Plant High School is one of the top schools in the state, ranked number one in Hillsborough County High Schools and number 36 for Florida High Schools, according to USNews.com.
Plant is unique in that it offers 33 Advanced Placement (AP) classes out of 40 available, compared to the national average of 10 AP courses. The availability of AP courses leads students at Plant to take a high number of AP classes, often 7 or more. This creates a unique environment of academic pressure that encourages students to take more AP classes than they can handle.
“I think Plant is definitely a very competitive environment,” said Ivory Geiger (12). “I mean, everyone’s always pushing each other to take APs, and you always see people with a seven AP schedule and then three dual enrollments. I feel like it’s really harmful to most people because they end up just cheating their way through a lot of their classes and not really trying to learn…”
Though many students experience negative effects from AP classes, they can also have a positive effect. Advanced classes allow students to challenge themselves academically and immerse themselves in subjects more deeply. AP classes can also reduce the cost of college for many, as some colleges award college credit for AP scores, depending on the student’s score.
“I think that people have the choice on whether or not they want to take APs, and if you can take it and can handle it, then it’s a great opportunity to get college credit early and make you more [appealing] to colleges…If you don’t know your limits and you do overload your schedule, then you will end up overworking yourself,” said Sophie Girenkova (12).
On the other hand, according to edweek.com, research shows that the benefits of taking AP classes plateau after 5 APs, meaning that the AP-packed schedules of Plant students don’t translate to a meaningful difference in college. So why take so many APs?
“I take APs because I feel like I have to,” said Elliana Bland (12). “I feel like the culture and pressure to take APs has gotten out of control. A little nudge from your peers to challenge yourself academically is okay in moderation, but the way the culture at Plant promotes it comes from a very competitive place, which doesn’t breed academic rigor; instead, it breeds toxicity.”
Another major driver of academic pressure at Plant is the growing competition for college admissions. University of Florida, for example, has seen a sharp decrease in acceptance rates, dropping from 47.7% to 24.2% from 2015 to 2024. Among increasing standards, students face more pressure to stand out by taking more AP classes and participating in more extracurriculars, often at the detriment of their mental health.
“[AP classes] have put a lot of stress on kind of the expectations and changed how I saw education,” said Bland. “I started taking a lot of AP classes…sophomore year, I took like two or three AP classes, and I remember I would have nightmares every single night about DBQs or maybe an essay that I would have to write in an English class, and it was just very competitive.”
AP classes can propel students further by preparing them for college and improving their admissions chances, but they can also lead to stress, burnout, and ultimately less learning. Plant’s culture of AP overload is a double-edged sword—though AP classes can be helpful for the future, they can also be a detriment.