As the end of the school year approaches, Cal High students have wrapped up their Advanced Placement (AP) exams.
These exams, administered by the College Board, offer students the opportunity to earn college credit and demonstrate their mastery of a subject.
A passing score on the AP exam is generally considered a 3, and students who earn the highest score of 5 demonstrate mastery in their course.
In many AP classes, students who achieve a 5 on their AP exam are rewarded with a potential boost to an A for their second semester grade.
Some schools have policies that grant automatic grade enhancements for students who score well on AP exams.
Considering that AP courses have a more rigorous curriculum, college-level tests, and a very challenging workload, requiring all AP teachers to boost first or second semester grades to an A for students who earn a 5 is without a doubt an appropriate reward for students.
Unfortunately, not every AP class at Cal includes this incentive. Some classes, including AP United States History and AP Biology, do not offer this grade boost after a successful score of a 5 on the AP exam.
This needs to change.
A score of 5 demonstrates a student’s mastery of the subject matter. Boosting grades based on students’ scores isn’t meant to be a way of getting an easy A, but rather a testament to how students earned a spot in being among those around the country who mastered the course.
The AP teachers that boost grades based on their AP scores of 5 clearly do this to reward students for demonstrating mastery of the curriculum.
It can be argued that raising students’ grades based on their AP test scores is financially unfair because of the costs for AP exams. A single exam costs $129.23. For students taking multiple AP classes and hoping to take the exams, the cost gets expensive. If students aren’t able to pay for the tests, they don’t have the same chance of receiving a grade boost.
Luckily, many states offer financial aid for those who are not able to afford the costs of AP exams. Title IV, Part A Grant Program (Every Student Succeeds Act), was implemented for the 2022-23 school year to help students pay for these tests.
Congress has allocated $1.28 billion for the program in the federal budget for the current fiscal school year, and it includes support for AP related activities. Title IV, Part A can be used by states and districts to fund part or all costs of AP exam fees for low-income students.
This significantly improves the opportunity to take an AP exam accessible for anyone.
Some could make the argument that students’ grades already increase from AP classes being weighted because the grades are on a 5-point scale, rather than the cumulative 4-point scale. And because of this, there is no real need for an AP exam to impact the general course grade in any way.
Taking a closer look at this grading scale, students realize that if they earn a B in an AP class, what would generally be considered a 3.0 becomes a 4.0 because of the grade inflation.
But regardless of AP classes being weighted, there isn’t any reason to prevent teachers from boosting students’ grades for earning a 5 on AP exams. AP classes generally require far more work compared to standard classes students take, which is why they are weighted in the first place.
Students who earn a 5 on their AP exam have worked hard to get their scores, and that needs to be reflected in their grades. All students must be given the option to boost any AP class grade to an A if they earn a score of 5.
FAQs
Earning 5’s on AP exams should equal A’s? ›
A passing score on the AP exam is generally considered a 3, and students who earn the highest score of 5 demonstrate mastery in their course. In many AP classes, students who achieve a 5 on their AP exam are rewarded with a potential boost to an A for their second semester grade.
What percent correct is a 5 on an AP exam? ›Usually, a 70 to 75 percent out of 100 translates to a 5.
Does it matter if you get a 5 on AP exam? ›All students should strive for 5's (obviously), but students applying to top schools will often need a 5 on an exam in order for that score to help them in admissions, and they will almost always need at least a 4 for that score to give them course credit at the college.
What is a 5 on an AP exam equivalent to? ›AP Exam scores of 5 are equivalent to grades of A+ and A in the corresponding college course. AP Exam scores of 4 are equivalent to grades of A-, B+, and B in college. AP Exam scores of 3 are equivalent to grades of B-, C+, and C in college. The multiple-choice section is scored by computer.
How rare is it to get a 5 on an AP exam? ›As you can see, while at least 5% of test takers scored a 5 on each AP exam, the perfect scores are teeny, teeny, teeny percentages.
