As course requests for the second semester of the 2025-2026 school year have been entered, one pattern continues to emerge: the increase of students taking Advanced Placement (AP) classes.
With the rise of AP sign-ups, the student body is under more academic pressure and competition to secure their spots in AP classes.
According to the College Board, AP testing nationwide has grown from 1.3 million students in 2006 to over 3 million students in 2023. This trend can be seen at Redwood as 2,375 AP tests are scheduled for the 2026 Spring AP exams, despite the fact that only around 1,700 students are at Redwood.
Principal Dr. Barnaby Payne oversees the master schedule, which covers the list of courses students are offered, including AP and honors classes. Payne observed that students seem to be taking rigorous course loads to improve their college admissions chances.
“For most students, if they have an elective space in their schedule, they really want to maximize their opportunities for college with APs,” Payne said.
Sophomore Maya Sebt struggles with choosing between AP-level courses and non-AP electives.
“I’m planning to take psychology, street law and biomedical science. However, sometimes I feel pressure that taking an AP course would look better,” Sebt said. “I’m trying to have a balance with my schedule, but taking AP and honors courses adds so much stress to my daily life.”
Payne observes that when it comes to AP and Honors courses, the bump in grade point average (GPA) is often a deciding factor for students when weighing the pros and cons between AP and non-AP course selections. Specialized electives, while maybe not AP, can give students insight into specialized fields without the AP coursework.
“Our journalism program is packed, and it’s not an AP class. The senior year class has an honor designation, but I don’t think that’s why students are taking it. They take it because it’s real-life practical experience,” Payne said.
Payne said that, along with journalism, every architecture and engineering class has more applications than there is space.
According to the U.S. News & World Report, Redwood is ranked first academically in the Tamalpais Union High School District, eighth in the San Francisco Metro Area, and 50th in the state.
Sebt said most of her peers are drawn towards AP courses in part because of competition among fellow students.
“Taking an AP feels like the bare minimum for Ivies and top schools,” Sebt said. “For my peers and I, most of the time APs are offered, they feel less [like] an accomplishment and more [like] a requirement.”
Payne said that because colleges compare Redwood applicants with other Redwood peers, students are put into a high-achieving environment, something that has led many students to be pushed toward AP and Honors classes.
Whether students choose to take an AP or Honors course, college remains the driving factor for their decision.
“Redwood kids go to college, and they’ve practically finished their whole first semester [from the college classes they’ve already taken]. Then they’re saving their family money, and they’re able to get towards their major faster because they’ve taken so many AP classes,” Payne said.
