Ah, Harvard: the crème de le crème of American higher education. If you are reading this article, you have either been recently admitted to Harvard (which in that case, congratulations) or consider yourself a competitive candidate for admission (if this applies to you – good luck!).
Whichever situation you find yourself in, you still need the same questions answered about Harvard AP® credits. Obviously you need to take, and excel in, quite a few AP® classes to gain admission to Harvard…but once you are there, what does the school do with your AP® scores? Do they not matter at all, or will they give you advanced standing? Wonder no more – because we have all the answers.
This blog will cover all the information you need to know regarding Harvard’s AP® credits policy. We will also go over the school’s general academic requirements, AP® score transfer policies, and what steps to take to make sure your AP® credits transfer in like they are supposed to.
Before we get started, although Harvard University has many differ schools under its umbrella, this article will primarily focus on the requirements of Harvard College, the school’s undergraduate hub.
Fast Facts about Harvard
• Harvard University is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which is just outside of Boston. It’s a great area for college students; Boston University, Boston College, MIT, and Northeastern University are nearby – just to name a few.
• Harvard is a private university, a member of the super-competitive Ivy League. It was founded way back in 1636, making it America’s oldest university. Definitely cause for bragging rights.
• The school only has one team color, which is an iconic
• If you go to a sport’s game, you’ll be rooting for John Harvard, the Pilgrim, who was the school’s very first benefactor. Although really, everyone thinks Harvard’s mascot is the Crimson Tide.
The Numbers
According to its website, as of 2015, Harvard has…
• 6,700 undergraduates
• 14,500 postgraduate students
• 1,650 first-time freshmen
The school also boasts a hefty $37.6 billion dollar endowment fund (one of the largest in the States) and an ultra elite 5.9% admission rate.
In 2015, 37,307 students applied for 2,080 spots.
It’s obviously difficult to secure a place at Harvard. You will need a really strong application: great test scores, awesome teacher recommendations, and an outstanding academic record. To achieve this record, you will need to take multiple APs and preferably ace them. But, once the results are in, what are the next steps? Keep reading and we’ll tell you!
Advanced Standing at Harvard
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of Harvard’s AP® credit policy, we need ensure to you understand how to use your AP® credits once you enroll at Harvard.
If you take AP® or honors classes during high school, you are eligible to earn what is called Advanced Standing. Basically, at Harvard, all recent high school graduates enter as a freshman. Depending on the classes you took, you might have enough pre-existing credits to be able to one of the following things:
• Qualify as a junior by your second year of college.
• Take a semester off and still graduate on time.
• Graduate a semester or even an entire academic year early.
• Skip lower-level classes to take more interesting ones.
• Obtain a Masters Degree from Harvard only one year after undergrad.
If you end up at Harvard and find yourself eligible for any of these options, then keep reading to find out what to do next.
Harvard’s AP® Credits Policy
Harvard’s Advance Standing Pageoffers lots of important information for students seeking to transfer their AP® credits. However, it is quite dense, so we hit the highlights for you here.
It’s also important to note that the office encourages all freshmen students to make an appointment at the office to discuss their exact situation, even if they have read through everything, just to make sure that they receive the credits they are supposed to.
There are a few ways to earn advanced standing at Harvard. While a 5 (unlike other Ivies, Harvard does not accept 4’s) on an AP® exam is definitely one of them,let’s check out some of the other ways you can get an academic boost:
• International Baccalaureate (IB) higher level exams
• British A-Level exams
• SAT® subject tests
• placement tests offered by some academic departments
Thus, even if your school does not offer an AP® exam in the subject you wish to test out of, there are still a few other options that you are eligible to pursue.
Before we explain all the details, here is a quick note from the school about its AP® policy:
Credit toward graduation is granted for Advanced Placement examinations only if the student activates Advanced Standing, but advanced placement work is acknowledged in a variety of other ways. Freshmen who have taken College Board Advanced Placement exams need a total of four full credits to be eligible for Advanced Standing. Credits are earned by scoring 5 on a minimum of four AP® tests. Certain AP® examinations test material covered in one semester only, and for each of these, Harvard confers only one half credit toward Advanced Standing.
Pretty straightforward, right? If you want your AP® scores to help you at Harvard, you need to have at least 4 scores of 5.
If you qualify, you can activate your Advanced Standing status either at the end of your sophom*ore year, or the beginning of your junior year. In either case, it is imperative that you discuss your options with your assigned advisor as early as your first semester on campus.
