Three weeks before finals week, twelve hours of Advanced Placement (AP) testing barged into my life. I can not say I did not anticipate this situation, yet the reality only struck the week of the tests. My academic life was put on hold, my time swallowed by last-minute studying, and a voice murmured to me in the back of my mind: did I make the right decision?
Time is an immensely valuable resource, and learning to set a reasonable work schedule is crucial to well-being. I had earlier decided that, in addition to taking the AP Literature exam, as is required for all Juniors, it would also be fun to add in two APs for which I had not fully prepared. Furthermore, one of the AP tests I added, Physics: Electricity and Magnetism, is often consideredone of the hardest APs offered. This convergence of multiple tests in one week, along with the insane duration of the tests—each three hours long—was a brutal combination. Concord Academy already has rigorous classes, especially a month out from the end of the year, and participating in a varsity sport schedule makes for a tight turnaround in any typical week. But three months ago, I did not realize that I would be in such a time crunch by adding a few more APs. The havoc I experienced proves otherwise.
I came from a neighborhood with kids taking 15-17 AP classes in their public high schools, and so naturally I was inclined to take at least a few. But, the reality is that AP testing, especially at CA, is not as useful as you might think. While AP testing is useful for skipping required classes in college, the complexity of our classes is already at the AP level, meaning that AP test scores do not show as much rigor as you might think. CA does not even offer AP classes, and colleges recognize that. The classes here are tailored by teachers; these courses offer unique perspectives on our world, while providing the complexity of AP-level courses. When AP tests matter so minimally to colleges evaluating CA student applications, there is no reason to stretch yourself thin by taking an AP test, sacrificing the time you could dedicate to CA’s courses.
It’s frustrating that the policies for APs are as they are. The fact that you must register six months before you take a test, paying double if you register late, with a deadline two months before the test, gives you hardly any time to consider the value and cost of taking an AP. Along with this, the spectrum of complexity these APs hold is worrying. Getting a 5 can be as simple as a light week of studying in some APs, but a more rigorous AP requiring deeper subject knowledge could take months to self-study. The pure length of the testing is also absolutely brain-frying. Three hours straight of doing a specific topic with a measly ten-minute break in the middle, especially put back to back, can make someone go crazy. I would know.
While the system of APs is flawed, I cannot deny that being able to properly reason the value of commitments before you take them on is more important. I wish I had known that adding a few APs would take large chunks of time from my busy life. I wish I had known the toll APs would take on my well-being. I hope that the mistakes I have made with my time and my perception can inform you about what it means to take APs, or anything for that matter. Go for it, but consider the cost.