ADVANCED PLACEMENT (AP)
AP courses are one-year college-level courses where students can get a feel for the rigors of college-level studies while they still have the support of a high school environment. When students take AP courses, they demonstrate to college admission officers that they have sought out an educational experience that will prepare them for success in college and beyond.
AP courses are available for students in grades 10, 11 or 12 here at Stamford, and students take AP exams at the end of the course in early May, measuring their mastery of college-level work. AP classes are not required for graduation nor are they required to enter a 4-year university. However, a score of 3 or higher (rated 1-5) on an AP exam can typically earn students college credit and/or placement into advanced courses in college in the USA -- universities have different interpretation policies.
For the exam-based university entrance systems (i.e., UK, Netherlands, Australia) as well, AP exams can also be taken instead. Some study destinations may require a minimum number of APs (usually between 3-5 AP exams) and consider the final exam score as part of the university entry requirements. Check the CollegeBoard site here for further resources, and students should research universities within their chosen study destinations to explore what AP exams and/or SAT/ACT requirements may apply.
AP Scholar Award levels
The AP Scholar Awards recognize high school students who have demonstrated exemplary college-level achievement on AP Exams. The Awards are reflected as academic distinctions on all score reports sent to colleges. Students do not receive any monetary award from College Board.
Dr Amit Khanna
AP/IB Coordinator
amit.khanna@sais.edu.sg
To know more about Advanced Placement (AP) courses, kindly reach out to Dr Khanna or visit the tabs below:
AP English
AP English Language and Composition - 1.0 ENG credit (Offered for 2023-24)
The AP English Language and Composition course aligns to an introductory college-level rhetoric and writing curriculum, which requires students to develop evidence-based analytic and argumentative essays that proceed through several stages or drafts. Students evaluate, synthesize, and cite research to support their arguments. Throughout the course, students develop a personal style by making appropriate grammatical choices. Additionally, students read and analyze the rhetorical elements and their effects in non-fiction texts, including graphic images as forms of text, from many disciplines and historical periods.
AP English Literature and Composition - 1.0 ENG credit (Offered for 2024-25)
The AP English Literature and Composition course aligns to an introductory college-level literary analysis course. The course engages students in the close reading and critical analysis of imaginative literature to deepen their understanding of the ways writers use language to provide both meaning and pleasure. As they read, students consider a work’s structure, style, and themes, as well as its use of figurative language, imagery, symbolism, and tone. Writing assignments include expository, analytical, and argumentative essays that require students to analyze and interpret literary works.
AP Foreign Language
AP Spanish Language and Culture - 1.0 ML credit
(Prerequisite: SIELE B1 or MYP Phase 3B)
The AP Spanish Language and Culture course emphasizes communication (understanding and being understood by others) by applying interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational skills in real-life situations. This includes vocabulary usage, language control, communication strategies, and cultural awareness. The AP Spanish Language and Culture course strives not to overemphasize grammatical accuracy at the expense of communication. To best facilitate the study of language and culture, the course is taught almost exclusively in Spanish.
The AP Spanish Language and Culture course engages students in an exploration of culture in both contemporary and historical contexts. The course develops students’ awareness and appreciation of cultural products (e.g., tools, books, music, laws, conventions, institutions); practices (patterns of social interactions within a culture); and perspectives (values, attitudes, and assumptions).
AP Chinese Literature and Composition - 1.0 ENG credit
(Prerequisite: IB Mandarin B or MYP Phase 4)
The AP Chinese Language and Culture course in Mandarin Chinese emphasizes communication (understanding and being understood by others) by applying interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational skills in real-life situations. This includes vocabulary usage, language control, communication strategies, and cultural awareness. The AP Chinese Language and Culture course strives not to overemphasize grammatical accuracy at the expense of communication. To best facilitate the study of language and culture, the course is taught almost exclusively in Chinese.
The AP Chinese Language and Culture course engages students in an exploration of culture in both contemporary and historical contexts. The course develops students’ awareness and appreciation of cultural products, (e.g., tools, books, music, laws, conventions, institutions); practices (patterns of social interactions within a culture); and perspectives (values, attitudes, and assumptions).
