Too many AP tests: A bad thing?

bobtheboy
Wed, 18 Aug 2010 21:03:42 +0000

I am self studying for my own enrichment, not for college apps. I make sure it doesn’t cut into my time for school (obviously), extracurriculars, sleep, or my relaxation time. I don’t attempt the AP test if I am not absolutely sure I will get a 5.

@314159… the thing is, I’m passionate about lots of topics. For instance, I too will be doing AP music theory - and am passionate about music, having played the piano since I was 3 years old. Same with psychology- I love the subject, but would rather not take the class in school for various reasons. Same goes for Human Geography- current events interest me. Environmental science, I’m not too sure but I love science in general so I want to try this one out and see how much I like it. It involves elements from several fields of science which I especially love: geology, biology, physics, chemistry (at least that’s what I’ve heard) but isn’t too hard, and i am also concerned about the environment and want to learn more, so I’m doing this one. Biology for two reasons - I love science, I MAY pursue a genetics major, and also I’ve already had Honors biology and regret not taking the AP then…

I’ve decided not to self study european history, because those would probably just be self studies for the sake of self studying… i realized that it doesn’t interest me that much. I probably won’t do either of the government exams either, although may rethink the Comparative government one, because it involves Nigeria and China, two governments that do interest me a lot. In fact, I think US govt. + politics may go along well with AP US history (which I’m taking as a class) and compGov, so if I do decide to self study Comparative Government I’ll probably do US gov as well…
And lastly, I’ll probably do AP Studio Art since I’m a passionate photographer and I love editing photos too.

So I’ve already got AP Music theory, Psychology, Human Geography, Biology, and Environmental Science as the self studies I’m doing next year, along with probably Studio Art and possibly two more government exams. This is five to eight self studies (Although biology doesn’t count really since I’ve had honors but with AP-level material, and my music teacher has already taught me AP-level theory over several years so it doesn’t count either; Studio art is not a “study” exam per se, and I’ve been a dedicated photographer for a while now), but I’ve already self studied five (although two of those were not really even self studies, and all those were more subjects I was passionate about). It sounds like a huge amount of excuses, and I realize that it probably doesn’t seem like I really am passionate about so many topics, but I am. Many of you guys probably wouldn’t believe this, so how can I expect a college to believe it? I really am doing this for enrichment, not for the sake of APs, but colleges will probably not look at it like this. will it really hurt me in admissions if I keep strong grades and show dedication to my EC’s and community service?