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<p>Assuming that the student is a year ahead of the normal sequence in math…</p>
<p>For a student who is good, but not great, at math, and is considering a major that requires freshman calculus (e.g. biology, business, economics), taking calculus AB in high school may allow for a slower paced gentle introduction to calculus than waiting until college to take it.</p>
<p>For a student who wants to do a math-intensive major, taking calculus in high school can be advantageous because it can reduce the schedule pressure in college. Some majors have a seven or even eight semester long prerequisite sequence that starts with first semester freshman calculus; a student who can place a semester ahead gains additional schedule flexibility in choosing courses.</p>
<p>Additionally, a student who places a semester ahead in freshman calculus effectively gets a free elective somewhere in his/her schedule in college.</p>
<p>Of course, these advantages are not so great that it is necessary to push ahead if the student is on the normal sequence (precalculus as a high school senior, ready for calculus as a college freshman)*. If the student intends a major that does not require calculus at all, then there is no need to take it even if s/he is a year ahead (although taking a calculus AB course may be desired if s/he just wants to learn about the subject even though it is not required). However, being calculus-ready by college (i.e. having completed precalculus in high school) is desirable, since some other possibly required courses like introductory statistics may require a decent high school math background, even if they do not require calculus.</p>
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<li>Exception: student is likely to go to Harvey Mudd, Caltech, or engineering at WUStL, which all expect the student to have had some calculus in high school. But these are not representative of the majority of colleges.</li>
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