AP Credit or Placement

Students can obtain Rensselaer advanced placement or academic credit from the Advanced Placement Examinations, which are given by the College Entrance Examination Board in Princeton, New Jersey.

Request that the Educational Testing Service (ETS) send Advanced Placement (AP) scores to the Registrar's office at Rensselaer. The scores are evaluated using the criteria listed below. Please note that there are some special considerations for Engineering majors.

When credit is granted, there is no grade assigned; credit is not included in calculating the Quality Point Average (QPA). Based upon the AP score, a first-year student may also be placed into a course above the entry level, without receiving credit for the course(s) skipped. You always have the option of declining all or part of the advanced placement awards.

Only a total of two courses for a maximum of eight advanced placement and/or transfer credits can be used toward the H&SS Core Requirements for graduation.

AP Credit in Humanities and Social Sciences

American Government and Politics

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 will receive three credit hours.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 will be eligible to take advanced courses without taking a prerequisite.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on both the microeconomics and macroeconomics exams receive three credit hours for ECON-1200 Introduction to Economics after they complete either ECON-2010 Managerial Economics or ECON-2020 Intermediate Macroeconomics with a grade of C or better. Students are urged to do this no later than the sophomore year. Students who achieve a grade of 3 on both exams receive no credit but may place into Managerial Economics or Intermediate Macroeconomics.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 will receive three credit hours.

Students who achieve a grade of 2 will be placed in Language II or III with no credit given for AP classes. Students who achieve a grade of 3 will be placed in Language III or IV, with three credit hours given for Language III if the student enters Language IV and earns a grade of C or better. Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 will be placed in Language IV or any course listed above with three credits given.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on the American History examination will receive three credit hours. Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 in European History will receive three credit hours.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 will receive three credits for PSYC-1200 General Psychology.

AP Credit in Science

Students who achieve a grade of 5 will receive 4 credits for Introduction to Biology and Introduction to Biology Laboratory. Those achieving a grade of 4 will receive 4 credits for Introduction to Biology upon completion of BIOL-2120 Introduction to Cell Biology.

Students who achieve a grade of 5 will receive 8 credits for Chemistry I and II. Engineering students who are required to take Chemistry of Materials II should register for MTLE-2500 Materials I to complete the pre-engineering chemistry/materials requirement.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 and who ARE NOT required by their curriculum to take chemistry beyond the first year will receive 4 credits for Chemistry I. Engineering majors should register for CHEM-1600 Chemistry of Materials II if it is required in their curriculum. If it is not required, their pre-engineering chemistry satisfied.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 and who ARE required by their curriculum to take organic chemistry should register for CHEM-1100 General Chemistry or ENGR-1500 Chemistry of Materials I (Engineering Majors). If they receive a grade of A in one of these courses they will be granted 4 credits for Chemistry II. Engineering majors should plan on registering for Materials I in the second semester.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on the AB test, or a grade or 5 on the A test, will receive 4 credits for Computer Science I or, in the case of IT majors, Algorithms and Programming.

Engineering and Science Majors who achieve a grade of 3 or better on the BC examination, or a grade of 4 or 5 on the AB examination, will receive 4 credits for Calculus I and placement in Calculus II. Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on the BC exam will receive 8 credits for Calculus I and II and should register for MATH-2010 or MATH-2400 depending on the requirements of the student's major. Architecture, H&SS, and Management majors who achieve a grade of 3 or better on the BC examination, or a grade of 4 or 5 on the AB examination, will receive 4 credits for Calculus I and take no math in the fall semester of their freshman year; these students enroll in MATH-1520 in the spring semester. Students receiving a grade of 4 or 5 on the BC exam will receive 8 credit hours for Calculus I and II.

Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on both the Mechanics and the Electricity and Magnetism part of the C examination receive 8 credits for Physics I and II. Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on only the Mechanics part of the C examination receive 4 credits for Physics I. Students who achieve a grade of 4 or 5 on the B examination and a grade of 4 or 5 on the Calculus BC examination receive 4 credits for Physics I. Students who achieve a grade of 3 in any Physics examination may receive credit, depending on a review of all credentials.