but the university that has one of the best test in options (some APs can cover 9 general elective credits, some can offer second year placement, 5s can offer challenging credits, and they even test above linear algebra and second year chemistry so people can be in the hardest courses suited to their prior knowledge, they have higher standards than the AP exam for languages, and let people take computer science diagnostics instead of sitting through first year courses while having known all of the material, and let undergraduates take some graduate courses. Also we can start school during the summer before when most schools start if we want. The only restriction is the number of courses we can take at most a quarter
Which university are you referring to here? I know UIUC has some good credit-by-exam options in math and CS, while U Chicago lets freshman place into math as high as advanced real analysis. You can also go the
DIY route, and there are some places with exceptionally cheap online credit for high school students:
https://www.wtamu.edu/admissions/pre-university-program/index.html https://homeschoolingforcollegecredit.org/2020/08/02/affordable-dual-enrollment-right-now/ https://www.pierpont.edu/admissions/high-school-programs/dual-enrollment/Of course these courses will note be nearly as challenging or informative as courses at a place like U Chicago, but it would be the best way to meet your goal of graduating early. Also keep in mind that most of the biggest (~full tuition, full ride, etc) merit based scholarships offered by traditional brick and mortar universities are only for "incoming freshmen" (students who haven't taken college courses after graduating high school), so think carefully about your options before deciding to give that up.
Lastly, what makes you want to study in the US instead of Canada, given how much more expensive the former is than the latter?
Schools like U Chicago, Cornell, and Reed will have the highly academic atmosphere you're looking for (along with engineering programs at most schools), but they're also very competitive to get in, especially for international students.
