2008 Woodie Awards
AAC examines value of AP/IB credits
John DeBruicker
Issue date: 3/2/07 Section: News & Features
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The Academic Affairs Committee met Tuesday afternoon to reconsider the value of credits earned from Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) tests and their relationship to the current rule that students must have spent eight semesters registered as a full time college student in order to graduate. No decision has been made definitively yet as the issue must first be considered in terms of admission, staffing and budgetary concerns.
According to Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Jim Terhune, the current rule about spending eight semesters as a full time student originated in 1986 when the College changed its standard course load from five classes per semester to the currently typical four classes per semester. As part of that transition, the standard number of credits per class went from three to four, with the four credit classes intended to delve deeper into the subject matter. The eight semester rule was then instated to preserve the four year duration of the college experience. At the time the administration was concerned that students would continue to take five classes per semester and amass enough credits to graduate in less than four years.
As the policy stands now, a student who earned 128 required credits while at the College could not graduate if he or she had taken a semester off (i.e. taking a National Outdoor Leadership School course, working on a political campaign or taking a personal leave of absence). However, if the same student had amassed the same amount of credits with the help of those carried over from AP or IB testing, he or she could walk at graduation with his or her classmates who had attended one more semester at college.
AP/IB credits are also currently used for students to place out of courses that cover things they may already be familiar with from secondary school. Many students bypass their introductory composition class or language requirement using their test scores. As of now, the College has no cap on how many of these credits a student can put toward their Colby career.
According to Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Jim Terhune, the current rule about spending eight semesters as a full time student originated in 1986 when the College changed its standard course load from five classes per semester to the currently typical four classes per semester. As part of that transition, the standard number of credits per class went from three to four, with the four credit classes intended to delve deeper into the subject matter. The eight semester rule was then instated to preserve the four year duration of the college experience. At the time the administration was concerned that students would continue to take five classes per semester and amass enough credits to graduate in less than four years.
As the policy stands now, a student who earned 128 required credits while at the College could not graduate if he or she had taken a semester off (i.e. taking a National Outdoor Leadership School course, working on a political campaign or taking a personal leave of absence). However, if the same student had amassed the same amount of credits with the help of those carried over from AP or IB testing, he or she could walk at graduation with his or her classmates who had attended one more semester at college.
AP/IB credits are also currently used for students to place out of courses that cover things they may already be familiar with from secondary school. Many students bypass their introductory composition class or language requirement using their test scores. As of now, the College has no cap on how many of these credits a student can put toward their Colby career.
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