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You probably imagine the AP exam program as one of the mysterious primordial forces of the galaxy, along with gravity and taxes. But, in actuality, the AP program is only about 60 years old. From its unabashedly elitist beginnings to its present attempts to democratize advanced high school coursework, read on to discover a brief history of AP classes and exams, some current AP controversies, and some thoughts on the program's future.

If your high school has AP classes, you probably know a bit about which ones are offered and what they're like. AP classes are designed to be the equivalent of introductory-level college courses.

However, you may also have the opportunity to take a real college class at your local community college as a high school student. Which option should you choose?

Both community college classes and APs can be valuable additions to your transcript, but you might decide that one or the other is a better fit depending on your needs. I'll go through the advantages of each and give you the information you need to decide between them.

It's difficult to know where to start when studying for the AP World History test. The few months you have to study for the exam are dwarfed by the nearly 1,000 years of history covered by the curriculum. The good news is that this AP exam mainly asks you to look at long-term trends rather than minute details, so it's not as daunting to review for as you might think.

In this guide, we'll give you a brief overview of the test content, lay out a template for a successful AP World History review plan, and introduce some essential study strategies for making the most of your prep time.

Before you start studying for the AP World History exam, you should get the inside scoop on its format and content. The types of questions you'll see might differ from your expectations. It's especially smart to practice writing essay outlines based on past questions before you're faced with fresh prompts on test day.

In this article, we'll go through the structure, content, and question types on the AP World History exam and provide some helpful tips for acing it!

What is the best way to use AP score calculators? In this post we will discuss how to get the most out of them—and when you shouldn't use them at all.

As a high schooler, you're on the verge of participating in the democratic process. It's a great time to learn more about the structure and history of our government and how politics actually work. This is why so many students take the AP US Government and Politics class and test.

You've probably been taking notes in your AP US Gov class based on your teacher's lectures and what's written in your textbook, but it can be nice to have all the info you need in one place. This article will give you links to notes on every topic in the AP US Government curriculum along with a few tips on how to study effectively.

Free-response questions, or FRQs, on the AP US Government exam are more straightforward than those on some other AP tests, but they can still be tough if you're not ready for them. In this guide, we will lay out a simple step-by-step method for answering AP Government FRQs, go through a real example, and tell you where you can find additional practice resources.

Need to learn the ins and outs of the AP auditing process? You're in luck. Whether you’re a new teacher or just new to AP, check out this guide to make sure your course is approved! We will explain the auditing process in detail, including how AP courses are reviewed, how to submit your audit, and how to write an appropriate syllabus.

The College Board AP program is commonly viewed as the gold standard of curriculum for high school students. An AP class is meant to replicate the experience of an introductory college course, and high scores on AP exams can potentially lead to college credit. Students often take AP classes to impress colleges with their academic prowess in high school. But how is the program doing overall? Are students really benefiting that much?

In this article, I'll discuss the College Board's management of the AP program over time and how its positive and negative aspects affect students nationwide.

What does an AP Chemistry syllabus look like? How many labs do you have to do? And what skills are you expected to learn before the test?

In this article, I'll take an in-depth look at the components of a successful AP Chemistry syllabus, including content coverage, lab work, and overall curriculum requirements. I'll also give an example of a full syllabus (based on a sample from the College Board) and provide some helpful tips for both students and teachers!

Labs play a significant role in AP Chemistry, and knowledge of experimental procedures is critical for the final exam. If you're an AP Chemistry student (or are considering becoming one), this guide will help you understand what to expect from the lab components of the course.

I'll provide an overview of the types of AP Chemistry labs you'll see, the amount of time you'll spend on them, and what a real lab procedure looks like. You'll also learn how lab reports are structured and what you can do during the lab to ensure that you're getting the most out of your experience!

Curious about which schools are offering the new AP Capstone program?

Get a complete list here, and also find out how likely it is a school near you will add AP Capstone in the next few years.

If you're an advanced student aiming for top colleges, or you're a student who wants to save on tuition by getting college credit in high school, taking Advanced Placement classes is a great option.

However, you might be wondering, "just how many AP classes should I take?" You can save a lot of money and make your transcript pretty impressive with lots of AP classes. However, if you overdo it, you could actually hurt your GPA and lose time for other important activities—like extracurriculars and ACT/SAT studying.

So what's the magic number? We'll look at different factors to help you decide the right amount of AP classes for you.

We’ve talked a lot about the AP Program in the past—why you would take AP classes, how many you should take, and how AP compares to the IB program.

But what are some of the major problems with the AP program? In this guide, we'll go over the top five worst problems that the College Board and the AP program are dealing with. We will also explain how you can avoid these problems and get the most out of your AP courses.

You might think the term "AP Scholar" just refers to anyone who takes studying for AP exams really seriously. But it's actually an awards program offered by the College Board. In this article, I'll go over what an AP Scholar is, what you need to achieve to become one, what it means to be one, and some tips on getting the award if it's something you're interested in.