During the last three weeks of April, prospective Advanced Placement (AP) Biology, Literature, World History, and United States (US) History students attended information sessions and sat placement exams for their desired courses. Many Upper School students at MFS feel that the pressure to enroll in as many AP courses as possible has influenced both their course loads and their perceptions of success in high school.
Though MFS offers fewer AP courses than other public schools in the area, such as Moorestown High School, which offers around 25, AP courses are incredibly popular at MFS, with around 46% of the student population taking at least one AP course. According to College Counseling Director Chris LaTempa, this year, 110 of the 243 Upper School students signed up to take an AP exam in May.
According to the College Board, the organization that manages AP courses, AP courses are meant to provide students with college-level material for the opportunity to earn college credit through an end-of-year exam in May. Nevertheless, Ashlynne Thomson, Associate Director of College Counseling at MFS, finds that this aspect of the purpose of AP courses is lost in the pressure to take them. “I think the unfortunate piece here is that people sometimes forget that the AP exam was originally designed for that whole college credit piece,” she noted.
Sarai Reyes ’27 is currently enrolled in AP US History, and “definitely [feels] the pressure” to be in AP courses. “Especially in this school, people have been talking about colleges since middle school. They’ve been planning what APs they are going to take. They’ve had their whole high school career mapped out,” Reyes noted.
Reyes continued describing the environment and study culture in her AP course. “I’ve seen that there’s kind of a ‘hustle’ culture within my class that was different from my honors classes. I think we had an overall average of, like, 71 on a test, and people were crying. It was a very emotional day, and I definitely do see the tension,” she mentioned.
As of 2025, AP courses receive a 0.7 point grade boost on student transcripts. According to Jaya Lawrence-Gupta ’26, this boost increases students’ desire to take these courses, as it might cause their weighted GPAs to appear stronger for colleges.
Lawrence-Gupta previously attended Cherry Hill East High School, a public high school in New Jersey, before coming to MFS in her sophomore year. While students at Cherry Hill East take many AP courses, similar to MFS, she found that at MFS, classes are significantly harder. Additionally, MFS students are restricted to taking AP courses primarily in junior and senior year, whereas at other public schools, students can begin taking AP courses as early as ninth grade. Lawrence-Gupta stated that these factors increase burnout for students in preparation for college.
For many, junior year is characterized as the most stressful year in high school as students prepare for college admissions by taking standardized tests, enrolling in rigorous courses, and writing college admission essays.
Maryem Belazi ’28, rising junior, stated that though the prospect of taking AP courses for college admissions can seem demanding at times, she does not feel stressed “because [she goes] to a private school.”
She continued about the support system at MFS connected to the Quaker aspect of academics and teaching. “Everyone has their best interests at heart. Since you’re in a private school, you have an advantage in mentally getting through it.”
Responding to the question of whether AP courses are necessary for college admissions, Ryan Lettieri ’28 stated that they aren’t; however, people “make it seem like it [is].” Lettieri plans on taking AP US History in her junior year and AP World History and AP English Literature in her senior year. “When we have college counselor meetings, and they talk about course selections, I feel like they’re expecting us to go in and take those higher classes,” she added.
However, Thomson, an advisor to around half of the junior and senior students at MFS, advises her students to ensure they are “happy, healthy, and whole” when choosing their advanced courses. Yet she continued that colleges are often looking for students to take on as many APs as possible. “Because the unfortunate thing is, especially if you’re looking at the super duper duper selective [schools] for the most part, they like to see that. So, I’m very torn in my job. Happy, healthy, and whole is my sincere hope for every student as they go through senior year and then move on to college.”
AP World History and AP US History teacher Colleen McCormick noted that MFS seems to be “countering” the demand and pressure that comes with rigorous AP courses with programs like the new Global Certificate Program.
She stated, “If you’re not a student who excels in taking traditional tests, there are other avenues, [like] research-based [learning] through things like Global Studies, Capstone, and seminar courses that can still give you a degree of challenge that would be valued by college, even if it doesn’t translate into AP credits, which not every school takes.”
