<p>C is sometimes used by students on tight budgets.</p>
<p>You forgot another use: to fulfill whatever requirements in university, freeing up schedule space to take other courses of interest (whether they are more advanced courses, or free electives). For example, it is common for math majors to start in sophomore math because they completed freshman calculus with AP credit. Later on, they may end up taking a year’s worth of additional senior or graduate level courses because they had the extra schedule space. Or they could take a year’s worth of free electives in any subject of interest.</p>
<p>I have to say that I was a skeptic about APs at first, but AP credits have been wonderful for both of my kids - who go to entirely different schools. D goes to a public with oodles of distribution requirements. Because of her APs she got a year of credit and started with her requirements about 2/3 done. It was a bit of a drag that they didn’t count toward her major, but if she hadn’t been able to get out of so many classes, I think her college experience wouldn’t have been nearly as enriching. She’s also graduating a quarter early (with a minor and study abroad) saving me far more than the $640 I invested. Neither of us wanted her to finish in 3 years.</p>
<p>S goes to a school without distribution requirement that gives very little AP credit. But he’s been able to place out of so many intro classes that, if he chooses he can graduate with two majors in 3 1/2 years. He can also finish a major quickly and go abroad and do something else if he wants. It’s just given him a tremendous amount of flexibility.</p>
<p>Some schools, like Harvard, only let you have sophomore standing or nothing, and in that case, APs probably wouldn’t be worth that much. But in most schools, they help a lot.</p>
<p>I rechecked my former HS’s website after I posted and found that 10 AP classes are offered. It was 4 a year or 2 ago when I last checked. So I stand corrected. Just for fun, I checked a few of the other HS’s nearby (near the one I attended- not where I live now). One HS had 4 and and the other one I checked (H’s old HS) had so little academic information listed on the website that I could not determine what classes they offered. I do know that H’s nieces who graduated from that same school last year were not familiar with AP classes.</p>
<p>Also another nice benefit for D was that the AP credits allowed her to skip some of the basic required classes and take her major classes earlier. In addition because class registration at her school is assigned by how many credit hours a student has, she has always been the first of her friends to register and has been able to get into all of her first choice classes as well as choose the best class times.</p>
<p>No charge for AP tests, but after 5 classes at local college, had to pay tuition.
The worm’s UG gave no credit. They have their own placement tests, none of which son would have passed. Had he gone to state flagship, he would have entered as a junior. A world of difference in education.</p>
<p>Our D’s large, public high school has 90% of the IB canidates earn the full diploma. They do full IB in 11th grade, there are a few preB courses in 9th and 10th. In 11th, they take 3 to 4 AP exams, most do well enough to earn credit at most colleges, and a couple of IB SL exams (most colleges do not give credit for these). While the test fees do add up, it’s worth it. She loves the IB program, has small classes with great teachers…and the most rigorous courses in her high school. For her, it’s worth it.</p>
<p>I do think schools should let the parents know the pass rates of the AP classes, and the percent of IB students who actually earn the diploma. Before the students register for classes. Otherwise, you can’t make an informed decision.</p>
<p>We not only paid for all the 8 AP tests that S took we also have to pay to claim the AP credit hours at his college ($6 per hour).
At his HS if students take AP tests they will exempt from finals.
The more AP credits S can claim the higher the class he will be in. This will give him priority registration for choosing classes later on and a better seat at football games:).</p>
<p>Our HS requires the tests for AP classes, and will reimburse half the fee if student scores a 3 or above. Oldest D got the maximum credits her college allowed, 23 (or 24?) which enabled her to study abroad and double major and she will graduate on time. My S just got a letter that he will get 20 credits for his 5 AP tests, even the two English ones he scored 3’s on. (Obviously not the most rigorous University, but he will be able to take more of the classes he is interested in and fewer humanities electives.)</p>
<p>I have seen it advised that kids take AP classes only in areas that interest them, but in S’s case, taking US History, Psych, and the English AP’s were very beneficial for him. He will probably double major also, which will be easier with credit for those classes.</p>
<p>We paid hundreds of dollars for DS’s IB exams. But really the far bigger factor for the family in the four years was his intense workload and time commitments. Our monetary investment was a nit in comparison. </p>
<p>Some of area hs have a program where you can buy grocery gift cards for $100, with $4 going into a fund toward the student’s IB/AP exams. (It is similar to a program we do at our church). That can help families save up enough for exam fees senior year.</p>
<p>Some schools give generic credit for most APs with scores of 3, but subject credit allowing one to take more advanced courses or fulfill requirements may require higher scores, depending on the subject. E.g. Berkeley gives 5.3 semester credit units for a score of 3 on English Literature, but one needs a 4 to fulfill one semester of the writing requirement and a 5 to fulfill both semesters of the writing requirement (except that students in engineering can fulfill at most one semester with AP credit).</p>
<p>Depends. One teacher at D1’s high school is famous (notorious? ) for tough grading. It’s not uncommon for students to receive a “C” in this teacher’s class, while getting a 5 on the AP test. More importantly, the students invariably find that this particular teacher has thoroughly prepared them for the rigors of college writing assignments. </p>
<p>By comparison, other teachers at the school who teach the same AP course award higher grades, but their students’ AP scores are lower. </p>
<p>Our district is one that says you must take the AP test. The only time I really resented paying for the tests was during her senior year. D1 knew where she was headed to college. She knew their policy on accepting credit. She knew that only two of the six AP tests she was supposed to take at the end of senior year made any difference. It was a waste of time and money for her to take the other four, yet we had no choice in the matter. She didn’t want to take the risk of having her acceptance rescinded if her transcript showed her dropping down from AP level. I’d have been happy for the money to be donated to the school, but there was no option for that.</p>
<p>For the many colleges that accept AP/IB credit, the IB credit is typically only for HL (Higher Level, 2 year course sequences at our hs). In some cases it seems unfair, but that’s how it work. </p>
<p>If a student happens to have a target college in mind, it can be helpful to search for the AP/IB credit policies ahead of time. Most colleges post that info on the web (although it can vary a little from year to year).</p>
<p>ucbalumnus, that is why we were surprised that his school gave him an exemption from 4 of the 9 ‘liberal arts’ elective classes he would have had to take, including writing. (He is obviously not going to Berkeley!) His two 3’s on English, along with the 5’s on US History and Psych, did exempt him from those classes. He has no interest in advanced English classes, and will take more computer science classes with the free spots in his schedule. Every school is different in how they treat AP tests.</p>
<p>crestor, unfortunately the policy is set by the school district, not the individual high school. On the list of things that the high school would like to change, this is pretty far down. :(</p>
) for tough grading. It’s not uncommon for students to receive a “C” in this teacher’s class, while getting a 5 on the AP test. More importantly, the students invariably find that this particular teacher has thoroughly prepared them for the rigors of college writing assignments. </p>