Say a kid is able to start college with 20 credit hours in hand because of the AP high school stuff. Does that mean he/she only needs 100 more hours to graduate (assuming 120 is the magic number)? Are those 20 hours part of the calculation when compiling the kid's college GPA? If so, what grade is assigned to them? Or, are they not considered at all? Finally, if a kid has 30 hours going in, it seems the family could save on a year's tuition, correct?

 

Each school is probably different. With ACT scores and AP classes my daughter started out as a sophmore in hours. They did not impact the GPA calculation but did reduce the number of hours she needed to take at IU to graduate. They need to fit into the general requirements or degree program in order to get full use of all hours. In her case she went the full 4 years taking full loads and came out with a triple major.

It's my experience that not all AP class's are equal in terms of work load, and I imagine that varies depending on the school. When I was in school there were a few AP classes that were "blow off" classes and there were a few others that you'd never pull your head out of a book if you took two or more.

 

The college credit thing is pretty nice, but depending on your situation - how quickly you want to graduate, if you're paying tuition per class, if you want to balance your work load, etc. - the credit's can be a touch overrated.

 

A college course is often way more interesting/educational than the AP high school course. If you're undecided on a major then taking courses you're interested in can be better than opting for your AP credit and taking something dull just because it's there.

 

Similarly, if you're interested in, say, Psychology and you use the AP credit to get out of an introductory course you're probably going to miss out on a lot of things you find interesting, getting to know faculty, learning about opportunities, etc.

 

If you're interested in a specific graduate program or are interested in a difficult major, relying on the AP credit to advance can be a bad strategy. It might be better to take the introductory class to bolster your GPA and to make sure you're completely ready for the advanced classes. Med schools, for instance, are going to look at your GPA in specific slate of courses. This, at least, might be something to think about if you scored a three versus a five on the credit exam.

 

And if you are interested in an intense or competitive major, getting to skip a lot of elective courses and jumping into a full slate of advanced or major-specific courses can make things unnecessarily hard on yourself.

 

At any rate, AP credit is great, but I wouldn't overload myself with the classes on the hopes of skipping a few college courses, either, especially if that meant crippling myself with work my senior year of high school.

Excellent post, Habib! Love the insight.

This is a tough one on many levels. My experience with this and students over the years is that if they can make a 4 or 5 on the exam and keep a very high GPA it is worth it with a 28+ on the ACT. Otherwise, I would advise against it and go the dual credit route with the Kentucky Community College system. Most state pubic colleges will accept the credits. If your child wants to go out of state or the private school route, this will not help because the credits won't be accepted. It really is individual.

 

We mentored a Holmes student through high school. He was from a very tough situation, however, he received 27 credits at NKU through the Gateway dual credit avenue with a very high GPA and 22 on his ACT.

 

This is a huge savings to a family and has them ready to graduate college in 3-31/2 years.

Good comments Bengal Maniac.

 

I believe AP classes are worth it as long as you get at least a "B" in the class. That way it does not hurt the GPA. Colleges do like seeing a tough course load. You also need to get a 3 on the AP exam for most colleges to give you the credits. Some of the private schools require a 4 on the AP exam to give you credit. It is irritating that some schools do not weight the AP classes in their class rankings. I believe that is very unfair and a disservice to the top students in the school. I also don't like how colleges do not allow students to use weighted GPAs on applications. They want students to take those tough AP classes but then discount them in the application process. That is why I say you need to get at least a B in the AP class to make it worth it.

 

On the comments about AP Calculus in the Speed School, yes they will not let you bypass Calculus. I am pretty sure that is true for Physics also. I still would recommend AP Calculus (not BC, just AB). The Calculus course at Speed School is one of those courses that will tell you whether you are right for engineering. AP Calculus in high school will prepare you for it even though you won't get to college credits.

 

As to Hellbird's comments above about the college counselor, my experience with college counselors is they are not very good. Unfortunately, the story you told about your daughter does not surprise me. If you find a good counselor in college, consider yourself lucky. I recommend double and triple checking everything you are told by a college counselor.

High school AP courses. Great opporunity to get college credit. Get those frosh classes out of the way so you can start working on classes more specific to your major.

My daughter was able to skip on to a few sophomore level classes as a frosh because of the AP classes in high school.

 

But how many AP classes is too many?

Is 5 AP classes you senior year, too many?

Wouldn't that be like taking 15 or so credits in college?

 

Just because the AP class is offered, do you take it?

At what point do you tell your kid to maybe back off a bit on AP classes and just enjoy the high school experience?

 

Many schools told my niece that taking AP classes as a senior, though she has already qualified for several scholarships, shows the colleges she is interested in that she is serious about getting in. It also gets the attention of collegiate honor societies.

 

It helped her at FSU. She is in only her second semester there and is a sophomore. On March 30 she is to be inducted into Phi Eta Sigma and has been nominated for the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. Looks go on a resume.