duPont Manual High School

Christy TeagueCounselorAP Coordinator

oAP courses are the most challenging courses offered at Manual

oCollege-level courses

oGives you a head start on college

oShows colleges that you are a serious student & capable of college-level work

oHave the potential to earn college credits or placement into advanced courses in college

Did you know . . .

If you earn a high school diploma, you’re likely to earn $7,000 more annually than students who don’t complete high school.

But if you earn a bachelor’s degree in college, you’re likely to earn $22,000more annually.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, 2000

Prepare Now to Succeed in College

A 1999 U.S. Department of Education study found that the strongest predictor of college graduation is…

Participation in rigorous, college-level courses in high school (AP courses ).

Clifford Adelman, Answers in the Tool Box: Academic Intensity, Attendance Patterns, and Bachelor’s Degree Attainment (1999), U.S. Department of Education.

AP and College Success™

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Students who take AP courses and exams are much more likely than their peers to complete a bachelor’s degree in four years or less.Source: Camara, Wayne (2003). College Persistence, Graduation, and Remediation. College Board Research Notes (RN-19). New York, NY: College Board.

Difference between….Advanced Program (Adv) & Advanced Placement (AP)

Advanced PROGRAM Advanced PLACEMENT

Adv AP

Jefferson County initiative to encourage students to take more rigorous courses.

College-level courses taught in the high school classroom.

(AP Audit)

Any high school student can take an Adv course.

Any high school student can take an AP course.

No potential to earn college credit(s).

Potential to earn college credit(s).

Not weighted (4 pt scale) Weighted (5 pt scale) A=5.0, B=3.75, C=2.5

Levels of courses at Manual:

MOST DIFFICULT AP=Advanced Placement (AP Calculus)

DIFFICULT Adv=Advanced Program (Adv Calculus)

AVERAGE Hrn=Honors (Hnr Calculus)No label (Calculus)

LOW AVERAGEComprehensive (Comprehensive Math)

Prepare for success in college by taking college-level courses while still in high school

Opportunity to earn awards, scholarships, and improve chances of college admission

Opportunity to earn college credit or advanced placement

Outperform their peers whenplaced into advanced courses

Are ready and prepared for the rigor, work-load, and time required to be successful in an AP course

Are more likely to take advancedcourses in their AP subject areas

Are more likely to choose challenging majors in college

AP committee members currently teach at dozens of the nation’s top colleges and universities, including:

– Dartmouth College– Hamilton College– Michigan State University – Princeton University– UCLA– University of Texas at Austin– University of Virginia– Yale University

•It shows colleges that you are a serious student, who can

succeed in a college course and exam.• It shows colleges that you have experienced a college-

level course and exam.• Most colleges require you to take the AP course and earn

a certain score on the exam before awarding college credit.

For example, at Princeton, students can use qualifying AP Exam grades to:– Graduate in three or three-and-a-half years– Enter upper-level courses– Fulfill a foreign language requirement

Most of the nation’s colleges/universities & 24 other countries grant students admission, credit, and/or placement for qualifying AP Exam scores.

Saves you college TIME & MONEY!!!

AP Exam vs. College Course$86 $125/credit hour (JCC)

1 HS credit = 3 college credits3hr x $125 = $375

Example:Manual student earns college credit for five college courses. 1 high school credit = 3-4 college credits3 college credits x 5 AP courses = 15 college credits15 x $125 = $1253 saved15 hours of time saved (semester of college courses)

Some colleges award “credit” for qualifying AP Exam grades. This means you actually earn points toward your college degree. Credit shows up on college transcript.

Others award “advanced placement.” This means you can skip introductory courses, enter higher-level classes, and/or fulfill general education requirements.

PLACEMENT vs. CREDIT

Increase Your Options in College

College credit can allow you to move into upper-level college courses sooner, pursue a double major, and gain time to study and travel abroad:

“As a freshman, I was able to skip general ed requirements and head straight into the higher-level classes I wanted to take. Taking AP Exams literally saved me semesters of time.”

