carcajou

Absolutely they do - if your child passes the AP exam, they don't have to take (or pay for) that class in uni. A lot of American students knock off an entire year of university this way.

Not sure how this applies in countries besides the US. Some accept AP for admissions but not course credit and so on. Australia, for example, heavily rewards international students who have done AP in the admissions process, but they don't get any course credit for it in uni.

steveq

Quite. And scholarship and bursary options open too.

People say ooh, Germany is free etc etc, but the whole of Germany manages 5 schools in the top 100, none in the first 25, in the general case. The USA has 32. The UK has 14. You need to consider the quality of institution.

The USA is not as exorbitant as you might think. The system is geared to students being able to find summer work, or part-time work to supplement their income. My younger son needs less than half what his big brother needs at Swansea.

Wh431

steveq

As an occasional recruiter of graduates for full-time jobs and internships, and with 35 years working with graduates from many countries, I'd say that, with an admittedly small sample from my subject area, they are broadly right. Your mileage might vary.

ponyo

Appreciate the info everyone.

I wasn't too specific regarding my dependents wishes, their wish is to Double major in two particular subjects of which one isn't taught at a CUNY or SUNY until Post Grad unfortunately. And the community colleges do not offer either of the desired subjects.We are caught in a bind as we are in a position where these two particular subjects are taught at a handful of schools, of which most are Ivy League or 'semi' Ivy League (U Chicago and Georgetown as an example). And as our DC is very studious and has achieved quite good grades (sat the SAT a year early) we are trying to accommodate their wishes.

We have looked at many options including transferring once you get the first (garbage/non specific) year out of the way. And the AP's are handy due to the nature of the double major.

Wish it was a Mickey Mouse degree, as DisneyLand would be faaaaaarrrrr cheaper !

I'm just hoping that a whole raft of scholarships are offered within the US, otherwise our DC will be returning to the UK.

Thanks again all.

retzie

You know, it may be a sign that one isn't available until graduate level...

Are you sure a super-rare undergrad qualification in Mystery Field 1 will carry the same weight as the more common graduate one, career-wise? Could she major in Mystery Field 2 in undergrad, with plans for grad school in Mystery Field 1?

The US isn't set up to specialize early in the same way as the UK, so you are trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. If she has any intentions of staying and working in the US, now would be the easiest time to adjust your approach.

FWIW, I have always observed double-majors to be miserable. They have to grind through the core material for both sides in isolation - no electives, no fun, no reason to enjoy either subject. I would never steer anyone in this direction unless it were a really complementary pairing.

Anian

Such a specific double major that isn't widely available means that it's not widely in demand, so something a little more generic would be far more useful especially if they don't plan to go on to post grad anyway. If it is just for interest sake then I guess you have to ask them how many thousands of dollars it is really worth.

ponyo

Couldn't agree more but
However my DC is determined and it's a path that DC has researched heavily and taken lengthy advice from people in that particular niche field.

Wish it was Underwater Basket Weaving, the course would be easier to obtain.

Again, thanks all for your help. But it appears that we will either have to wait for scholarships to materialize or choose an alternative.