Charlie Cohen

While working on an assignment in AP Human Geography, freshman Mason Paul discusses his answers. Paul is enrolled in two AP/Honors classes. “Taking AP/Honors classes are hard because you have a lot of homework, but you get to brag to your friends about taking them,” Paul said.

Pros

You get an extra 1.0 added to your grade point average (GPA) if you earn an “H” in an AP/Honors class.

If you receive a grade of 97 percent or higher in an honors class, you receive an H for honors, which is above an A on the grade scale. That H adds 1.0 to your GPA compared to an A which can help increase your cumulative grade point average.

“It’s really helpful if you get an H because of the GPA boost. It also increases your confidence because it shows you worked hard and earned that grade,” sophomore Nick Harms said.

Taking AP/Honors classes help build your transcript and resume.

“Taking more honors and AP classes makes you stand out more to colleges because it shows that you’re willing to work hard for a good grade in a hard class. When it shows up on your transcript that you took several honors classes, you going to have an advantage over the competitors who didn’t take as many AP/Honors classes,” sophomore Jackson Gorman said.

By taking AP/Honors classes, you become surrounded by other students who are driven to learn and succeed.

“The students in my AP class definitely didn’t goof off as much and it was a more concentrated environment,” junior Skyler Smith said. “I liked being surrounded by students who cared about their grades and it helped me learn better because of the lack of distractions.”

The National Association for College Admission Counseling’s (NACAC) annual State of College Admissions survey consistently finds that student performance in college preparatory classes is the most important factor in the admission decision.

“I believe if you take an AP class it will better prepare you for college because they’re advanced classes which makes them much more fast-paced, which I think has already helped prepare me for when I go to college,” senior Bailey Goughenour said.

Cons

You get more homework in AP/Honors classes than in regular classes.

“The workload of honors classes is different from regular classes because of how much there is. There are nights when I go home and it seems like I’m doing five straight hours of homework when it’s only two,” sophomore Emma Breidecker said. “There is a difference though.”

If you’re participating in other activities along with AP/Honors classes, your schedule can become crowded.

“Since I play sports during the school year and take AP/Honors classes, I get super busy dealing with the homework and studying. It causes a lot of stress sometimes because I’m rushing home from sports to do homework and sometimes I stay up really late doing homework,” freshman Santi Helbig said.

AP/Honors classes have tests that are harder and require more studying.

“I have to study so much more for my honors classes than for my regular classes, just because I know the test is going to be so much harder,” sophomore Carly Kuehl said. “Sometimes it sucks because it’s really time-consuming, but the grades are worth it in the end.”

Overall, taking AP/Honors classes have advantages and disadvantages. If you’re deciding on taking an AP/Honors class, talk to your parents and set up a meeting with your counselor. Make sure you know how much time you have and how much you think you will need to manage the extra homework if you take an AP/Honors course.