Tag: Advanced Placement Courses for High Schoolers

The Advanced Placement Courses & Exams

Advanced Placement (AP) courses, created by the Unites States College Board, are college-level curricula offered by universities or colleges to high school students. Grant placement and course credit is often given to those who obtain high scores on the examinations. Currently, there are more than 30 existing Advance Placement courses on multiple subject matters offered.

The Advanced Placement Courses had a long history. It started after the Second World War the program was pioneered by prep schools until them issues a report allowing high school seniors to study college-level material and take an achievement exam that allows college credit for high scorers. A pilot program was run during 1952. Ever since, millions and millions of students each year take Advance Placement examinations to qualify.

The College Board allows students to take any exam no matter what course he is participating under. This means that students studying online and those from schools without Advance Placement courses can equally take the examination.

AS of 2015, each exam costs $91, though financial support is given by local and state programs. For students who qualify, they are given discounts. Additional reduction depends by state. The number of AP exams keep on climbing up each year.

Wondering about the exam structure, the questions and time to finish the exam depends on the subject. The test consist of multiple choices, essay, and questions with short answers. The score rate is from 1 to 5. AP credits vary from school to school. Some offer Advanced Placement Courses for a rating of at least 3. Taking the exam does not mean you have to take the AP courses. If you consider sitting for the AP exam, you can register from your school coordinator. This person will tell you the cost and venue of the exam.

Advanced Placement Courses for High School Students

Getting a full load of courses during college means late-night stuffing, regular assessments and lots of content to cover. But it can also mean studying in an advanced, less curriculum-driven atmosphere, while experiencing a break from the extracurricular actions that take over the schedule in high school. Scholars who are lucky enough to not have to work, have time each day to research and slack off, since their complete class time is about 15 hours less each week than that of a higher school student. But a good amount of kids are now using up to 10 advanced placement courses during their junior and senior years, balancing three periods of sports, group service, flute training, driving training and applying to college. School directors say advanced placement courses generally require 30 to 60 minutes of preparation per class per evening. And no high school student’s day begins with an 11 am class.

advanced_placement_coursesWhy are kids placing themselves through this? And why do parents allow and even require this? There are a lot of explanations for your high school student to take advanced placement courses. Learners can generate college credit and may be able to save money by completing college a term or two early. Learners are also able to take electives previously in college, enabling them to try out new subject matter or even move on to more complex courses in their major more quickly. But not every college allows AP credits. And by the time your child finds out where she is going to college, she is mostly done taking courses.

My buddy who works as a college consultant for high school students says students really need to know themselves before signing up for several AP courses. If you think you can manage work and stress, staying up late and if the subject is an area in which you succeed, go for it. But there are other ways to help you take a stand out: Get into and win an essay competition, for example. But, she says, if a scholar’s objective is to get into an Ivy League university, she motivates him or her to take more APs, especially in a selected area, since the scholar’s “weighted” Grade Point Average will be higher than if he would have taken non-AP classes.