sharkport.blogg.se

To learn more about the structure of AP exams, and when and how you can sign up for them, head over to the College Board’s AP Step by Step page. However, due to COVID, this year’s exams are being administered virtually, so students are taking them at home. In a normal year, these exams are administered either at your high school or at an exam center.

If you are curious to find out what scores are accepted at the schools you are interested in or applying to, click here to learn more.ĪP exams are taken every year in May. The majority of schools will accept scores of a 3 or higher in some capacity, however, the more competitive and selective a school is, the higher the minimum accepted score will be.į or example, Harvard University requires students to have a score of 5 on an AP exam in order to be able to earn college credit.

While you are not required to take the AP exam for a course that you’ve taken, I personally think that there is no reason to not take the exam after you’ve put in all the effort with the course.Ĭonversely, students also have the opportunity to take AP exams in subjects even if they have not taken the corresponding AP course.ĪP exams are scored on a scale of 1 - 5, where 5 is the best possible score a student can earn. Taking the AP exams is necessary if you want to be able to potentially earn college credit for that course. This can be helpful if you are worried about graduating on time, or if you want to be able to jump into your major-specific courses as early as possible. In addition to these benefits named by the College Board, one of the most obvious benefits that students derive from taking AP classes and exams is the fact that there is the possibility to earn college credit for the course you have taken the exam for, depending on the score you get.Įarning college credit for a course means that, when you get onto campus as a college student, you can essentially bypass the introductory level course for that subject. They give you the opportunity to further discover what you’re passionate about (and what you’re not!).They help you to hone in on skills that are necessary for success in college, such as time management and effective study skills.They allow you to “get a taste of college” by making you more familiar with the rigor of college-level classes.This guide will include important information such as the basics of each type of course, key differences, which program is right for you, and so much more.Īccording to the College Board, a few of the main benefits of enrolling in AP courses (and taking their respective exams) include: Regardless of where you stand on this spectrum in terms of what you know (or don’t know), in this post, I am going to outline everything that you need to know about both types of classes, AP (Advanced Placement) and IB (International Baccalaureate). These programs (and their respective courses) are both viewed highly by college admissions officers, primarily because they offer students the opportunity to earn college credits by showing their proficiency in a course that is considered to be college level. To give you the extremely shortened version, AP and IB courses are the most rigorous level of courses that you can take as a high school student. Maybe you know a little bit about them, maybe you know nothing about them.

One step up from Honors classes is taking you into a whole new ballgame.Īt some point throughout your high school years, it’s likely that you’ve heard these terms, “AP” and “IB”, thrown around or mentioned by your teachers, school counselors, or your peers. Beyond your normal classes, lots of schools also offer Honors classes (one step up from your normal). Most high schools offer several different levels of courses that students can take, which vary in terms of difficulty. What exactly does it mean to take “rigorous courses”? Going even further, 73% of colleges stated that student’s grades in college prep courses (such as AP and IB courses, for example) were “considerably important”.īut let’s take a step back here. Data published in 2019 by NACAC confirmed that high school academic performance (aka, your grades) is the most important aspect of the college admissions process. AP vs IB: The majority of high school students preparing for college know that taking rigorous courses is one piece of the puzzle when it comes to making yourself a competitive college applicant.