Advising Handbook

Advanced Placement

Departmental criteria are established each year to determine how credit or placement can be granted to students who take the Advanced Placement (AP) tests, which are usually given during the student’s senior year in high school.

Such course credit can be used toward meeting degree requirements when permitted by the major or minor department. AP credit cannot be used toward fulfillment of the primary writing requirement or toward any of the College’s clusters. Additionally, AP credit cannot be used to accelerate graduation beyond what is permitted by the College’s enrollment policy.

Students are notified of Advanced Placement credit by the College Center for Advising Services (CCAS). Those wishing to discuss AP credit should contact CCAS. Students can also request reports online.

Note: With regard to the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Rochester does not intend to make any changes in our evaluation of this year's test results.

Policy for the Class of 2024
Course	Score	Credit and/or Placement
Art and Art History
Art History	4 or 5	Credit awarded after consultation with department.
Studio Arts	4 or 5	A maximum of four credits in studio arts awarded upon completion of 100-level course with "B" or better.
Biology
Biology	4 or 5	Four credits of elective biology awarded. Not for major. Students are eligible for placement in BIO 112/113.
Chemistry
Chemistry	4 or 5	Four credits for CHM 131. Eligible to apply for CHM 171. Placement in CHM 132 in the spring. Students taking 131 will forfeit AP credit.
Computer Science
Computer Science A	4 or 5	Placement in CSC 172. Four credits of advanced placement credit granted for CSC 171.
Earth and Environmental Science
Earth and Environmental Science	4 or 5	Credit for EES 103.
Economics
Microeconomics	4 or 5	Credit for ECO 108 for 4 or 5 in Microeconomics plus 3, 4, 5 in Macroeconomics.
Macroeconomics	3, 4, or 5	See above.
English
Language and Composition	4 or 5	No credit. See primary writing requirement.
English Literature	4 or 5	Upon completion of a literature course offered by the English department with a grade of “B” or better, four hours of elective English credit will be awarded (not for major). Students with questions should consult the director of undergraduate studies in English.
History
American, European, or World History	5	Elective credit granted for score of 5 on the American History, European History, or World History exams. A maximum of four credits in History will be awarded. Credit cannot be used to satisfy the geographical, chronological, or area of focus requirements in major/minor.
Mathematics
Calculus AB	3	No AP credit awarded. Student will be placed in MTH 161.
Calculus AB	4 or 5	AP credit for MTH 161. Student will be placed in MTH 162 or 171.
Calculus BC	3	AP credit for MTH 161. Student will be placed in MTH 162 or 171.
Calculus BC	4 or 5	AP credit for MTH 161 and 162. Student will be placed in MTH 164, 165, or, in exceptional cases, in MTH 173. A student who chooses to register for MTH 171 will receive 4 AP credits for MTH 162. Otherwise, the student will receive two semesters of advanced placement credit.
NOTE: Students who receive AP credit for MTH 161 can register for MTH 162 or 171. MTH 171 is particularly recommended for students interested in mathematics, physics, or theoretical engineering who would like to gain a deeper knowledge of how and why calculus works so effectively. Advanced placement is used only to place students into courses of the 160 sequences or on rare occasions for extraordinarily well-prepared students into the 170 sequences. There is no advanced placement in the 140 sequence. For more information on math placement policies, visit the Department of Mathematics website.
Modern Languages And Cultures
Chinese	4	Potential placement by department into CHI 151, with credit granted for CHI 102 upon completion of CHI 151 with grade of B+ or better.
Chinese	5	Potential placement by department into CHI 152, with credit granted for CHI 151 upon completion of CHI 152 with grade of B+ or better.
French (Literature and Languages)	5	Placement by department in FR 200. Credit granted for FR 153 upon completion of FR 200 with grade of “B+” or better.
German (Literature and Languages)	4 or 5	Placement by department in 152 or 200. Credit granted for 151 upon completion of 152 with grade of “B+” or better. Credit granted for 151 and 152 upon completion of 200 with “B+” or better.
Japanese	4	Potential placement into JPN 152, credit granted for 151 upon completion of 152 with grade of B+ or higher.
Japanese	5	Potential placement into JPN 201, Credit for 151 and 152 with completion of 201 with grade B+ or higher.
NOTE: The actual placement is subject to the result of the placement test. All students are required to take our placement test, and the credit granted will be adjusted according to the actual placement. No credit will be granted if the student does not place into JPN 152 or higher.
Spanish (Literature and Languages)	4	Placement by department in SP 152. Credit granted for SP 151 upon completion of SP 152 with grade of “B+” or better.
Spanish (Literature and Languages)	5	Placement by department in SP 200. Credit granted for SP 151 and SP 152 upon completion of SP 200 with grade of “B+” or better.
Music
Music Theory	4 or 5	Credit for MUR 110. See department for placement.
Physics
C (Mechanics)	4	Conditional credit granted for PHY 113 or PHY 121. Can be placed into PHY 114, PHY 122, or PHY 142¹.
C (Mechanics)	5	Credit granted for PHY 113 or PHY 121, and students can be placed into PHY 114, PHY 122 or PHY 142¹.
C (Electromagnetism)	4	Conditional credit² granted for PHY 122. Can be placed into PHY 123 or PHY 143¹.
C (Electromagnetism)	5	Credit for PHY 114, conditional credit for PHY 122, and students can be placed into PHY 123 or PHY 143¹.
Test B (General)	5	Conditional credit² granted for PHY 113 or PHY 121. Can be placed into PHY 114 or PHY 122.
Physics 1 (Mechanics)	5	Four general college hour credits; these credits cannot be used to satisfy any of the requirements for the PHY/PAS major or minor.
Physics 2 (Electromagnetism)	5	Four general college hour credits; these credits cannot be used to satisfy any of the requirements for the PHY/PAS major or minor.
¹ Placement into honors sequence courses PHY 141, PHY 142, and PHY 143 requires permission of the instructor. ² Conditional credit means that credit will be granted if at least a grade of B- is received in the course into which the student is placed. Credit: Students can either earn general elective credit from Physics 1 and 2 exams or course equivalent credit from Physics C or B, not both. NOTE: Students who will be pursuing a physics or physics and astronomy degree, and who receive AP credit for PHY 121, are still strongly encouraged to take PHY 141 regardless of their AP score. Students with questions about AP credit should see the department’s website or the director of undergraduate studies.
Political Science
Comparative Government and Politics or US Government and Politics	4 or 5	Four credits in political science for either exam. No additional credit if both exams are taken. For details, see the international relations and political science major pages.
Psychology
Psychology	3	PSY 101 no longer waived for a score of 3.
Psychology	4 or 5	Credit for PSY 101.
Religion and Classics
Latin	4 or 5	Credit for LAT 102.
NOTE: Students who complete a second Latin exam with a score of 4 or 5 earn credit for LAT 208 upon completion of a Latin course numbered 103 or above with a “B” or better grade.
Statistics
Statistics	4 or 5	Credit awarded for STT 212.
NOTE: Students can earn credit for only one of the following courses: STT 211, STT 212, STT 213, and BIO/STT 214. Students wishing to receive credit for STT 213 should arrange to take the statistics equivalency exam by making arrangements with Program in Statistics. Students intending to pursue an economics major are advised to enroll in ECO 230 or MTH 203 to fulfill the statistics requirement for the major.