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Austin Jadlowiec

College Composition I Period 6

Mrs. Cramer

24 March 2017

The Truth of College Readiness

How prepared are you for college? This question is likely on many high school students

minds, even your own. Advanced placement, or AP, courses are defined as high school courses,

which cover a large amount of material corresponding to college courses through rigorous

instruction and rapid movement between topics. In order for advanced placement to be accepted

as college credit, you must pass the test with a varying score, typically three points out of five.

However, this varies from college to college. Dual enrollment is a type of high school class in

which a professor grants permission to the high school instructor to give college credit for the

class upon completion and prepares a syllabus for the high school teacher to use. Advanced

placement classes are much more valuable to high school students due to their rigor and

widespread acceptance by colleges.

Choosing the correct class type is crucial in our heavily globalized world. Over the past

30 years, the United States has dropped from its first place ranking in high school education, to

tenth in the present. This could be caused by a variety factors, from increased affluence of

previously poor countries to decreased expectations for the American youth. But, this debate is

neither here, nor there; however, it does show us an important fact about the degrading quality of

our education system when compared to other countries. When considering the globalization of

the world, note that American students are now directly competing with students from other

countries for jobs and college education. Now take a moment to reflect the previously stated.
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American students are now less qualified, and are directly competing with foreign students who

are more qualified for higher education and jobs.1 Several solutions to this problem have been

proposed. However, one that sticks is fixing the root problem. We need a dramatic change to the

United States education system. Teachers expectations as well as students want for challenge

must be increased significantly if we are to compete once again with the superpowers of the

world. One way to do this is to push for more emphasis on challenging course types, such as

advanced placement. These classes are infinitely more challenging to the students taking them, I

speak from both personal anecdotes as well as from documented studies on the topic.2 According

to CollegeBoard, the organization who administers the SAT, students who take advanced

placement courses in high school have higher retention rates, first year GPAs, and graduation

rates once at college. According the Brooke Donald of the Standford News, advanced placement

courses level the playing field of all students taking it across the country, making our newly

educated youth more consistently educated (Donald). Advanced placement courses also have the

large benefit of being free, always. Dual enrollment commonly charges students some fraction of

the actual tuition for the class. While some high schools will cover the cost of the class if you can

pass it, these cases are rare. Thus, for a student with an economic disadvantage, advanced

placement classes are much more palatable.

While advanced placement courses, and tests, thoroughly teach the material at hand, it is easy to

see how a student could get overwhelmed. But, I must ask, is this not a good thing? A quote

which comes to mind is that from Winston Churchill, he once said Success is not final, failure is

1Logos I connect the concept of global competition using a logical progression of ideas by using an if A is B, and
B is C, then A is C connection of arguments.

2 Ethos I use personal experiences to convey a status of authority, showing the reader my experience on
the topic.
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not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. Struggling through a class and finding the

perseverance to push through it is what defines a scholar. Thus, advanced placement classes are

not only teaching the material at hand, but will teach the student how to learn. This is shown

once again by students higher graduation rates in college. Another problem many people have

with advanced placement courses is its credit rewards are completely based on a single test at the

end of each year. However, this test is necessary. It guarantees students have not passed a course

due to loose teacher grading, and shows the student knows the material. Additionally, according

to CollegeBoard, about 60% of students are able to pass the exam at the end of the year

(Rhodes). This statistic is intimidating to some students. But, you should not forget that advanced

placement classes are not for everyone. They are designed specifically to mimic that of a first-

year college course and should be treated as such. No college is going to give credits away

without a student showing their competency.

A common misconception about advanced placement courses is that the credits do not

count in many colleges. This may be true for elite schools, such as Dartmouth; however, it is not

true for most colleges in the United States. About 70% of universities in the United States accept

the minimum passing grade on advanced placement courses, and only eight universities

nationwide, including Dartmouth, do not accept any credits (Price). It is safe to say most students

will have no problem transferring credits after taking advanced placement classes; nevertheless,

it is up to the student to research beforehand about the college they plan on attending to make the

best possible decision. It is essential for the student to research before taking their chosen class

type due to the fact that it could waste time and money otherwise. If you were to take an

advanced placement class without doing the before stated, you could have to retake, and pay for

the same class once they reach college. If you were to make this mistake when taking dual
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enrollment is would be even more costly. If the credits do not transfer to your selected college,

you would have to retake the course, as well as pay again for the course. But, even if your

college will not take the advanced placement credit, you should take the class. It is free, and even

if you do not pass the exam, you will get a good grasp of the subject and it will be much easier

once you take it in college, as you are mostly reviewing material you have already seen.

Colleges look so favorably on advanced placement courses due to their standardized

nature. Dual enrollment cannot be standardized because the professors create their own syllabus

for each class for the high school teachers to instruct, and is compounded by the teachers ability

to interpret the syllabus in their own way. This results in large gaps in students understanding of

a topic as well as lack of consistency of topics covered (Tate). Colleges look upon this cautiously

to prevent an unprepared student getting thrown in a class he/she were not properly ready for.

However, many universities prevent this by giving teachers a rigorous curriculum, and colleges

only accept credits from schools which they trust have thoroughly taught and tested the students

on the topic (Rhodes). So once again, it is up to the student to research their particular

circumstances to see which is the best choice for them to take.

If you are mentally and physically able to take either type of class, I highly suggest you

take the opportunity. However, I would make sure you are willing to put the work into the class

before you take it (Tate). If you are not, either option will be too arduous.3 It is a great way to

challenge your own learning while also saving money for the long term. But, if I were to choose

one type of course, it would have to be advanced placement. It is more widely accepted, difficult,

free, and standardizes your learning with others nationwide.

3 Pathos I use an appeal to emotion to make sure the reader understands the rigor involved in this type
of class.
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Works Cited

Donald, Brooke. "Are AP Courses worth the Effort? An Interview with Stanford Education

Expert Denise Pope." Stanford News. Stanford University, 22 Apr. 2013. Web. 17 Mar.

2017.

Price, Suzanna. "Settling the Debate: AP vs. Dual Enrollment." Fresh U. N.p., 7 June 2017. Web.

17 Mar. 2017.

Rhodes, Terrel. "Accelerated learning for what?" Peer Review 9.1 (2007): 9+. Student Resources

in Context. Web. 17 Mar. 2017.

Tate, Allison Slater. "Will Dual Enrollment Classes Help You Get Into College? What to

Consider." NBCNews.com. NBCUniversal News Group, 14 Apr. 2016. Web. 17 Mar.

2017.