What are AP physics and AP bio like?
I might be taking these two courses in the upcoming years. I was wondering what the course load is like and how to learn the courses as efficiently as possible. If there any websites, channels, or videos that could help me do better in those classes and how to do well in those classes.
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2 answers
Both AP classes have a similar course load, in that much of your homework will be large projects rather than daily busywork. Labs, problem sets, tests, and quizzes will take up most of your time in either class.
Many students would say that AP Physics is one of the hardest AP classes, while AP Bio is one of the easiest. This is because AP Physics is heavily based on high-level math, while AP Bio is all about writing and memorization.
Khan Academy is a great resource to use to prepare for both classes. Hope this helps!
I have taken both courses in the past. AP Physics was harder than AP Bio; that is a common opinion among most students. It all comes down to how these courses are taught.
1. AP Physics: This class is formula oriented, which means you are dealing with a lot of math. There's also a logical and visual aspect woven into the course, which will be noticed by doing labs. I think overall, how you learn this subject can either make your understanding of it harder or easier. My teacher didn't start reviewing until a week before the AP exam, and we never did AP style questions. Regardless, if you want to take this course and want to make sure you are doing your best, watch videos on College Board (teacher needs to unlock them), look at old AP exams, especially the frqs, and look at websites catered to AP courses, such as Khan Academy.
2. AP Bio: The labs in this course are really fun, and these experiments are sometimes asked in question form (maybe even on an AP exam). This course takes standard bio into a different level. You will start off with the basics of each topic and dive further into it. I really enjoyed learning all about DNA and the cell cycle (that along with ecology are possibly the easiest units). College Board and Khan Academy are great sources and so is Bozeman Science.
Typically, high school students start taking AP sciences during junior year because they will take bio and chem for the former half of the four years. However, starting these courses depends on how advanced you are in science. If you are a math person, I would suggest giving AP chem a try instead of AP physics. It's a hard course, but I prefer it over AP physics because the math isn't that complex and some things you will learn are more based on logic.
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I'm in AP Phys right now - It is very hard for me and most of the other students in my school agree... I suggest self-studying over the summer and preparing, maybe even take a lower level physics class then AP Phys.