Hope and American opportunity credit - F1 student and Resident alien?

My wife was on H4 visa and was staying in US for 2 years. She then got her visa converted to F1 for Masters studies. According to IRS a resident alien (residing in US for 181 days, which my wife qualifies) can claim for Hope and American opportunity credit. But they also say that students with F visa are not resident aliens but exempted aliens. Since my wife was in US for 181 days in 2010 on H4 visa, can I claim for AOC if we file our returns jointly