MommyThrice Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 OK, I'm just starting down the high school road & I'm trying to figure all this out. Here's how I understand it right now... AP - This is an advanced (college level?) high school class. Is grading different? A=5.0 instead of 4.0? CLEP - This is a test to earn college credits - but not all colleges accept all CLEP tests. Dual credit - This is taking an actual college class, at a campus or from home, to earn college credit while still in high school. Again, not all colleges will accept these hours. Is any of this incorrect? Which method is preferred and why? Someone have a link to a better explanation? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lgm Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 There is significant local variation. AP is college level, but high school grading is used. If the high school is using weighted GPA, then AP will be weighted according to the h.s. scheme. In my district, an AP class or an honors class gives you +4% bonus over a regents or below regents level course in GPA calculations. Other districts weight an AP class higher than an honors class, an so on down the line. Dual credit classes can be taken at the high school too. Whether they count toward the college degree depends on the college, the degree, and the mastery level shown. What's favored depends on who is doing the choosing and how deep their pockets are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basketmaker Amy Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 It's best to find out what college/university your child is interested in attending...and then find out what their policies are. It's different for every school...and every state. So far, my oldest ds has passed 3 CLEP tests and earned 9 hours. He is also dually enrolled (started last year when he was 15) and has earned 28 hours. In our state, the dual enrollment classes are free...we just have to buy the books. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 One thing to be aware of regarding CLEP/AP credits: even if a college or university accepts them, individual academic departments may not accept them for courses that are required by that particular major. For example, the University of NM grants credit for almost all CLEPs ~ but only for courses that are not required by the major. So a biology major may get credit for CLEPs in history, sociology, etc., but will NOT get credit for a CLEP in chemistry or math., whereas a history major may use math & science CLEPs for credit, but not Western Civ or US History. Jackie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choirfarm Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 AP - This is an advanced (college level?) high school class. Is grading different? A=5.0 instead of 4.0? QUOTE] Ok, this refers to the score when you take the AP exam. You technically can't call your class an AP class as you have to be acredited, but you CAN teach it like one, use the practice exams and have your child take the test. The highest score is a 5. With a 4 I placed out of 2 semesters of freshman English!! Most schools only take 4 or 5's; although a few may take a 3. So I will call it American History in my transcript and hopefully put American History AP exam 4 in the testing section. That will let them know they had a good course. Christine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommyThrice Posted December 22, 2009 Author Share Posted December 22, 2009 I didn't know you could take the test AP test if you teach the class yourself. I'm planning to have my son take some of these classes online from an accredited source - looking at Scholars Online and Regina Coeli. Thanks for the replies. This all seems a little overwhelming. Especially since my soon-to-be-freshman doesn't know where he wants to go to school. I just wanted to prep him so that he will have many options. Right now he's looking at Hillsdale, Cedarville, Patrick Henry, or Texas A&M. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommyThrice Posted December 22, 2009 Author Share Posted December 22, 2009 individual academic departments may not accept them for courses that are required by that particular major. Jackie I would have thought CLEP within your major is what you wanted. I'm glad you mentioned that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 (edited) You technically can't call your class an AP class as you have to be acredited, but you CAN teach it like one, use the practice exams and have your child take the test. Actually homeschoolers can list self-study courses as AP on their transcript if they get the syllabus approved by the College Board: http://www.collegeboard.com/html/apcourseaudit/faq.html (scroll down to the bottom) How can homeschool educators label their courses AP? If you are a home school educator wishing to label your courses "AP," you can create an account on the AP Course Audit homepage at http://www.collegeboard.org/apcourseaudit by clicking the "Create Account Now" link, then selecting “Home School Provider”. Once you have created an account, you will be able to submit your Course Audit materials. If you do not have an account and would like to contact us, please use the "Contact Us" link on the Course Audit homepage or call 877-APHELP-0. Click on any course icon for a list of AP-approved textbooks, sample syllabi, course requirements, etc: http://www.collegeboard.com/html/apcourseaudit/teacher.html Jackie Edited December 22, 2009 by Corraleno Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra in NC Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 AP - This is an advanced (college level?) high school class. Is grading different? A=5.0 instead of 4.0? CLEP - This is a test to earn college credits - but not all colleges accept all CLEP tests. Not all colleges accept AP either. And some colleges require the equivalent of