AP classes vs same college course

[Anonymous]

Couple of questions comparing AP vs. an equivalent college course (e.g. AP Calc BC vs Calc 2):

- Does an AP Calc BC course (say you get a 3) prepare you for the next course in college or should one repeat it? Assume a CS or Engr. major. What if the score was a 4 or a 5?
- Is the college version of AP Calc BC that much more difficult? Is it because the content is harder or just the logistics (hard-ass profs, large classes, no-mercy schedule and grading, etc.)?
- Are there any cons to repeating?

For context, I have a TJ kid who got a 5 in AP Calc BC that skipped it in college (t10) and had no issues getting As in subsequent math classes. He said it wasn't difficult at all and that the same went for all of his friends at various colleges. I have a HS senior who's likely to end up with a 3/4 in Calc BC and wondering if they should plan to repeat or not.

[Anonymous]

Do they need that class for applying to medical school or similar? Take it again. Take it again, in college, unless they get a 5.

[Anonymous]

The AP class is a 1 year class. The college course is a semester. Some colleges won’t take a 3 in the AP test.

[Anonymous]

If a heavy math/ science major, take again with 3 or 4.

[Anonymous]

I would suggest repeating with a 4 and absolutely with a 3 if it’s for an engineering or other STEM major. Better to have some of the material be familiar but end up with a really solid grasp of it than to struggle in the next level up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would suggest repeating with a 4 and absolutely with a 3 if it’s for an engineering or other STEM major. Better to have some of the material be familiar but end up with a really solid grasp of it than to struggle in the next level up.

This! It was helpful for DD to retake in order to have complete mastery. It also provided an "easier" class during all of the other things that freshman have to deal with their first year (dorm life, time management, profs, food, etc)

[Anonymous]

Any class in a subject you intend to continue further in the same subject, 5 or retake class. Anything else is sabotaging you're whole college career. If the retake turns out to be easy, congrats! Use your free time to get a head start on reading for next class, or add an elective, or add an extracurricular activity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The AP class is a 1 year class. The college course is a semester. Some colleges won’t take a 3 in the AP test.

This. It totally depends on where they end up enrolling. Some schools are very particular as to scores (e.g. a 4 gets you course credit or just a ticket into a higher level class). Then, within a college, some majors are even more particular with respect to high school coursework or scores they want to see.

[Anonymous]

It depends on the high school class. What text book did they use (our high school uses same text as the flagship university)? How much did they cover? Some teachers cover more than others. Self-studying for one exam is not always the same as truly mastering material, so you can't necessarily rely on the AP score - same is true if the kid choked on that one exam.

Anyway, it is usually a good idea to retake if these are classes required for your major, and most colleges encourage that. If you are just getting out of a core not related to the major, use the AP to opt out.

[Anonymous]

General rule is if it is a stem major to retake calc 2 even if you got a 5 on calc BC. That allows you to truly understand it & they may cover additional items that you need to progress at that school. Hopefully it will be an easy course, make transitioning to college easier, and boost gpa. Same goes for bio and chem AP if a science major.

Take credit for classes not related to your major - apes, apush , Spanish etc.

[Anonymous]

OP. Thanks everyone. DC2 intends to take a STEM major so we will plan on retaking Calc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Couple of questions comparing AP vs. an equivalent college course (e.g. AP Calc BC vs Calc 2):

- Does an AP Calc BC course (say you get a 3) prepare you for the next course in college or should one repeat it? Assume a CS or Engr. major. What if the score was a 4 or a 5?
- Is the college version of AP Calc BC that much more difficult? Is it because the content is harder or just the logistics (hard-ass profs, large classes, no-mercy schedule and grading, etc.)?
- Are there any cons to repeating?

For context, I have a TJ kid who got a 5 in AP Calc BC that skipped it in college (t10) and had no issues getting As in subsequent math classes. He said it wasn't difficult at all and that the same went for all of his friends at various colleges. I have a HS senior who's likely to end up with a 3/4 in Calc BC and wondering if they should plan to repeat or not.

Depends on the college. Mine did not repeat BC calc, is in engineering at an ivy and soaring through math. The high school was rigorous private and had 2 calculus sequence courses after BC calc . The students who placed into the course (most had 4/5s but did not do well on placement) equivalent of BC noted it was much more in depth and covered more topics than BC. Some did well some got Cs. It mostly depends on high school preparation .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would suggest repeating with a 4 and absolutely with a 3 if it’s for an engineering or other STEM major. Better to have some of the material be familiar but end up with a really solid grasp of it than to struggle in the next level up.

This! It was helpful for DD to retake in order to have complete mastery. It also provided an "easier" class during all of the other things that freshman have to deal with their first year (dorm life, time management, profs, food, etc)

+1. DC earned As in classes he could have skipped. It helps build a solid GPA when applying for internships.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It depends on the high school class. What text book did they use (our high school uses same text as the flagship university)? How much did they cover? Some teachers cover more than others. Self-studying for one exam is not always the same as truly mastering material, so you can't necessarily rely on the AP score - same is true if the kid choked on that one exam.

Anyway, it is usually a good idea to retake if these are classes required for your major, and most colleges encourage that. If you are just getting out of a core not related to the major, use the AP to opt out.

Mine are both at top schools and they do not encourage repeating, even for math or engineering majors. They do have placement tests or guidelines but they specifically discourage repeating unless made to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would suggest repeating with a 4 and absolutely with a 3 if it’s for an engineering or other STEM major. Better to have some of the material be familiar but end up with a really solid grasp of it than to struggle in the next level up.

This! It was helpful for DD to retake in order to have complete mastery. It also provided an "easier" class during all of the other things that freshman have to deal with their first year (dorm life, time management, profs, food, etc)

+1. DC earned As in classes he could have skipped. It helps build a solid GPA when applying for internships.

One can skip into the harder levels of Calculus and still earn As. Going for the easy GPA strikes as somewhat lazy