More than a five, senior Nathan Lindquist is one in 11

By Features Editor Noelle Kirkman

Only 14.3% percent of students who take the AP Calculus BC exam score a 5, but senior Nathan Lindquist achieved far more than that.

Lindquist did not simply earn a 5; he is one out of the eleven students in the world to earn every point possible on the exam.

“I was really surprised. I still find it hard to believe. There were definitely some problems that I was unsure about, and I almost always make a dumb mistake somewhere,” Lindquist said. “For whatever reason, it was one of those lucky days where I managed to recognize and fix all the mistakes that I made.”

The AP Calculus BC exam consists of two sections, a multiple choice portion and free response containing several in-depth word problems. To prepare for the exam, Lindquist said that math teacher Liz Moore was a big help.

“I think we spent about 3 weeks in class just reviewing for the test. [Moore] taking us through concepts and problem-solving strategies was absolutely critical; I couldn’t have done well on the exam without it,” said Lindquist.

When taking the test last spring, Lindquist felt that Moore had actually over prepared him for the exam. He went into the test feeling confident and then left assured that he had scored a 5.

When Lindquist received his scores, he was not shocked that he had scored a 5, but he was shocked that he had not made any mistakes.

“[AP Calculus BC] always seems to find a way to trip you up over something. The hardest part is not to make some random conceptual mistake or dumb algebra error,” said Lindquist.

News of Lindquist’s accomplishment has spurred congratulations from friends and family, which has been the ultimate reward for Lindquist.

This year, Lindquist is challenging himself even more by taking Multivariable Calculus. He finds the class a lot more perplexing than AP Calculus BC.

“In [AP Calculus BC], at least you can sketch out every problem and visualize what’s going on,” said Lindquist. “In Multivariable Calculus though, that becomes harder and harder; just drawing a sketch is sometimes the hardest part of the problem.”

Lindquist hopes to continue his successes and conquer more challenges at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign or Northwestern University with a major in computer science.