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Bryan Tran | Gr. 11The Panther Post
Here is the link to the AP score calculators with a list of subjects in case you’re interested: Again, good luck!
Hellooo, fellow Panthers! what season it is? If you guessed AP season, you’d be correct!
How many APs are you taking this year? Well, depending on the workload and difficulty of the course (and exam), it is best to begin reviewing, prepping, and studying for the exam since we are now in mid to late March. Below, you will find all the tips I feel you’ll need to do well on your AP exams.
Ideal study schedule:
For English classes, I'd suggest reading books for at least 30 minutes daily to enhance reading fluency and comprehension skills; make sure the topics you read about are relevant to the world around you. Not only is reading an essential component of life, but it aids in passing the English Proficiency Requirements at certain college campuses, which can reduce time in college, and you could find yourself paying less tuition as a result. Without passing this requirement, students have a higher chance of spending more time in college in order to work on their English skills. Specifically, scoring a 3 or higher on either AP English Language or Literature exam would supplement it.
Beginning in early March, the ideal objective (if in an English Language class) is to read and analyze rhetorical situation with a two-column text and annotate the literary devices within 7 minutes, answer each multiple-choice question (MCQ) within two minutes, and write each essay in 60 minutes. After three weeks, the next objective is 5 minutes per two-column passage, 90 seconds per MCQ, and a 50 minute essay. In the next three weeks, you should aim for 3 minutes for reading each passage, 60 seconds per MCQ, and 35 minutes per essay; this should be the goal for time management in order to successfully answer every question with adequate consideration for the exam.
Additionally, study grammar rules from the SAT/ACT test prep book, especially since Standard English Conventions are essential to clearly convey the message to the reader. With an unorganized sentence, paragraph, or using words out of context, it will confuse the readers and they can't award points even though the graded parts should receive credit. Lastly, I recommend writing one practice essay per week, and having someone read/give feedback to improve on future writings to receive as many points as possible on the exam. For instance, week 1 is rhetorical analysis (essay), week 2 is argument, week 3 is synthesis, and so on. For more specific information on both English exams, please click below:
AP English Language and Composition Exam
AP English Literature and Composition Exam
For math classes, review all notes from all chapters and sections covered in your class’s math book beginning in late March because that is when most AP Calculus/Statistics teachers complete their lectures from their lesson plans. It should take approximately three weeks if you commit an hour per day reviewing for AP math and memorizing all of the formulas, especially since the exam will most likely not provide a “cheat sheet” for reference. Although there is no entry-level math requirement at many universities, GE Calculus 1, 2, and Intro to Statistics are eliminated if you score high on your AP math exam.
Moreover, practice answering multiple-choice and free-response questions from test prep books and previous AP exams on the College Board website. The ideal start performance is four minutes per MCQ, and 25 minutes per free-response question (FRQ), then getting to two minutes per MCQ and 15 minutes per FRQ. Avoid using AI to evaluate these problems like Symbolab, Mathway, Omnicalculator, etc. because they have a natural intelligence that does not correlate with humans, which also doesn't show human cleverness in mathematics. It's not “illegal”, but discouraged. Although the exam tests on what should be covered in your AP class, some word problems might be tricky, so the answer choices are difficult to recognize. Work must be shown explicitly in the free-response questions to receive full credit. To double check, make sure every single part of your work is shown on the FRQ, and recalculate answers on MCQ so a passing score is highly guaranteed. Out of the five choices, each is reasonably calculated to make sense in general, which sometimes tricks students into using the process of elimination. This is why memorizing steps to approach these concepts and formulas is crucial to achieving a good score. For more specific information on AP math exams, please click below:
For science classes, I recommend taking as many notes and obtaining as much information, concepts, and calculations during the school year that you can in order to have a warm understanding of those subjects, and to be as clever on demonstrating knowledge and interpreting information on the exam, especially on the FRQs.
Review all units from class lectures, labs, and your respective book starting in early March. Memorize all formulas and some elements and properties of the periodic table as needed, since the exam might not provide these references for many problems. Each AP science course should take three weeks to review if one hour each day is put in. Afterward, utilize test prep books to practice multiple-choice questions and free-response questions in order to tackle complex and tricky words. At first, aim for 40 seconds to evaluate the problem, and the other 60 (seconds) to calculate the answer in the MCQ to get a good start. The goal is 1 minute per multiple-choice question. Each calculation problem should start at 20 minutes, and then to 10 minutes to adapt to its time limit. Practice and diagnostic tests from the prep books and online should be done after that to determine what can be improved on. Either use the rubric to self-grade or have a friend who is skilled at these subjects to grade. Here are more resources you can use to help you prepare:
AP Physics 1: Algebra-Based Exam
AP Physics 2: Algebra-Based Exam
AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism Exam
For history classes, the best advice I can provide is to read biographies, historical events, and historical fiction in your leisure time. The pieces of information gathered from these books could be relevant to the exam questions and help you gain the foundations needed to hit the best answer on the text. There is also a possibility to be complex in your thinking on the essays in order to get additional points. Getting a 3 or higher also gets you college credit, and you can be excused from any introductory history course at many universities.
