Advanced Placement Course Credit and Undergraduate Student Success in Gateway Science Courses

Abstract

Approximately two million students take Advanced Placement (AP) examinations annually. However, departmental policies that allow students to replace introductory courses with AP credit greatly vary within and across universities, even across relatively similar universities. This study examines the impact of AP credit policies on subsequent course success in Biology, Chemistry, and Physics at six large public research universities (N = 48,230 students). Examining average treatment effects for students skipping college courses using inverse-probability weights with regression adjustment, we found that students who skipped actually performed similarly well or better in subsequent courses than students who did not skip, even in contexts where lower AP scores were accepted. We also discovered wide variation in percentage of students who chose to skip when meeting their local policies. Therefore, to reduce unnecessary coursework that is burdensome for both students and universities, we suggest that departments consider modifying AP credit policies and that advisors consider encouraging students to skip when they have eligible AP scores.

Salient syllabi: Examining design characteristics of science online courses in higher education

“…In particular, this study reviewed online course syllabi in only biological science and physics. While it may seem reasonable to believe that similar trends would be identified in chemistry online courses [ 92 , 93 ], extensions to other STEM and non-STEM disciplines are unclear. Similarly, this study was situated at a large public research university.…”

Integrating Critical Approaches into Quantitative STEM Equity Work

“…The AP program provides high school students with the chance to engage in college-level curricula (Kolluri, 2018). Research has shown that passing AP tests is related to positive college outcomes across students from different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds (Dougherty et al, 2006;Fischer et al, 2021). It is important to note that even these metrics are not perfect indicators of academic preparation, given the intersecting inequalities that exist in K-12 educational systems (see Lewis and Diamond, 2015).…”

“…Research has shown that passing AP tests is related to positive college outcomes across students from different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds ( Dougherty et al. , 2006 ; Fischer et al. , 2021 ).…”