I am not sure what courses to take..

Ann
Sun, 07 Sep 2008 09:42:58 +0000

From an admissions standpoint, as long as you have met the admissions recommendations below, I don’t think it matters if you take UP US History or AP Comp.

Recommended areas of preparation are: four years of English with emphasis on composition, grammar, literature, speech; four years of math, algebra, plane geometry, intermediate algebra, trigonometry; two years of a foreign language; two years of laboratory science such as chemistry and physics and one year of U.S. history. Additionally, you will find courses in geography, government and economics to be very helpful. College courses taken prior to entrance to West Point may be substituted for similar courses in the Military Academy curriculum.
[USMA Admissions: Apply to USMA: Prospectus: Steps to West Point: 1: Basic Requirements](http://admissions.usma.edu/Prospectus/step_01.cfm)

If you have all of these subjects covered, the only other possible consideration would be validation requirements at USMA. I believe you need a 5 in 2 AP History classes to validate the subject completely. (USMA does not give you credit hours for AP classes)

The AP test scores will be used by academic departments as one piece of information to determine advanced placement or validation for new cadets. USMA also provides its own testing for new cadets to determine if they will be scheduled for the particular course, the advanced course or if they can validate the course. Five different departments provide USMA placement testing/validation opportunities to new cadets during the month of July. For example, an AP score of 5 in European, US, or World History is necessary to proceed with the validation of History. An AP Calculus, AB or BC, score of 4 or 5 is important in validating Calculus. An AP Chemistry score of 4 or 5 can be important in validating chemistry. English requires an AP score of 5 and a high SAT-V score for consideration to validate English composition.
[USMA Office of the Dean: Validation and Advanced Placement](http://www.dean.usma.edu/AP)