a B or better on an AP where they'll take a C or even D on the CLEP! http://www.freewebs.com/officesolutions/clepfaqs.htm Sandra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommyThrice Posted December 22, 2009 Author Share Posted December 22, 2009 I'm bookmarking and printing the info. Thank you so much! This is all a little overwhelming. Now I have to do college research, too. I keep reading about getting too many credits and losing out on possible freshman scholarships. Are there many academic scholarships available? We are not going to qualify for any needs-based help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-FL Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I keep reading about getting too many credits and losing out on possible freshman scholarships. Are there many academic scholarships available? We are not going to qualify for any needs-based help. Again, that depends on the school & the scholarship. Some will say no college credit, some under XX hrs, some have no restrictions. Dd#1 had her AA degree (62 hrs) & was still considered a "freshman w/credit." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sonshine Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 We have looked at Cedarville and Texas A & M and have a child attending Texas A &M. Cedarville is picky about which Cleps and APs they accept, Texas A & M accepts many. Texas A and M will consider your son a freshamn as long as he was living at home and normal high school age when he was accumulating college credits (unless of couse he was actually attending a non community college full time as a regular student). You need to get the college catalogs and look at their policies. I believe I called Cedarville and requested their Clep and AP information in writing as it wasn't in their catalog. Call the Texas A and M bookstore, charge the catalog and shipping costs to your credit card and they will mail the catalog to you. Cedarville and Texas A and M have few scholarships. My freshman son at A & M had a 1400 Math and Reading SAT score, a strong interest in his field backed up by volunteer overseas trips to contribute in his field, good recs, and a great personality, and got nothing in scholarships. We don't qualify for financial aid, but need it with our many kids - three in college right now. My oldest ended up at Liberty because they have good scholarships. Union and Bryan in Tennessee have a few scholarships. I gave you more information than you asked for, but hope it is helpful. Does you son know what he wants to major in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommyThrice Posted December 22, 2009 Author Share Posted December 22, 2009 Pre-law. He's in his 3rd year of speech & debate and loves it. That's one reason why he wants to be an attorney. He also does/tests well in reading and writing. Math is just so-so. We live in Austin and UT has a good law school. Maybe when he matures he will consider it for his law school, but he has too much Aggie blood to consider it at his young age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommyThrice Posted December 22, 2009 Author Share Posted December 22, 2009 And I will have three in college at one time, too.:scared: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sonshine Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 I am excited for your son. Is he in the Homeschool Speech and Debate League? I don't know much about Texas A & M and liberal arts. It isn't known for that to be honest, although there are some good majors such as military history. My husband majored in acounting there, my brother-in-law in biology, and my son is an engineering major. Just to warn you, not all the liberal arts professors are conservative as you might expect. You may really want to look at Liberty. They have good scholarships, are known for their debate teams, and have a law school. It is not the most academically difficult school, so I don't know how it would be to try to get into a law school at another university from there. However, I don't think it is as difficult to get into law school as med. school and they have their own law school. Lynchburg is a great place to live if he ended up going there for 7 years. If you look at Liberty, be sure and apply for the scholarships with the early deadlines, such as the youth pastor's scholarships. You get a scholarship just for giving them the name, address and phone number of your youth pastor and another one is the same for an alumni from there (of course we asked their permission first). Anyway, I can give you more information if you are interested. There is a chart online with the automatic scholarships based on your SAT/ACT scores and GPA. Being in honors is another $3,000 a year, and I would be surprised if you didn't get one for being on the debate team. My son #1 got a degree in youth ministry from Liberty. That being said, I understand the Aggie pull. Although son # 3 got no scholarships from there it is a good match for his major and also possible future fundraising possibilities, as he may work in a non-profit field and the Aggie network is strong in Texas. That is also why son #4 may go there. Oh - Liberty takes many Cleps, APs, and Dantes. Son # 1 graduated from there in 2 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 Just an fyi--VA's new governor has his law degree from Liberty U. I know sometimes the ptb don't want students to get a law (or medical) degree from the place they did their undergrad, but still...Liberty is a valid law school! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommyThrice Posted December 24, 2009 Author Share Posted December 24, 2009 What is the ptb? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sonshine Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 powers that be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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