Does TMS Offer Advance Placement Courses?
TMS does not offer AP courses.
Advanced Placement, or AP courses are courses where content is prescribed by the College Board, the same organization that owns the PSAT and the SAT. Originally intended as college level courses for high achieving students, many colleges and universities no longer accept AP courses for credit. The Marin School has never offered AP classes and does not plan to do so. We feel that our faculty is best suited to determine the content of our courses and in doing so can meet the individual needs of each of our students. The smaller, more intimate nature of our classroom allows teachers to tailor curriculum to individual classes and students so that students of varying levels are challenged appropriately.
Will the lack of AP courses hurt my child when applying to college?
Colleges evaluate a student within the context of their school. When evaluating an applicant’s transcript, colleges also receive information about The Marin School, which provides context, including the statement that we do not provide AP classes. Colleges and universities do not penalize applicants for something that is not available to them. As our college acceptance list attests, our graduates have gone on to selective colleges and performed well, without having taken AP classes.