AP Gov in sophomore year- Is it worth pointing out?

Applying to College
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<p>I have a strong interest in politics, and decided to take the AP US Government test on my own (self-study) in sophomore year. I received a 5 on the exam.</p>

<p>Would it be worth pointing out at all (beyond the usual listing of APs) to demonstrate my passion?</p>

<p>Note: My school does not offer AP Gov at all as a class. I have been told that Gov is customarily a senior year class/test. Are there any other people who took a “senior” test much earlier?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

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<p>Colleges should see this regardless. If you are writing an essay on your interest in politics though, definitely mention it. Remember, adcoms KNOW how to read applications to pick out details that show your passions. Congrats on that achievement :)</p>

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<p>Of course. You take what you take when you’re ready for it. I took AP French as a frosh, for instance, and AP French Lit as a sophomore. I took both AP Gov tests as a junior…fun stuff. I took AP Stats as a sophomore, because I wanted to know some stats when I did my ISEF project (SO useful). I took 14 AP tests in all, so undoubtedly there were others that were not taken during the “customary” year.</p>

<p>I didn’t call extra attention to any of them. I mean, if you want, you can mention somewhere that you took AP Gov early because you were so intrigued by the subject, and if your interest is not shown anywhere else it might be useful, but I would imagine that if you are that passionate about politics, you have other bits of your application (ECs, community political work) that demonstrate this.</p>

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<p>AP Government is a freshman/sophomore class in my district.</p>

<p>You can’t really stick any of the AP classes into grades. You can order some of them (AB < BC, Physics B < Physics C, AP language classes usually come a few years after basic language classes), but all the other tests could really be taken in any year.</p>

<p>Across the nation, I’m sure every AP course is considered a “senior” one in some district. I don’t think you should emphasize taking AP Gov over your other classes. You could probably mention that you self-studied it, but I agree with jessie - if you are passionate about politics, you should have something else in your application to demonstrate that interest.</p>