AP Courses Give Students a Head Start in College

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Advanced Placement classes offer high school students the opportunity to experience college-level class work while earning college credits — and saving money.

"People should be aware that AP courses can actually save them money in college," said Marcia Imbeau, associate professor of education and director of the gifted and talented program at the University of Arkansas. "Some kids start college as sophomores, not freshman, because they took so many AP courses."

Not only does that put students ahead academically, it benefits them financially — shaving up to year off their college bills.

Advanced Placement is an established program that was initiated in the United States in 1955. Currently, nearly 60 percent of the nation's high schools offer AP classes.

The Arkansas Department of Education plans to make AP classes available to every public school student in the state. By the 2008-2009 academic year, every school district in Arkansas will be required to offer AP courses in four subject areas English, math, science and social studies.

AP classes are organized like college courses, Imbeau explained. They encourage students to read and extract information at a different level, requiring them to think critically, draw conclusions and analyze text.

"Some other high school classes might be like that, but the AP classes are on a national standard - it's part and parcel of their curriculum," Imbeau said.

AP courses are graded on a scale of one to five points. Depending on the subject and on the credit transfer policies of different colleges, a score of three or more points merits college credit. The courses are also often weighted, so students get more credit for doing well in an AP class than for the same grade in a standard class.

"Some students are worried about taking AP courses because they don't want to make a bad grade they know that the university uses your grade point average (GPA) to get you in," Imbeau said. "Most schools have weighted AP courses, so an A means five points instead of four. That's why we have kids coming to the university with higher than a 4.0 GPA."

Parents can make AP courses an important part of college preparation by making sure their students understand what they are getting into and whether it is a realistic undertaking. Though AP courses are generally a win-win situation for students, occasionally they come to the courses unprepared for how rigorous they can be. Some students are self-disciplined and can handle the increased workload involved, while others are simply not ready or committed enough to take on such responsibility.

As part of initiating compliance with AP requirements, the Arkansas Department of Education mandates that AP teachers meet state licensure requirements and attend the College Board Advanced Placement Summer Institute at least once every four years to maintain their status.

The new state requirements are aimed at making AP courses available to students in every district across Arkansas. While the AP exam taken at the end of the school year costs money, students who qualify for the free lunch program can get financial assistance from the state.

"It's not just for the affluent students - everyone gets a chance," Imbeau said. "We want all the kids, whether they have money or not, to be able to take it."