AP Humanities
AP Human Geography - 1.0 SS credit
(Available in G10)
The AP Human Geography course introduces students to the systematic study of patterns and processes that have shaped human understanding, use, and alteration of Earth’s surface. Students learn to employ spatial concepts and landscape analysis to examine human socioeconomic organization and its environmental consequences. They also learn about the methods and tools geographers use in their research and applications.
AP World History: Modern - 1.0 SS credit
AP World History: Modern is an introductory college-level modern world history course. Students cultivate their understanding of world history from c. 1200 CE to the present through analyzing historical sources and learning to make connections and craft historical arguments. Five themes of equal importance—focusing on the environment, cultures, state-building, economic systems, and social structures—provide areas of historical inquiry for investigation throughout the course. AP World History: Modern encompasses the history of the five major geographical regions of the globe: Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania, with special focus on historical developments and processes that cross multiple regions.
AP Comparative Government and Politics - 1.0 SS credit
(G10 by application)
AP Comparative Government and Politics introduces students to the rich diversity of political life outside the United States. The course uses a comparative approach to examine the political structures; policies; and the political, economic, and social challenges among six selected countries: Great Britain, Mexico, Russia, Iran, China, and Nigeria. Additionally, students examine how different governments solve similar problems by comparing the effectiveness of approaches to many global issues.
AP Microeconomics - 1.0 SS credit
(Grades 11-12 only)
AP Microeconomics is an introductory college-level course that focuses on the principles of economics that apply to the functions of individual economic decision-makers. The course also develops students’ familiarity with the operation of product and factor markets, distributions of income, market failure, and the role of government in promoting greater efficiency and equity in the economy. Students learn to use graphs, charts, and data to analyze, describe, and explain economic concepts.
AP Macroeconomics - 1.0 SS credit
(Grades 11-12 only)
AP Macroeconomics is an introductory college-level course that focuses on the principles that apply to an economic system as a whole. The course places particular emphasis on the study of national income and price-level determination; it also develops students’ familiarity with economic performance measures, the financial sector, stabilization policies, economic growth, and international economics. Students learn to use graphs, charts, and data to analyze, describe, and explain economic concepts.
AP Psychology - 1.0 SS credit
(Grades 11-12 only)
The AP Psychology course introduces students to the systematic and scientific study of human behavior and mental processes. While considering the psychologists and studies that have shaped the field, students explore and apply psychological theories, key concepts, and phenomena associated with such topics as the biological bases of behavior, sensation and perception, learning and cognition, motivation, developmental psychology, testing and individual differences, treatment of abnormal behavior, and social psychology. Throughout the course, students employ psychological research methods, including ethical considerations, as they use the scientific method, analyze bias, evaluate claims and evidence, and effectively communicate ideas.
AP United States History - 1.0 SS credit
(Grades 11-12 only)
AP United States History focuses on developing students’ abilities to think conceptually about U.S. history from approximately 1491 to the present and apply historical thinking skills as they learn about the past. Seven themes of equal importance—identity; peopling; politics and power; work, exchange, and technology; America in the world; environment and geography; and ideas, beliefs, and culture—provide areas of historical inquiry for investigation throughout the course. These require students to reason historically about continuity and change over time and make comparisons among various historical developments in different times and places.
AP Sciences
AP Biology - 1.0 SCI credit
AP Biology is an introductory college-level biology course. Students cultivate their understanding of biology through inquiry-based investigations as they explore the following topics: evolution, cellular processes—energy and communication, genetics, information transfer, ecology, and interactions. LABORATORY REQUIREMENT: This course requires that 25 percent of the instructional time will be spent in hands-on laboratory work, with an emphasis on inquiry-based investigations that provide students with opportunities to apply the science practices.
AP Computer Science A - 1.0 SCI credit
(Prerequisite: AP Computer Science Principles)
AP Computer Science A is equivalent to a first-semester, university course in computer science. The course introduces students to computer science with fundamental topics that include problem solving, design strategies and methodologies, organization of data (data structures), approaches to processing data (algorithms), analysis of potential solutions, and the ethical and social implications of computing. The course emphasizes both object-oriented and imperative problem solving and design using Java language. These techniques represent proven approaches for developing solutions that can scale up from small, simple problems to large, complex problems. The AP Computer Science A course curriculum is compatible with many CS1 courses in colleges and universities.
