by Jorge Adrian Lopez, Staffwriter
Devils’ Advocate

For many, the time of year has come to prove that you haven’t been just taking up space and have actually learned something in your AP classes. May is the month that causes much exasperation for many AP students because it is the culmination of what they have learned all year. No doubt, some AP tests seem so much harder than others, but they are all still challenging and require time outside of class to prepare. So, some tips to make the best of the AP trials is to plan ahead of time: find out when your test or tests are, and plan how much time each day or weekend you will spend studying for it. Decide which test is more important to you to pass, and which ones are the most challenging which will then require the most time. For example, if you are going to major in Engineering in the future, maybe Calculus is something you want to spend more time studying than you do for other classes. Also, study groups are fine, but keep it to a minimum of 3-4 people; any more than that and it will become distracting. Moreover, keep up with the AP review your AP teachers provide you. Your teachers want you to pass, so those extra essays you write in class or the extra statistics problems are only for your own good.

Despite the negative association that sometimes goes along with AP testing, keep in mind the benefits. Just getting at least a 3 can save you hundreds or thousands of dollars because that is one less class you are taking in college. However, if you know the type of universities you want to go to, for some like UC Berkeley or a private school like Stanford or Harvard, a “3” won’t do it. Check this link  to see universities and what scores they require for you to get credit for an AP class at their university. A 3 on AP Calculus will fly at SDSU, but not at Harvard. I tell you this not to discourage you, but to just warn and inform you to take your AP testing seriously; otherwise, even if you pass, you may have wasted a year taking an AP class that you may have passed the test for but still can’t receive any college credit. Now you know more… and the more you know, the better prepared you are for what’s to come. Good luck, Red Devils!