Is a 50% a 5 on the AP test? ›As a general guide, though, you can consider roughly more than 70% correct as being in the 5 range, 50-69% for a score of 4, 40-49% for a score of 3, 30-39% for a 2, and below 30% would likely be a 1. Again, these ranges are approximations and can vary by subject and by year.
Is 70% a 5 in AP? ›What percent grade is a 5 on an AP Exam? A 70 to 75 percent out of 100 usually translates to a 5. There are, however, some exceptions to this rule of thumb. In July, students, high schools, colleges, and universities receive AP grades on a five-point scale: 5: Extremely knowledgeable.
What is the hardest AP to get a 5 on? ›| AP Exam Name | Percentage of students who scored a 5 |
|---|---|
| 1. 3D Art & Design | 7% |
| 2. Environmental Science | 8% |
| 3. Physics 1 | 8% |
| 4. Spanish Literature and Culture | 8% |
Harvard only accepts AP® scores of 5 for course credit. If you have 4 scores of 5, you can opt to obtain Advanced Standing. You can use AP® credits to opt-out of lower-level classes. Harvard has general academic requirements that all students must take.
What is the easiest AP exam to get a 5? ›- AP Psychology. This exam covers basic psychological concepts and theories, focusing on human behavior and mental processes. ...
- AP Environmental Science. ...
- AP Human Geography. ...
- AP Comparative Government & Politics. ...
- AP United States Government & Politics.
Is a 75% on the AP exam a 5? ›
For example, a 5 could be any composite score between 110 and 150 on one exam. Since scaling varies year to year, there are no exact cutoff numbers for scores for AP tests, and the College Board does not release detailed scoring data.
Are AP tests curved? ›AP test scores are indeed "curved," but it's more accurate to call it a "scaling process." Instead of a traditional curve that compares your performance to other students' performance, the AP exam scaling process converts your raw score (the number of points you earned through multiple-choice questions and free- ...
Is getting a 3 on an AP exam bad? ›But what is a passing AP score? The College Board considers a score of 3 or higher a passing grade. That said, some colleges require a 4 or 5 to award credit. Whether a 3 is a good AP score depends on the colleges you're applying to.
Is getting a 1 on an AP exam bad? ›The College Board has observed that students who get a score of 1 or 2 on their exams tend to do better on future AP exams, meaning that even if you score a 1 or 2, there's still a benefit to it! The most failed AP exam is Physics 1. This test has a pass rate of around fifty percent.
What AP has the lowest pass rate? ›At many high schools, AP Physics is notorious for its difficulty level. In addition, it has the lowest overall pass rate of any AP exam.
Can you get a 0 on an AP exam? ›To clarify, it's quite rare and quite difficult to get a score of 0 on an AP exam. Typically, scores range from 1 to 5, with 1 being the lowest possible score that indicates the student likely wasn't prepared for the level of the content on the exam.
Is a 5 on an AP exam 100? ›This means a range of composite scores for each scaled score. For instance, to get a 5, the student might have earned a composite score of anywhere between 110-150. As scaling varies yearly, no exact cutoff points for the AP test scores have been assigned.
What is a 2 on an AP exam equivalent to? ›If you were to get a 2, then the College Board has determined that you are “possibly qualified” to pass a college level class of the same subject level. This score is usually not accepted by colleges unless there are extenuating circ*mstances.
What is the AP 5.0 grading scale? ›Instead of AP students earning a 4.0 for an A, the 5.0 scale gives them a 5.0. The system is as follows: A=5, B=4, C=3, D=2, F=0. Hamilton has historically followed this grading scale, seeking to help AP students with their rigorous classes.
What percent right is a 3 on an AP exam? ›The equivalent of a 3 on an AP exam is B-, C+ or C depending on the subject. The College Board designates 3 to be a pass and therefore qualified for admission. In terms of percentage, this is usually in the 50th percentile.