Should I take AP Psychology?

[Akif]

16 year old high school student, grade 11 in Montreal (it's the last year of high school here). I play on the school touch football, soccer, and basketball team. The AP Psychology classes are once a week for an hour and a half on Tuesdays after-school. The problem is that I will often have practices or games on those days. I can probably negotiate with the teacher, telling her that I already know the material as I've read over the summer. I will read over the textbook and review on the weekends.

We write the exam in May, and start preparing now.

If I get a 4 or a 5 on the exam, it'll count for 3 credits at McGill, which is most likely where I'll go for University since it's 30 minutes from my house with public transport. I am not taking any other AP courses so I will only have those 3 credits.

I am genuinely interested in psychology and think it can be cool to know about and to reflect upon in real life.

Should I take the course? The way I saw it, it was too troublesome to learn everything on my own time. But then I realized it was interesting. But then I figured I could learn it without committing to the class. But then I figured I might as well get the 3 credits and be exempt from taking a psychology class in CEGEP/University. Finally I realized that studying for the exam will consume time, time which can be spent doing better/cooler things. So ♥♥♥♥ it.

Thoughts? Thanks.

[TheSeeker7]

You should definitely take it if you can get it worked out. For that matter, take as many AP course as possible. Not only do they help you get into college, the credits you get from them can help you graduate college in less time. Go for it!

[openeyes]

If you've done the reading and know the material well, if the scheduling doesn't work out you could also look into taking the AP test without having taken the course. It is doable.

Self-Studying APs: Improving Your App - College Confidential

[williamkwan]

Do it, it won't be that much harder than a regular class. In fact, I'm in it right now and I find the material very interesting. However, if you decide to self-study, the AP Psychology exam is generally considered to be one of the easiest AP exams, so you won't have to make too huge of time commitment.

[Dylan Lawrence]

That’s a great idea. I think taking AP Psychology early will ease up your schedule in college. Also taking it at your own pace will give you more time to reflect on the subject. Plus, from personal experience, getting into college having already started the academics before everyone else (even if it’s just 3 credits) gave me a little more confidence in my abilities. I didn’t take AP Psychology but I took AP Biology and I loved studying for it. I would advise you though to use resources online like practice tests and other preparation tools to ace it easily.

[Akif]

Thanks for the replies. But dudes, 3 credits is gonna get me nowhere. I'm going to go to CEGEP in Montreal where those credits won't count anyways. They may count if I decide to go to McGill Uni after CEGEP but even then, I won't even graduate faster.

And the time commitment for self-studying for this exam is something I could do without. The teacher said I could sit in on classes whenever I wanted, which is awesome. Btw, the classes are after school and I will miss a lot of them until March or so due to sports. Seeing as I'm only interested in certain parts of the material, I don't see the point in studying the rest of them just to write an exam that will get me nowhere. If I didn't have other goals, I would self-study and write the exam just to know whether or not I could do it. But I've got other things I want to work on that are non-school related which will require a certain degree of time and commitment.

Seems like I'm leaning towards no. I still want your thoughts though. I want to decide soon and get it off my back.

[momo3bur]

Hey work it out the best you can! The least you might do is learn something.

Plus, psychology is A LOT of fun and very, very interesting! At least for me it was. Psychology and Sociology were my favorite courses in college. Of course, you may not agree, but it seemed like everyone in those classes, even the people in there for mandatory reasons, really enjoyed them.

I would say definitely try it if you can, especially if you plan on taking psychology courses in college. It will give you a step up even if you get no credit for what you do put into it.

[Akif]

Like I said, I'm going to sit in on classes when I can. I can still enjoy the material and have fun and discover interesting things. But I can save myself the time from not having to do assignments, and studying, and reading the textbook.

[chadcharlie]

Originally Posted by Akif

Thanks for the replies. But dudes, 3 credits is gonna get me nowhere. I'm going to go to CEGEP in Montreal where those credits won't count anyways. They may count if I decide to go to McGill Uni after CEGEP but even then, I won't even graduate faster.

It's still one class that's not needed during a semester which allows you to take another in its stead, or have an earlier day, where you can commit to MUCH "cooler" items of interest at the collegiate level.

In any case, as in your first argument, if the teach will let you swing it with less of a commitment to class attendance, it's win, and my vote is for taking it.

[kinghtalexis]

You should definitely take AP Psychology. Why? Well because you’re interested in it and so you’ll probably get the score you want with a little effort and some help from a resource like Shmoop. Also, if you think you have a busy schedule and a lot of interesting things going on right now wait till you go to college. You’ll be busier, more social and glad for the free time.

[CroMagna]

Why don't you ask your guidance counselor?