Why You Should Take AP Classes

Taking AP classes seems obvious for admissions, but many students don’t realize that AP develops soft skills for college preparedness, too.

We know – you take Advanced Placement courses and exams because you “should.”  Because they might get you college credit, make you look like a better college applicant, and/or impress your competitive friends. To have “AP” on your high school transcript means you’re a risk-taker. It tells colleges and universities, regardless of the final exam score, that you have persisted and challenged yourself at a higher standard. 

But getting ahead isn’t the only reason to take AP classes. They can also help you become a better student and build skills to excel in college and beyond. 

Let us explain. 

Take More Elective Classes 

First, let’s imagine you’re a go-getter student who wants to get early credit for introductory college courses, but this plan doesn’t go your way. Maybe the college you decide to attend doesn’t offer credit for high AP exam scores, or your AP exam scores aren’t high enough to qualify for credit. There’s still value in taking these classes and exams. Many schools offer placement tests that allow you to start introductory classes at a higher level. Doing the work for your AP class (for instance, AP Statistics or AP Chemistry) and studying for your AP exams will give you a leg up in these placement tests, or, at the very least, make you a better student in those introductory classes.

Challenge Yourself

Second, let’s imagine that you’re a high-achieving student who has difficulty finding challenging courses in your high school. In that case, take the AP courses that look really interesting to you. Take a language that might not be offered regularly – like AP Chinese or AP German. Take an AP Art & Design course, and perhaps surprise yourself in finding a new talent. Consider AP Human Geography or AP Music Theory, which usually aren’t part of a required high school curriculum. You may or may not discover a new passion, but the value of the class remains: regardless of the class you take, more knowledge and a better skill set will always be useful – no matter what you do in the future.

Build Critical Thinking Skills 

Third, AP courses give you what may be the most important tool of your college career: critical thinking skills. Absorbing information from a class is important – we all know that.  But much more important is understanding and applying that information. AP courses emphasize identification of larger trends and concepts. They also focus on skills like synthesizing, or pulling ideas from one area and applying them to another. AP courses allow you to both practice these skills and then prove to colleges that you have this valuable tool in your toolkit. 

We anticipate that, increasingly, the move to test-optional admissions will focus more attention on a student’s demonstrated performance in advanced coursework. And while most forecasting for fall classes is over, summer is the perfect time to explore topics and fields that might interest you! The AP YouTube channel currently contains AP courses and review sessions in virtually every subject. 

For help determine if AP classes are right for you, contact us. Our expert tutors are ready to help you bring your coursework to the next level.