In New Zealand, schools typically offer one or two of three curricula: NCEA, Cambridge A Levels and IB. But in recent times, AP or Advanced Placement have become more accessible in many places around the world, including New Zealand. These exams have been made increasingly available to students through options like part-time schooling online or sitting exams as a private candidate. This provides students with an additional pathway to academic achievement and international recognition in a wide array of subjects, some of which are relatively rare in our existing curricula.
What is AP?
Simply put, AP is another curriculum developed by College Board that is most commonly taken by students studying in the USA. Each subject is structured to give college students a chance to study a subject at the university level. For students applying to universities in the USA, this can also provide credits allowing students to skip introductory courses at university.
Advantages of sitting AP exams
Explore subjects beyond what is offered at school
One of the biggest advantages of AP is the diversity of its courses, touching on many niche subjects that students may not typically be able to take with the standard New Zealand curricula. For instance, subjects like psychology or Latin are offered in relatively few secondary schools. However, through the AP programme, students will have access to quality resources to build a strong foundation in these subjects and a qualification to show for it.
This empowers students to explore their interests at a deeper level which not only enriches their educational experiences but also provides valuable knowledge and skills that could be directly applicable to their future academic pursuits.
Provides an intellectual challenge
In addition to exploring one’s interests, AP courses also provide students with an intellectual challenge that can be both rigorous and rewarding. Subjects such as Calculus BC, US History or Physics C are infamous among AP students for their notoriously difficult exams, which makes them perfect courses for students seeking to push their own academic boundaries.
Since these courses are designed to mirror the university-level coursework, AP courses can do a great job in complementing a student’s studies, especially those still studying the Macleans Certificate or Junior Curriculum by offering a deeper dive into subjects that introduce more complex ideas.
For students looking to challenge themselves, AP exams are an excellent avenue that can also help them come out of the exams with a strong work ethic and resilience.
Bolster your university application
University admissions expert Jamie Beaton preaches a strategy in his book ACCEPTED! known as “class spam”, which refers to taking “the maximum possible academic subject load” and “doing more than any other student around you”. For students who have their sights set on universities in the States, AP provides the perfect opportunity to implement this strategy.
But why do this? It is because many universities in the States seek intellectual vitality* in their students (ie. having an interest in a wide variety of fields and being open to discovering new subject areas as well as pursuing academic initiatives outside of school).
By taking accredited subjects in fields related to a student’s interests, they are able to communicate to universities their passion for the subject by going out of their way to study an additional subject. For instance, a student interested in behavioural economics can communicate their passion by pairing AP Psychology with their current studies in economics.
More importantly, this gives admissions officers comparability when evaluating students. All other things equal, a student who has taken more subjects with similar grades to their competitors is put in an advantageous position as the admissions officers must now actively find a reason to admit another student.
Disadvantages of sitting AP exams
Cost of examination
At the end of the day, College Board, the facilitator of AP Exams is still a business and must therefore make money. Unfortunately for students, this profit motive means having to pay test fees and venue administration costs which can be quite steep. The financial burden of AP courses can be quite an obstacle for students, limiting the benefits and accessibility to the AP programme.
Clash with New Zealand’s academic year
In the United States, the academic year begins around August and September with the AP exams taking place in May. For us domestic New Zealand students, we have to begin studying in the middle of term three, which could be a struggle – especially in the midst of exams that take place throughout terms three and four.
Furthermore, having to sit the exams in May would mean that students are required to maintain a degree of discipline, and continue studying over the summer holidays. This can be quite rigorous and challenging, but it’s to ensure they can confidently sit the exam the following year.
The holidays are supposed to be a time to kick back and relax after a long year of hard work. After all that studying and the stacks of past papers, the last thing many students want is to spend their holidays stressing about more exams. This timing, therefore, makes AP courses less ideal for students in New Zealand.
Typically requires self-studying
Since AP is not a curriculum typically offered by secondary schools in New Zealand, AP courses lack experienced teachers or tutors who can teach specifically for the curriculum.
At times, this can leave students with uncertainty about topics and scrambling with questions they may not directly have the answers to as they navigate the AP subjects alone (in fact, I still remember shutting myself in my room googling Freudian concepts and psychological history when I was preparing for my psychology exam).
What exacerbates this disadvantage of AP exams is the fact that many reputable resources students can use such as Princeton Review or Barron’s textbooks are behind paywalls which can further reduce accessibility to the AP curriculum. The lack of specialised instruction from teachers and financial barriers posed by study material can impact a student’s ability to get the most out of the AP curriculum.
The Judgement
So given the pros and cons of sitting the AP exams, should you take them? Unfortunately, I will have to give you the boring answer: it depends.
When deciding whether to take AP exams, it’s important to weigh in several factors based on individual circumstances like academic goals, one’s readiness for the AP course load and financial considerations. Evaluating the pros and cons like what has been mentioned in this article will help you determine if the AP exams align with your own aspirations. Ultimately, using the AP courses to complement your current studies is what truly makes those late nights and flashcards worthwhile.
Therefore, it is important to note that while the option of AP courses is available for students, it is not an obligation to take them and students can take advantage of the free resources that do exist out there such as Khan Academy or YouTube.
Source material:
*Stanford University (2024)https://admission.stanford.edu/apply/overview/index.html
Tuesday, July 30th
Written by Aaron Huang, edited by Emma Li
Photography Max Shilov on Unsplash
