For MIT and the Ivies, would they prefer I take APs or Dual Enrollment? For more context, I intend on taking a Fall, Winter, and Spring semester in Applied Physics, Physics for Scientists & Engineers 1, and Physics for Scientists and Engineers 2 respectively at my local community college next year (Junior). On the other hand, I have the option of taking Advanced Physics 1 for the entirety of my Junior year and AP Physics C: Mechanical for the entirety of my senior year. I decided to choose DE based on pace and being able to cover Physics 2, since Physics 2 would be more useful to me since I am pursuing a degree in Computer Science but a double major in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering. Is this the right choice (in terms of admissions, I know someone’s going to say something about taking classes just because I like them)?
I like DE.
But this gets debated literally hundreds of times
Yes
I recommend AP, especially if going to grad school after. The grades from DE will follow you forever and can affect competitive grad school admissions way later on. Not worth the risk when AP is seen as the same or even better rigor.
I meant which one, not would they prefer I have APs and Dual Enrollment in general. Edit: Never mind
Did you read the thread?
I thought he was replying to the first sentence only, didn’t know it expanded. Sorry, I’m new to CC.
They would prefer APs over dual enrollment. Most Ivies don’t accept dual credits
Most ivies don’t accept AP either. And if they do, it’s 5’s only.
That’s why I asked the OP to read past thread. All this gets debated EVEYTIME.
Some accept 4’s like Princeton.
It’s still far and few between.
They still do recommend AP instead 
At least they accept SOME AP credit. Almost none accept DE
None of the ivy’s recommend AP over DE. Both are seen as basically the same in rigor. Dual Enrollment has issues unique to it which is why I don’t recommend it over AP personally, but they look the same for admissions.
Fine. I’ll bite.
“They” can be specify who is “they”? I have NEVER read anything in print from an actual school saying there is actually a preference for one over another. There are plenty of parents on forum from schools with lots of APs who say what you are saying.
Most privates consider DE classes “preparation” therefore do not grant credit for classes taken by HS kids. Funny logic consider a transfer student who takes exactly the same classes will be able to transfer with ALL these credits. Even AP do not get you what credit you think you are getting. Most grant “general studies” units which are basically waste basket units that serves very little meaning for people in a specific major.
Bottom line: you need to take the most rigorous curriculum offered by YOUR school. If that includes boatload of AP, that is what you need to do. You also have to do well and get 5s on the test to make this meaningful.
If you go to a school with zero AP, there is no expectation you will take any. BUT given DE is an option, it would be frown upon if you didn’t take any…
Unless someone can share specific things in print from a school saying AP is preferred than DE, this is more of a coke or pepsi debate.
100% agree with what you wrote. No college says that.
Pepsi, or course.
Are moderators supposed to take sides? Asking for a friend.
For your specific case, it looks like the college physics courses will cover significantly more content in a shorter time – basically college pacing, rather than high school pacing. The assumption is that you will also be enrolled in or have completed the math prerequisites.
Also, for physics specifically, AP is not a great match for college physics, since AP physics C assumes and uses less calculus than college physics for physics and engineering majors.
Regarding credit acceptance, this can vary all over the place at different colleges. Most colleges have AP credit listings, but their acceptance of transfer credit varies, and often is not known before you matriculate.
Some colleges have limitations on accepting college credit earned in high school, such as not accepting it if was taken at the high school instead of the college, or if it fulfilled high school graduation requirements, etc… MIT does not appear to have such a restriction; its policies are listed at Transfer credit | MIT Registrar . MIT gives credit for 8.01 (first physics course) for AP 5 scores on both physics C exams: https://firstyear.mit.edu/academics-exploration/ap-transfer-credit/advanced-placement/
If I were you, I would choose based on the specific courses and instructors. Either AP or DE is fine for admissions, but you’ll be a happier college freshman if you have really strong preparation.
Although @ucbalumnus mentions looking at the description of the course content, this doesn’t necessarily tell the whole story. My son had a fantastic AP Physics C teacher that prepared the kids extremely well for their college physics classes. Although my kid is not at MIT (or an Ivy) as you mentioned in your post (he’s at UCB), his best friend from physics class does attend MIT now… and both of them report that they felt relatively better prepared than the majority of their classmates, including the kids who took DE physics (typically through a community college).
However, your AP course might just minimally cover the AP material, while your DE courses might be great. It all depends on the courses and the teachers.
Yep, S23’s AP physics teacher just went ahead and taught the calculus that they needed to learn the physics material at a more rigorous college level. When the kids took multivariable calc in college, they said that a lot of it was review. So this will depend on the teacher.