2010-2011 Advanced Placement Bulletin for Students and Parents

By: Robert S. Jackson, Ed.S., Assistant Principal for Instruction

Bulletin for AP Students and Parents 2010-2011

Introduction

The Bulletin for AP Students and Parents is being provided for students and parents so that they can be fully aware of the benifits associated with taking Advanced Placement courses. You can download free copies of the AP Bulletin or order free printed copies by calling (212) 713-8066.

How to Enroll in AP

The AP Program isn’t just for the top students or those headed for college. The only requirements to take an AP course are a strong curiosity about the subject you plan to study and the willingness to work hard. Once you’ve decided to take the AP challenge, it’s easy to enroll: talk to an AP teacher or the AP Coordinator at your school about the course you want to take. Discuss the course workload and any preparation you might need. If you are a homeschooled student or if you attend a school that doesn’t offer AP, you can still participate.

Challenge Yourself: Take AP® Courses

Participating in the AP Program gives you the opportunity to take college-level courses while you’re still in high school. With over 37 courses in 22 subject areas, there’s bound to be a course that matches your interests—you’ll find AP courses in art, computer science, languages, human geography, and more. AP courses teach you skills that can lead to success in college. You’ll develop the writing skills, problemsolving techniques, and study habits that will prepare you for college academics. Plus, taking rigorous AP courses demonstrates your maturity, willingness to push yourself intellectually, and commitment to academic excellence, which can help you stand out in the college admissions process. Take AP courses for yourself. Enter a universe of knowledge that might otherwise remain unexplored in

high school. You’ll study subjects in greater depth and detail, and rather than simply memorizing facts, you will be expected to develop and support your own arguments and perspectives.

Put Your Knowledge to the Test: Take AP Exams

Each AP course has a corresponding AP Exam that schools worldwide administer in May. AP Exams provide students with a standardized measure of what they’ve accomplished in the AP classroom, and are thus an essential part of the AP Program. As a result, college admissions offices and many high schools expect that students who enroll in an AP course will take the AP Exam at the end of the course. Because the College Board is committed to providing access to AP Exams to all students—including homeschooled students and students whose schools do not offer AP—it does not require students to take an AP course before taking an AP Exam.Students taking AP Exams give permission to the College Board to release their contact information to researchers supportive of the College Board’s mission.

Benefits of Taking AP Exams

Taking an AP Exam allows you to experience a college-level exam now, while you are still in high school. Your work will be evaluated by unbiased college and university professors and AP teachers using college-level standards. If you are worried about how well you will do, remember—you risk nothing by taking the exam. You control which colleges (if any) receive your AP Exam grade. Most colleges and universities in the United States and Canada, and institutions in more than 40 other countries, grant students credit, placement, or both for qualifying AP Exam grades (not AP course grades), providing you with more study options in college. For example, you could move into upperlevel courses in your field of interest, pursue a double major or a B.A./M.A. program, or gain time to study or travel abroad.

You’ll also have the opportunity to earn an AP Scholar Award. Each September, the College Board recognizes high school students who have demonstrated exemplary college-level achievement on the AP Exams through AP Scholar Awards. These awards are academic distinctions you can include in your applications, résumés, etc. You will not receive any monetary award from the College Board. For information about award criteria, go to www.collegeboard.com/apstudents