Are you debating on whether or not to take AP classes? Not sure which ones to take or what they’re about? I speak from experience that taking these classes is definitely not easy and gets overwhelming at times, but they do provide you with many benefits for college, making the stressful times worth it. I asked Hazen students taking these classes in the 2023-2024 school year to share their experiences of taking advanced placement classes and if they would recommend students to take these classes in the upcoming years.
What AP class are you taking?
“AP Chemistry” Megan Lui (11) “AP Calculus” Sienna German (11) “AP Language and Composition” Allie Harris (11) “AP Psychology” Sam Nicholson (11) “AP Environmental Science” Livia Davison (11)
Why did you decide to take this AP class?
All of them shared the different reasons they decided to take their AP classes. Lui (11) stated, “I decided to take AP Chemistry because I wanted to learn more about chemistry and have a chance to gain college credit.” German (11) replied, “I decided to take AP Calculus for the rigor, but also because I wanted to further my education in math in high school.” Harris (11) said, “I want to go into a field that has to do with writing, plus it’s a good way to prepare you on how to write college applications.” Nicholson (11) explained, “I decided to take AP psychology because it seemed interesting and some of my friends recommended it to me.” Davison (11) said, “It was the only other option besides AP Bio, AP Chem, and AP Physics and it seemed fun and interesting.”
What is the best part about taking this AP class?
They all revealed the best part of taking AP classes. Lui (11) explained, “The best part about taking this class is learning more about chemistry and bonding with my classmates.” German said, “Seeing all the skills you have developed over the years come to big problems and you have every skill to do this now.” Harris (11) stated, “The people, everyone is nice and professional and the teacher is really good at teaching how to write and critiquing writing to make it even better.” Nicholson (11) said, “The best part is learning about how the body and the mind works. It helps learn a little bit about yourself.” Davison (11) replied, “It’s very hands-on and you are working with plants and animals a lot.”
What is the hardest part about this AP class?
All of them shared the toughest part of taking an AP class. Lui (11) said, “The hardest part about this AP class is the material and it being your responsibility to create a way to remember a lot of it.” German (11) stated “There’s a lot of self-advocating, while there’s a lot of support for you just in general, it takes you to go up there and say you need help or you have a question, that itself is difficult and so there’s a lot of self struggle. Harris (11) explained,“The writing. As much as it helps you, it is very time-consuming, and sometimes getting feedback from the teacher gets frustrating.” Nicholson (11) said, “The tests because the tests are all about memorizing.” Davison (11) replied, “The repeated Cornell notes because even though they are easy, there’s a lot of them and if you don’t do them they get backed up.”
How hard would you say this AP class is on a scale from 1 through 10?
All of them shared how hard their AP class is out of 10. Lui (11) stated, “I would say this AP class is a 7/10.” German (11) said, “For right now I would say a 7, but we haven’t gotten to the bigger stuff yet.” Harris (11) explained, “I would say an 8 because it’s not as hard as my other AP classes, but I think that the amount of time you put in for this class is a lot more than some of the other AP classes.” Nicholson (11) replied, “I would say a 7.5 out of 10.” Davison (11) said, “I would say a 5, it’s not too hard.”
Would you recommend people to take this class and why?
All of them shared why they would recommend taking their particular AP class. Lui (11) stated, “I would recommend this class if you’re really interested in chemistry and are willing to invest time into this class.” German (11) said, “I would recommend people to take this class because it does give you math rigor, but I would warn them that they are going to have to know themselves and their limits and abilities very well.” Harris (11) explained, “I think people should take this class because it helps you get used to reading the news and learn how to take it all in. It’s definitely worth it especially if you want to go into writing.” Nicholson (11) said, “I think it is a cool class to take if you’re up for the work and memorizing a lot of things.” Davison (11) replied, “I would because you actually learn a lot because Mr. Pearson is a good teacher, and if you are better at hands-on learning then you should take this class.”
With so many options of classes to choose from at Hazen, between taking regular classes and challenging yourself. Taking AP classes, or if you are a Junior or Senior doing running start, it can get overwhelming. Taking AP classes is not easy and it doesn’t work for everybody. So, hopefully reading this will help you decide if you want to take AP classes next school year.