Here is a quick look of how you can apply your AP® scores at Harvard:
English
AP® Exam Name | Minimum Score Required | Number of Harvard Credits Awarded |
| AP® English Literature and Composition | 5 | 1 |
| AP® English Language and Composition | 5 | ½ |
Language
AP® Exam Name | Minimum Score Required | Number of Harvard Credits Awarded |
| AP® Chinese Language and Culture | 5 | 1 |
| AP® French Language and Culture | 5 | 1 |
| AP® German Language and Culture | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Italian Language and Culture | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Japanese Language and Culture | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Latin | 5 | 1/2 |
| AP® Spanish Language and Culture | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Spanish Literature and Culture | 5 | 1 |
Math
AP® Exam Name | Minimum Score Required | Number of Harvard Credits Awarded |
| AP® Calculus AB | 5 | ½ |
| AP® Calculus BC | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Macroeconomics | 5 | ½ |
| AP® Microeconomics | 5 | ½ |
| AP® Statistics | 5 | ½ |
Science
AP® Exam Name | Minimum Score Required | Number of Harvard Credits Awarded |
| AP® Biology | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Chemistry | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Physics B | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism | 5 | ½ |
| AP® Physics C: Mechanics | 5 | ½ |
Social Studies
AP® Exam Name | Minimum Score Required | Number of Harvard Credits Awarded |
| AP® Art History | 5 | 1 |
| AP® European History | 5 | 1 |
| AP® Psychology | 5 | ½ |
| AP® United States History | 5 | 1 |
Subjects NOT eligible for Advanced Standing at Harvard:
• AP® Art (Studio Art and Portfolio)
• AP® Comparative Government and Politics
• AP® Computer Science A
• AP® Environmental Science
• AP® Human Geography
• AP® International English
• AP® Music History
• AP® Physics 1 and 2
• AP® United States Government and Politics
• AP® World History
We found all of this information on the Harvard Website, so if you are wondering how your A-levels, IB results, or SAT® II subject tests scores will serve you, make sure to check it out.
Like most other Ivy League schools, if you want to study a foreign language in college, taking an AP® Language course in high school and earning a 5 on the exam will allow you to skip the lower-level introductory courses and jump right into more advanced classes.
One more time, just to make sure it’s clear:
You can only use your AP® credits at to graduate early at Harvard if you have at least 4 scores of 5.
• Even so, you must confirm that you would like to activate your Advanced Standing status.
• If you do not have 4 scores of 5, you can transfer your AP® scores in to test out of lower level classes in your desired concentration.
Harvard’s Undergraduate Academic Requirements
It’s pretty typical for colleges to have certain classes that every student has to take. These are often referred to as core courses or distribution requirements. In this section, we’ll discuss Harvard’s.
Harvard is a little different from other schools in that is has required categories, rather than required classes.
Academics at Harvard are divided into 3 categories: Concentration, Elective, and General.
You can find more information on the first 2 categories here, but the general requirements (often the ones to which you might wish to apply your AP® scores) are as follows via the Harvard Admissions Office:
The Program in General Education requires eight half-courses in eight different categories (one of which must also engage substantially with the study of the past). You must also complete a required course in Expository Writing during your first year, as well as fulfill a language requirement before the beginning of your third year.General Education, Expository Writing, and the language requirement combined require nine to 11 half-courses, or around 30 percent of your overallprogram.
Harvard’s Campus Vibe
Harvard is known for its cosmopolitan atmosphere. Cambridge is close enough to Boston that students have access to all the best museums, concerts, restaurants and more.
Undergraduates at Harvard will never feel overwhelmed by the largeness of the school, because as freshman they get to live in one of four historic buildings near the center of campus known as Yards. They even have their own dining hall!
Harvard has small classes and world-class professors, who are constantly pushing the boundaries of academic excellence. It didn’t get its stellar reputation for nothing!
If you work hard and earn at least 4 scores of 5 on your AP® exams in high school, you will be eligible for Advanced Standing at Harvard…but even if you qualify, you might not want to take it, because Harvard is such an awesome place.
A Quick Review
Here are a few things to keep in mind as you pick out your classes at Harvard:
• Harvard only accepts AP® scores of 5 for course credit.
• If you have 4 scores of 5, you can opt to obtain Advanced Standing.
• You can use AP® credits to opt-out of lower-level classes.
• Harvard has general academic requirements that all students must take.
There you go. Now you’re all caught up.
What are the next steps?
Wondering where to go from here? Albert.io is here to point you in the right direction.
You can read about the easiest AP® classes and tests here, and the hardest ones here.
You can also find a helpful guide about when to start studying for the AP® exams here, so you can avoid a major freak out in May when the all of the tests start piling up.
Good luck out there!
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Kickstartyour APprepwith Albert. Start your AP® exam prep today.
