses), or should I go with just my top two scores (assuming the other 3 were all in the 670-730 range)?</p>

6

<p>How heavily do colleges look at rigor of schedule and GPA?</p>

7

<p>I think that your guidance counselor checks a box on the application about the rigor of your schedule. And, like everything else, the more competitve the college, the more important the schedule and GPA.</p>