How can I concretely show my resourcefulness as an international student without access to AP classes?Answered
Where I'm from (the Philippines), schools don't provide AP or Honors' classes. Everyone is taught the same general topics in each subject without any opportunities for accelerated learning or specialization within the classroom. Because of this, I've been taking online psychology courses on Coursera, learning more STEM topics through Khan Academy, self-studying using any AP textbooks I can get a hold of, and teaching myself Spanish using the internet. I worry that these don't count as extracurriculars and I won't have any concrete proof to show what I've learned.
How can I show colleges that I took initiative and pursued a more advanced education despite the limitations of my country's school system? Thank you so much in advance! (P.S.: If it helps, I'm in the summer of my freshman year right now and will be in the 10th grade in a few months.)
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1 answer
Oh hi I'm a student from the PH too! :)
There /are/ actually schools in the country that offer AP classes; not sure if there are some in your area but they exist! You may be able to apply for an exam if you can afford it (refer to https://apstudents.collegeboard.org/faqs/im-homeschooled-how-can-i-take-ap-exam; not sure if this works in the country as I've heard of a school offering AP for only its students, but it's worth a try)--I heard from our high school's college counselor that Faith Academy in Rizal offers AP exams in August and June while the rest of the schools offer only in June (to my knowledge). Check https://apcourseaudit.epiconline.org/ledger/ for schools that offer recognized AP classes/exams.
If you're from a sci high, pretty sure classes are already considered Advanced as well.
Other than that, I think all you can do right now is wait until senior high to get an elective (or if you have the money, you can pay for Coursera certificates since they apparently are recognized by some unis). I wish you good luck! I'm glad there are students from the country taking initiative, you have a bright future ahead of you :)
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