Alumni encourage taking AP classes, doing own chores to prepare for college

With numerous National Merit Finalists, 4.0 or above GPAs and 27 AP or Honors classes, Saratoga High’s reputation as an intensely academic school is no secret. Students push themselves to take the hardest classes in high school in the hopes of using the credit at college and learning at a more challenging level.

For many alumni, this strategy worked, paving the way for success in tough classes.

For example, Class of 2016 alumni Aditya Chaudhry, Elizabeth Li and Andrew Weng all agreed that taking AP classes in high school was worth the pain they sometimes caused. For others, such as Class of 2016 alumnus Michael Fukuda, the regular courses in high school were just as helpful. However, when it comes to the social aspect of college, all four alumni felt much less prepared for the college environment than some of their peers.

Li, now a freshman at UC Berkeley majoring in electrical engineering and computer science, said that AP classes are most worth it for the credits that she got from taking AP tests, as well as for the time management skills she learned.

“I got lucky because I go to a school that allows students to transfer a ton of units, so I don’t have to take single-variable calculus, chemistry or the first English class,” Li said.

For all UC schools, students are allowed to transfer AP credits for college class credit if the student scores a 3 or higher on the AP exam. Many private colleges, such as Princeton University and Columbia University, also accept AP credits as long as the student scores a 4 or higher on the AP test. Generally, most state universities will accept AP credits with an AP exam score of a 3 or higher.

Weng, who majors in psychology neuroscience and philosophy at Washington University, advises taking AP classes in order to prepare for college courses.

“If you are going into a field that is going to have prerequisites, it would be best to take those classes in high school,” Weng said. “I’m a pre-med, and I wish I found a way to fit AP Chemistry into my high school years in addition to AP Biology.”

Likewise, Chaudhry, a computer engineering major at the University of Michigan, said that AP Physics was the most helpful AP class he took because teacher Kirk Davis “taught [him] how college would be like in terms of difficulty.” According to Chaudhry, Davis stressed the fact that getting a C or D is not the end of the world and that classes are curved in such a way that “you will always find a way to do all right.”

While the AP classes helped in terms of preparation, Li and Chaudhry both admitted that they still have to work hard to understand the material in college. For Li, AP classes were “much, much easier” than college classes.

In fact, Li said that while her high school homework never strayed too far away from the level covered in class notes or the textbook, her college homework problems usually extend beyond what is covered in class. For some classes, she often has to work with other students to make sure she does the problems correctly. The tests often present problems that are significantly tougher than what has been taught in class.

Despite the more challenging courses they’ve taken in college, coming from a highly academic high school made their transition smoother. Li, Chaudhry and Weng believe that even if their high school classes were not the same in rigor as actual college classes, getting to experience a higher level class in high school paved the way for the work they’re able to do now.

On the other hand, Fukuda, who majors in music education at the University of Puget Sound, found that taking regular classes adequately prepared him for his college courses.

“I only took one AP course at Saratoga, and my grades in college have been excellent,” Fukuda said. “I felt really prepared. It’s a lot easier to focus and strive to be better in college because it’s your own decision.”

Aside from academics, however, Li, Chaudhry and Fukuda did not feel as prepared for the social aspect of college. For them, large student populations created a very different environment from that of Saratoga.

“In high school, I had a good idea of the people around me and felt part of a school community,” Chaudhry said. “In college, especially a big one, it’s hard to find those people and a sense of a specific community because there are so many people and so much to do.”

Even at Puget Sound, where the undergraduate enrollment is roughly 2,000 students, the size difference is still noticeable. Fukuda had trouble fitting in at first but was able to find his group once he socialized more and met more people.

The four graduates also felt that the independence and responsibility in college was a major change from high school since, as Weng put it, “there is absolutely nobody to tell you what to do and what not to do.”

However, Li said that preparing for the freedom college brings has more to do with home life than high school curriculum.

“People always joke about going to college and not knowing how to do laundry, but my parents have made me do my own laundry since middle school,” Li said. “Other things, like doing dishes or general house chores, I’ve pretty much always been doing. It’s helped me feel a lot more prepared for college.”

Although there is greater responsibility in college, they are enjoying the college life and welcoming new experiences.

“Saratoga prepares you fairly well for college,” Li said. “The transition wasn’t that hard, and while I do have more homework now, a lot of the things I’m learning about are a lot more interesting to me and I’m more willing to do the work.”