Should I Commit to Taking AP Exams? (2024)

FAQs

Should I Commit to Taking AP Exams? ›

In a perfect world, both things would be nice; however, many people are focused on one or the other. AP courses can be taken without taking the exam, and vice versa. If your child wants the possible college credit or score result without taking a course, then take the exam.

One of the primary reasons why you may want to take AP exams is to strengthen your college applications. Top AP scores show admissions officers that you're a hard-working student capable of handling college-level material. This conveys that you're serious about your education and willing to challenge yourself.

While we recommend taking the AP Exam after taking an AP course, it is not required by College Board. However, some schools require that students taking an AP class take the exam. Talk to your AP coordinator or teacher to find out what your school's policy is.

The most substantial consequence to failing an AP exam is that you will not receive college credit for the course. However, many colleges do not even offer credit for AP courses. So, you may not be missing out on an opportunity at all. Either way, you shouldn't look at this as a scary consequence.

One drawback of taking AP classes is that to take the exam and potentially earn college credit, students have to pay $98 per exam. Some people don't even pass the exam. These classes are also much harder than regular classes, as they are college level courses.

AP exams are considered as part of your application when submitted, but are not typically a major factor relative to the other parts of your application. Almost any admission officer will tell you they care more about your performance in a semester or year-long course than your score from one Tuesday morning AP exam.

Either way, colleges will not look down on you for abstaining from taking the exam. Since you won't have any exam scores, nothing will be sent to your prospective colleges.

The hardest AP class is AP Physics 1, covering topics like Newtonian mechanics and electrical charge and force. Students also spend about 25% of their class time performing college-level lab experiments and writing reports.

As with many college-admissions related questions, the answer to this question is, “It depends.” However, as a general rule, your AP exam scores aren't going to be a major make-or-break factor in whether you get into a college or not.

On the whole, a bad AP probably won't hurt you in and of itself, but it can be related to other concerns. A bad AP score is often correlated with a poor grade in the corresponding course, which can hurt your GPA.

Is it bad to get a 1 on an AP test? ›

You don't want to draw attention to a low score like a 1, which could negatively impact how admissions officers perceive your academic abilities. Remember, colleges are more interested in your overall academic profile (grades, course rigor and, where applicable, test scores) than just your AP scores.

AP scores won't affect your high school GPA or your chances of college admission.

Improve Admissions Potential

In many cases, getting a B in an AP class is better than getting an A in a regular level high school course. This can help show the admissions staff that you have a more strategic and thoughtful approach to your college application.

If worst comes to worst and you miss the exam (and can't make it up), your hopes and dreams are not dead. You will probably be out the money you paid for your AP test (though you might be able to negotiate that with your school's exam coordinator), but it won't appear on a score report or anything.

AP® Score of 3

While you did not receive the highest grade in the class, you did pass. Because of this, many state colleges will accept a 3. Other colleges that are more selective like Harvard or Yale would not accept a 3.

At many high schools, honors and AP classes both offer more heavily weighted training compared to regular classes. While honors courses usually add 0.5 points to your GPA, AP classes often add 1 point. In other words, a 3.5 GPA would be boosted to a 4.0 in an honors class and a 4.5 in an AP class.

In general, AP exams are considered challenging and are designed to test students' knowledge and understanding of college-level coursework. The exams cover a wide range of subjects including math, science, social studies, English, and foreign languages.

Although students who receive a score of 1 or 2 on an AP exam will not be able to receive college credit for their scores, we want to reassure these students that this is certainly not the end of the world.

New York: College Board. Students who took an AP Exam and placed into the subsequent course performed as well as or better than non-AP students in most courses studied. AP students earned a mean course GPA of between 0.01–0.85 higher than non-AP students, depending on the course and exam score.