AP in a University
Florida State University Tallahassee, Florida
Florida State University‘s focus on student academic engagement has resulted in a retention-rate increase of eight percentage points over the past ten years. Part of this focus involves ensuring that students transition smoothly from high school to college academics. FSU faculty and admission staff play a role in just about every aspect of the AP Program, from exam creation, to professional development for teachers, to awarding credit and placement.
3,308
U.S. colleges and universities received AP scores for credit, placement and/or consideration in the admission process
College faculty in Florida — including Florida State University faculty — review AP curriculum and exam content and provide recommendations for AP credit policy, which is approved by the Florida Articulation Coordinating Committee. According to Matthew Bouck, director of the Florida Department of Education’s Office of Articulation, “Faculty committees make recommendations for AP course equivalencies and review all AP Exams. This coordination has resulted in a common agreement statewide regarding credit for AP Exams, enabling students to be assured of specific course and credit awards once they enter college.”
“[With AP] we’re looking at students who … have been academically engaged in high school [and have taken] a nationally standardized examination which shows us their performance,” said Karen Laughlin, dean of undergraduate studies at FSU. “AP provides a reliable source of acceleration that I find is beneficial to our students and to the university.”
661,391
U.S. public high school graduates reported AP scores to colleges and universities
There’s no doubt at FSU that AP students tend to be academically successful. According to John Barnhill, assistant vice president for enrollment management, “AP students actually have higher GPAs than students that don’t have AP course work, an average of 0.32 higher.”
Jane Piper Clendinning, professor of music theory, is a former chair of the AP Music Theory Development Committee and has served as an AP Reader, scoring the free-response sections of the AP Music Theory Exams. She has also led an AP Summer Institute, where she trains AP Music Theory teachers. “I’ve actually learned quite a lot by working with the [AP] Program. ... It’s changed my teaching. I teach the pedagogy course, so it’s getting passed right on down to my students.”