—Brent Wiese, University of Iowa

If you earn a qualifying grade on an AP Exam, you can receive credit for the equivalent course at thousands of colleges and universities:

“I took AP throughout high school because it was the most interesting and well-taught program offered. When I reached college, I realized that I had accumulated a year’s worth of credits. I graduated from Michigan’s undergraduate business school a full year early, saving $30,000 and a year’s time.”

—Nikki Baker, University of Michigan

Why should I take the AP Exam if I’m not looking to earn credit or placement?

Stand out in the admissions process

Earn academic scholarships and awards

Experience a college-level test

Be a step ahead

“One of the best standard predictors of academic success at Harvard is performance on Advanced Placement Examinations.”

—William R. FitzsimmonsDean of Admissions, Harvard University

“AP Exams affirm the rigor of a student’s course work. Though admissions policies vary, if I were a student, I wouldn’t assume that the college of my dreams didn’t care about AP Exams in the admissions process.”

—Bruce Walker, Director of AdmissionsUniversity of Texas at Austin

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Factors influencing admissions decisions (2001)

6.4% Work/Extracurricular

8.2% Community Service

10.8% Interview

16.3% Teacher Rec

17.4% Counselor Rec

20.3% Essays

30.5% Class Rank

44.8% GPA

51.7% Test Scores

80.4% College Prep Courses AP courses

Scholarships look at # AP courses taken and AP exam scores…

Some of the most competitive scholarship awards value AP Exam grades:

“Having the AP Exam grade can make the difference when it comes down to awarding precious scholarship dollars.”

—Edwina Harris Hamby Dean of Admission

Fisk University

Experience a College-Level Test

The intensity of college exams catches far too many freshmen by surprise:

“Students who have prepared for and taken the AP Exams adapt more easily to taking college essay exams, and are especially skilled in including a thesis and a well-developed argument. They are also less intimidated by sophisticated, college-level multiple-choice questions that seek to test understanding over memorization.”

—Robert Blackey, Professor of HistoryCSU, San Bernardino

AP students who receive college credit or advanced placement into higher-level college courses perform better than the non-AP students who actually took the introductory college courses first.

Source: Rick Morgan and Len Ramist. “Advanced Placement Students in College: An Investigation of Course Grades at 21 Colleges.” Educational Testing Service (1998).

EnglishEnglish HistoryHistory World LanguageWorld LanguageEnglish Lang Human Geography French LanguageEnglish Lit World History Latin Vergil

European History Spanish Language

MathMath US History Calculus AB Gov/Pol: US Calculus BC Gov/Pol: Comp Statistics Psychology

Macroeconomics

Science/TechnologyScience/Technology Microeconomics Environmental Science

Chemistry ArtsArtsPhysics B Studio Art 2-DBiology Studio Art 3-DComputer Science A Studio Art Drawing

Music TheoryArt History

882 students took exams / 1633 exams given

83% of students scored a 3 or higher (pass rate)Highest in the district!

State “pass rate” is 50.9%

Global “pass rate” is 58.9%

Mrs. Katie Fries won the Seimens National Awards this year. She is the only teacher in the state to win this prestigious award.

• For the past 3 years, Manual has had at least one State AP Scholars—state chooses one male and one female in the state for this honor

JCPS "Pass Rate" 2008

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"Pass Rate" 2009

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Manual’s “Pass Rate”

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state, and global!!!

Manual’s AP scores IMPROVED from 2008 to 2009

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1. Go to www.collegeboard.com/ap/creditpolicy

2. Type in the name of the college or university whose AP policy you want to view (or browse by letter of the alphabet).

3. You will see two things for each school that has provided their AP credit policy info:

• A link to the college’s own Web page that details its AP credit and placement policies.

• A statement by the college or university about its AP policy.

Just let your counselor know if you want to change into an AP course for next year.