Mrs. York shares some nuggets of wisdom about the pros and cons of an AP class for your homeschooler.
Advanced Placement classes and exams are an opportunity for homeschool students to demonstrate that they are ready for college-level work.
These high-school level classes are ‘weighed’ heavier on transcripts by colleges and universities because the curriculum is rigorous. In Illinois, most AP classes are considered ‘writing intensive’ and every high school student must take two writing-intensive courses to graduate.
Should the student want to take the corresponding AP Exam after studying all year, it costs about $100 each and is administered in May. These tests are long – usually around 3 hours.
A high score may equal credit at the college level and usually will allow a student to skip an introductory class and move to advanced one.
A low score does not hurt a student’s chances. It simply means the student gets the credit of the transcript for taking a rigorous high school course without getting the college level benefit on top of it.
Here are a couple of articles that talk more in depth about the pros/cons:
How does ap credit work at colleges?
HSLDA – The Benefits of AP® and CLEP Tests for College-Bound Teens