INPERSON
PT Proud
PTHS senior Jackson Busche is one of 356 students in the world to receive a perfect score on the AP Computer Science A exam .
BY NICOLE TAFE
PTHS senior Jackson Busche , 17 , has been recognized by the College Board and the Advanced Placement Program for his perfect score on the AP Computer Science A exam in May . Jackson not only received the top score of 5 , but was also one of only 356 students in the world to earn every point possible on the exam , receiving the maximum score on each portion .
During his time in high school , he ’ s been involved in Science Club and Cybersecurity Club . Jackson has been in the Science Club since ninth grade and is currently the president . Through the club , he ’ s participated in national competitions , including the Science Olympiad , and done well .
Outside of school , Jackson enjoys playing piano and disc golf . “ My mother is a piano teacher , so I ’ ve been playing piano for more than 10 years , and now perform at various assisted living facilities in the area ,” he says . “ I ’ ve also been playing disc golf and was invited to play in the Junior Disc Golf World Championships — placing 24th in my age division .”
Jackson ’ s favorite class is Honors Linear Algebra , which is the highest math class the school offers .
The AP Computer Science A exam tested Object-Oriented Programming in Java . “ In the weeks leading up to the test , I was nervous , so I studied for hours reviewing the material and doing several practice tests ,” says Jackson . “ I was still nervous on exam day , but the test was much easier than I thought .”
The test was three hours , with half being multiple choice questions and half free response . Afterward , Jackson felt confident that he had achieved a 5 score , but was completely shocked when he received an email a few weeks ago explaining that it was a perfect score . “ I honestly felt that it was impossible to get a perfect score on an AP exam because the test is long and it ’ s easy to make a careless mistake ,” he explains . “ So I was very surprised that I hadn ’ t missed a single point .”
Jackson has taken / is taking 11 other AP classes at PTHS including AP Computer Science Principles as a freshman ; AP U . S . History , Statistics and Biology as a sophomore ; AP English Language , U . S . Government , Economics , Calculus BC , Computer Science A and Physics C as a junior ; and AP Chemistry and English Literature this year .
In college , Jackson plans to major in electrical engineering , adding , “ I ’ m not sure where I will attend college , but I ’ m applying to University of Illinois , University of Michigan , UCLA and the California Institute of Technology .” n
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