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Apologia is a very rigorous college prep series. I don't usually recommend specific curriculum, because I know it should be all about "fit" more than a specific, name brand textbook. When it comes to science, though, I had such success with the curriculum we used, that I really do recommend it - even to my clients that are not Christian.

I know for a fact that Apologia is a great college preparation because Lee used it with her son, Alex (who was no scientist) and he was able to pass a CLEP in Biology 3 years after taking Apologia Biology at home. And he earned a 4.0 in Engineering Physics in college after taking Apologia Physics. Remember, he was definitely NOT a science major. He had to take that engineering physics at community college with his brother, because he was too young to take a class by himself. So, he learned well from the books even though he didn't "love" science. Apologia is GREAT stuff.

And for Lee's other son, Kevin, a science kid through and through, even better. Apologia is great college preparation because Kevin was an electrical engineering major in college. While he was in college, he would refer to his Apologia Physics book now and then as an additional resource. He used Apologia Chemistry over the summer, to review for a class he was planning on taking in the fall. Lee always refers to the Apologia Physics book as one of her "best buys" for curriculum, because her boys literally used them for 5 years. Kevin had a fabulous GPA in engineering, and I believe it is, in part, because he was so well prepared with Apologia Biology, Chemistry, and Physics.

If you want to make Apologia even MORE rigorous, it is possible. You can go through a book in a semester instead of a year and make it an AP course if you want. It's not necessary at all, just an option. You could also assign extra papers or labs to make it more rigorous. I have heard of some "college prep" AP classes, through Pennsylvania Homeschoolers for example, that actually take a child 5 hours a day to complete. EEK! In my opinion, it would be so frustrating to spend 5 hours a day on one class! One mother was letting core subjects in reading, writing, and math slide, just so her child could get an AP Chemistry credit. That's a lot of work for not a lot of benefit. If you do choose to up the ante on these tough science classes, make sure we aren't sacrificing other necessary subjects to make it happen!

One thing about you need to know about Apologia science though, is that Jay Wile sold Apologia to another company in 2008. In 2010, Jay Wile left the company due to differences in vision of the new owner (you can read his words as to why he left, here: I No Longer Work for Apologia Educational Ministries), and since has started his own company Berean Builders. You can now find textbooks similar to those originally made through Apologia (the ones that Lee's boys used and the ones that I recommend), on the Berean Builders site. Of course, you can also still use original versions of the Apologia science texts, as well, if you find them used.

Yes, absolutely Apologia science is college prep. It's not perfect, because no curriculum is perfect. All textbooks have typos- ALL of them. Still it's great preparation, and I recommend it even for my clients that aren't Christian.

To find out more about teaching homeschool high school science, read Simple Science for Homeschooling High School.