AP Computer Science Principles - 1.0 SCI credit
(Available in G10)
The AP Computer Science Principles course is designed to be equivalent to a first- semester introductory college computing course. In this course, students will develop computational thinking skills vital for success across all disciplines, such as using computational tools to analyze and study data and working with large data sets to analyze, visualize, and draw conclusions from trends. The course engages students
in the creative aspects of the field by allowing them to develop computational artifacts based on their interests. Students will also develop effective communication and collaboration skills by working individually and collaboratively to solve problems, and will discuss and write about the impacts these solutions could have on their community, society, and the world.
AP Environmental Science - 1.0 SCI credit
(Offered in 2022-23)
The AP Environmental Science course is designed to be the equivalent of a one-semester, introductory college course in environmental science, through which students engage with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world. The course requires that students identify and analyze natural and human-made environmental problems, evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing them. Environmental Science is interdisciplinary, embracing topics from geology, biology, environmental studies, environmental science, chemistry, and geography.
AP Physics 1 - 1.0 SCI credit
(Prerequisite: G10 MYP Math)
AP Physics 1: Algebra-based is the equivalent of one semester of an introductory, algebra-based Physics college course. Students cultivate their understanding of Physics through inquiry-based investigations as they explore topics such as Newtonian mechanics (including rotational motion); work, energy, and power; mechanical waves and sound; and introductory, simple circuits. LABORATORY REQUIREMENT: This course requires that 25 percent of the instructional time will be spent in hands-on laboratory work, with an emphasis on inquiry-based investigations that provide students with opportunities to apply the science practices.
AP Physics C: Mechanics; Electricity and Magnetism - 1.0 SCI credit
(Prerequisite: Precalculus)
AP Physics C: Mechanics is a half-year course equivalent to a semester-long, introductory calculus-based college course. It covers kinematics; Newton’s laws of motion; work, energy, and power; systems of particles and linear momentum; circular motion and rotation; and oscillations and gravitation. AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism, a half-year course following Physics C: Mechanics, is equivalent to a semester-long, introductory calculus-based college course and covers electrostatics; conductors, capacitors, and dielectrics; electric circuits; magnetic fields; and electromagnetism.
AP Mathematics
AP Calculus AB - 1.0 MATH credit
(Prerequisite: Precalculus or DP Mathematics AA)
AP Calculus AB is equivalent to a first semester college calculus course devoted to topics in differential and integral calculus. The AP course covers topics in these areas, including concepts and skills of limits, derivatives, definite integrals, and the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus. The course teaches students to approach calculus concepts and problems when they are represented graphically, numerically, analytically, and verbally, and to make connections amongst these representations. Students learn how to use technology to help solve problems, experiment, interpret results, and support conclusions.
AP Calculus BC - 1.0 MATH credit
(Prerequisite: Precalculus or DP Mathematics AA and teacher recommendation)
AP Calculus BC is roughly equivalent to both first and second semester college calculus courses. It extends the content learned in AB to different types of equations (polar, parametric, vector-valued) and new topics (such as Euler's method, integration by parts, partial fraction decomposition, and improper integrals), and introduces the topic of sequences and series. The AP course covers topics in differential and integral calculus, including concepts and skills of limits, derivatives, definite integrals, the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, and series. The course teaches students to approach calculus concepts and problems when they are represented graphically, numerically, analytically, and verbally, and to make connections amongst these representations. Students learn how to use technology to help solve problems, experiment, interpret results, and support conclusions.
AP Statistics - 1.0 MATH credit
The AP Statistics course is equivalent to a one-semester, introductory, non-calculus-based college course in statistics. The course introduces students to the major concepts and tools for collecting, analyzing, and drawing conclusions from data. There are four themes in the AP Statistics course: exploring data, sampling and experimentation, anticipating patterns, and statistical inference. Students use technology, investigations, problem solving, and writing as they build conceptual understanding.