AP classes and junior year have always gone hand in hand, which explains the inherent difficulty of the third year of high school. When coupled with a previous year of relaxed grading and online assignments, juniors were caught off guard.

Students fell out of routine during remote learning, becoming complacent with academic classes online, and junior Samantha Holmes points out the stark contrast.

“Compared to remote learning, AP classes are more intense and fast paced. It’s hard to get used to it again, since they’re so different in the factors of work difficulty and the strictness of getting the assignments in on time,” Holmes said.

Many juniors such as Shelley Roper had taken AP classes before, but experienced a different environment this year.

“I do not feel like those classes prepared me well for my AP classes this year as they were both partially virtual, and the AP exams were formatted very differently than they will be this year,” Roper said.

While students came in this year expecting lots of work, junior Mari Zellmer was not prepared for how other aspects of junior year would also require significant amounts of her time and effort.

“Something unexpected about taking AP classes my junior year is the workload and balancing studying with other responsibilities/social life,” Zellmer said.

Although all AP classes are difficult, not all are the same, and the workload reflects that.

“In my first period [AP Environmental Science] there were a lot more tests than I thought there’d be. Also, you need to study because the only way you’re taught what’s on the test is through the notes,” Holmes said. “However, in AP English, I thought there would be more tests than there are.”

AP classes may be rigorous, but one thing many juniors agree on is that there are benefits.

Holmes said, “I have learned that AP classes are really as much work as everyone says, but it’s also worth it for your grades and for college.”