Advanced Placement

Students can obtain automatic credit for Calculus, Statistics, or Computer Science courses, when they take more advanced courses (Calculus only) OR if they have done well on Advanced Placement (AP) exams.

AP exams
If a student has taken an Advanced Placement exam (usually an optional extension of the SAT exams, from the Educational Testing Service of Princeton, N.J.), a good score on the exam can provide automatic course credit or useful placement information. The AP exam (from ETS) is graded on a five-point scale, with "5" indicating mastery of the subject.

Calculus
There are two AP exams, called Calculus AB and Calculus BC
Calculus AB (exam covers Calculus I and some material from Calculus II) Three or above:
  • The student receives automatic Calculus I credit.
  • Students in this category should be placed in MATH-191 (Calculus II).
  • Here a student has the option to enroll directly in Calculus III with consent of the Mathematics Department (and receive Calculus I and Calculus II credit if the student receives a C or better in Calculus III).
  • In rare cases, and with Departmental approval, a student may waive the option of automatic credit for Calculus I, and begin with this course.
Two or below: Two may represent reasonably good mastery of calculus course material, but does suggest some risk in advanced standing at the University. While the student will not receive automatic course credit,
  • students in this category may be placed in MATH-190 (Calculus I)
  • OR these students have the option to enroll directly in Calculus II with consent of the Mathematics Department (and receive Calculus I credit for a C or better in Calculus II)
Calculus BC (exam covers Calculus I and Calculus II) Four or above:
  • The student receives automatic Calculus I credit and automatic Calculus II credit.
  • Students in this category should be placed in MATH-270 (Calculus III); students expressing reservations about this option may waive automatic credit for Calculus II and begin their studies at U of I with Calculus II.
  • The Department does not anticipate that a student will wish to waive the option of automatic credit for Calculus I, and begin with this course.
Three:
  • The student receives automatic Calculus I credit.
  • Students in this category should be placed in MATH-191 (Calculus II).
  • Here a student has the option to enroll directly in Calculus III with consent of the Mathematics Department (and receive Calculus I and Calculus II credit for a C or better in Calculus III.)
  • In rare cases, and with Departmental approval, a student may waive the option of automatic credit for Calculus I, and begin with this course.
Two or below: Two may represent reasonably good mastery of calculus course material, but does suggest some risk in advanced standing at the University. While the student will not receive automatic course credit,
  • students in this category may be placed in MATH-190 (Calculus I)
  • OR these students have the option to enroll directly in Calculus II with consent of the Mathematics Department (and receive Calculus I credit if for a C or better in Calculus II.)
Taking advanced coursework: Students with previous Calculus experience (coursework in High School, College, or University), may elect to take courses above Calculus I to begin their studies at U of I. Students achieving a C or better in Calculus II will receive transcript credit for Calculus I, and students achieving a C or better in Calculus III will receive transcript credit for both Calculus I and Calculus II.


Statistics
Three or above:
  • The student receives automatic credit for MATH-220.
  • In rare cases, and with Departmental approval, a student may waive the option of automatic credit for MATH-220, presumably in order to take this course for a grade.
Two or below:
  • No course credit awarded on the basis of the AP exam.


Computer Science
There are two AP exams, called Computer Science A and Computer Science AB
Computer Science A Three or above:
  • The student receives automatic credit for CSCI-152.
  • In rare cases, and with Departmental approval, a student may waive the option of automatic credit for CSCI-152, and take this course.
Two or below: Two may represent reasonably good mastery of course material, but does suggest some risk in advanced standing at the University. While the student will not receive automatic course credit,
  • students in this category may be placed in CSCI-152.
Computer Science AB Three or above:
  • The student receives automatic credit for CSCI-152.
  • Under the assumption that the student is Majoring (or Minoring) in CSCI, a student in this category should be placed in Honors CSCI-110.
  • The Department does not anticipate that a student will wish to waive the option of automatic credit for CSCI-152.
Two or below:
  • No course credit, based upon AP results.
  • students in this category may be placed in CSCI-152.