Well, you still have to pass Calculus and AP (whatever that subject is. What does 'AP' stand for?), right? Don't get ahead of time.
AP is the Advanced Placement program. It is the honors of the honors program. But more importantly, if you do well enough in the class (and the final test), you can then use that as applied credit to college courses. In other words, almost like going to community college but while still in High School.
From what I remember, I took.
AP World History
AP American History
AP European History (actually couldn't fit this one in)
AP Calculus
AP English Composition
AP English Literature (I'm a bit fuzzy on all the English derivations)
AP Biology
AP Physics
AP Spanish (second language - didn't take it myself as senior year was a mess)
And they occur throughout the 4 years of high school, not just senior year.
That's what I remember. Sometimes it is hard to recall which was AP and which was just honors. The only test I remember was AP Calculus because math came so easy to me and I was having a tough time in my personal life that I decided to delegate time away from this class. It was the first time I felt hot taking a test. "Wow. I might not know how to solve this one. This is going to take more work than it should had I dedicated more time to this. Hmm. I'm hot."
You also don't take it in your classroom. It is more like a SAT test. Unfamiliar environment and lots of monitors.
Here (Argentina), there are a lot of public colleges which you don't pay a dime to get in (or throughout your time as a student), and - since October last year - there isn't any sort of introduction/eliminatory test. I don't think any college sends info/offers to highschool students, though.
We have that here too. It is called Jr. College or Community College. But we all called it 13th grade with a smirk. Usually more cheap than free.
I don't know how they do it today here. This was the 90s for me and the internet wasn't really used the way it is today.
I was trying to come up with a word that somewhat captured all the mail and offer was the first I could find. But it was a myriad of mail. I would get different types of mail associated with *higher learning*
1. direct mail from colleges. This could be anything from a pamphlet to a full on package. I didn't sign up for any mailing list, so they just started coming out of the blue. Usually there was some type of letter from the admissions office asking you to consider their college/university. In some ways, equivalent to pre-approved credit card offers.
2. I don't recall if they came separate or with the #1 packages, but a bundle of forms to fill out to start the application process.
3. Magazines that were college related.
4. Magazines that were financial aid related.
Now some of my friends would get things I didn't (and vice versa). But the ones that pissed me off were the grants that were associated with their parents employment or clubs or whatever. My parents didn't have those connections. And when I asked my friend how I could apply to those I'd usually get "you can't". And sometimes I wasn't sure if I truly couldn't or if they were just trying to eliminate competition.
And for quite some time, I'd come home after swim practice tired as heck, usually needing to get ready for work to find the mailbox crammed with this stuff. At first I tried to read it all. It took no time at all before it was just piling up in boxes in my room. Realizing I was flying blind on this stuff and dealing with information overkill, I grabbed a couple boxes and met with the guidance counselor. Told her I didn't quite understand what was worth my time and what wasn't. Asked her for a roadmap. Her advice was to "apply to as many as you can". So I started filling out the applications.
I then asked her for help on the financial aid side. She told me to start with my parents' tax returns. I told her my parents are going through some serious stuff and not even sure they had them to give. They didn't. She just told me to try harder. It started to get frustrating and I told her "I can't do my parents' tax returns for them. There has to be another way. Or at least get me started on some other part of the process with the hopes we can come back to that when I actually have them." She told me if I wasn't going to do step 1, she couldn't help. It was a nightmare.
So I started not trying at school. I'd still pass the AP and honors classes with an A, but it was obvious I was going through the motions now. So then the brilliant guidance counselor calls me in to ask "is there anything wrong?" And I told her "you know what is wrong."
The best part was getting acceptance letters later on knowing I couldn't pay for them. The colleges were infinitely more helpful than the local guidance counselor. But this wasn't the age of net and email.
Topic: Wither's Food For Thought (Read 4147 times)