The ideal study schedule would be to watch Heimler’s history on YouTube, read the REA Crash course books, and see the resources on Khan Academy for a comprehensive review in the last two weeks of March because those classes most likely don’t go to the end of the course until April. After reviewing, use their practice exercises, and try out the test prep books to practice the multiple choice questions, since they’re difficult to get across, especially the need of accurately inferring from the sources and political cartoons. It is also important to see why you get practice problems correct or wrong after each attempt. 120 seconds per MCQ, and 60 minutes per essay are good starts to build good exam prep habits. 50 seconds per MCQ and 35 minutes per essay is the ideal target to be successful in these exams. Be concise and precise on these writings to effectively convey the message directly to the readers without confusing them about where each part of the rubric is located.
For government and economics, apply knowledge from math and watch world news to gain a better chance of succeeding.
AP United States Government and Politics Exam
For foreign language classes, try to be as fluent and knowledgeable of the language and culture as possible to achieve the highest success possible. Memorize as much vocabulary, and write as comfortably as you do in English. Starting mid-April, when all notes are finished in your class, review all notes and use the test prep books from the library to practice the multiple-choice questions. Write as quickly under timed conditions in the essays as possible, using Google translate to determine if the words are used correctly or not. The camera feature on the Google app can also recognize the letter you wrote if you write neatly and correctly in its positions. If not, fix it and consult a person who speaks the language (teacher, friend, other peers you know), or correct the handwriting. Ideally, start with 120 seconds per MCQ and 60 minutes per essay, improving fluently and comprehensively to 60 seconds per MCQ and 40 minutes per essay.
Other components that many might not realize is the spoken part where listening and speaking of the language is involved with the student, where the examinees will need to listen carefully and fully to understand the script, and either answer a question or speak as free response without stuttering and backtracking. The best tip is to take a deep breath before starting. A good goal would be to talk until the time limit is close to finished for a descriptive response, like a formal essay and history LEQ, and the audio listened to once with an answer in mind. The foreign language section will be credited along with a biliteracy seal during high school graduation if the score is a passing one.
There is no need to know every single vocabulary set in order to get a 5, but use context clues and reading/writing skills to do the best you can:
AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam
AP Spanish Literature and Culture Exam
AP German Language and Culture Exam
AP Italian Language and Culture Exam
AP Chinese Language and Culture Exam
AP French Language and Culture Exam
AP Japanese Language and Culture Exam
Hopefully all of these tips are beneficial for you to succeed in your respective AP exams! I wish you the best of luck, Panthers!
My personal journey studying for APs; read on if you like!
When I was a sophomore, the only AP class I took was AP World History. Starting the school year, the summer homework was simple (for me); just read, analyze the history, and answer the questions that follow in the AP book. However, the content became much more specific, complex, and deeper than regular world history. I did well on my first multiple-choice test, but not on the free-response questions. In the middle of the school year, the writings seemed to be straightforward, but the exam format and College Board MCQs were not. The questions in the multiple choice section also went from general to analyzing primary sources with critical thinking. Luckily, I did extra credit to get my grade from a C+ to a B+. After winter break, the grading system and assignment weights were more flexible (assignments are worth more than tests) because our teacher didn’t want to cause us too much stress. I had an A- in the spring semester, and every test/quiz/activity was pulled from the AP exam and book edition to challenge us, with real test time set without prep. Although I did alright on those, the AP exam didn’t seem as difficult as I thought it would be, but I received a 2. After viewing my AP score, I realized that I needed to use the AP prep book from the library to get additional practice on multiple choice (worth more than each of the writings) to work on analyzing the problem more thoroughly and figure out the one that works the best.
During my junior year, I had 3 AP classes and two courses I self-studied for. They were all very challenging, but I took them to have a better understanding of how studious I can be, especially since I want to attend an Ivy League school. Using the College Board website and course books from the library, I attempted to read daily (at least 40 minutes per AP class) until March. Sometimes I felt a bit overwhelmed to study, read, and self-quiz during the weekends, but my passion somewhat overrode my stress. In other words, I love the subjects, so I did not worry about the pressure it gave me. I then obtained a Princeton Review test prep book to practice multiple choice questions, Kaplan, and write the free-responses on paper to have somebody (friend or teacher) grade. Then I was able to see what I needed to improve on and correct those mistakes. It’s just like prepping for the SAT. Although it feels like it’d be easy to get a 5 if you have an A in the class, the exams are much more difficult than you think, depending on the depth of the knowledge you have for the subject.
Here is the link to the AP score calculators with a list of subjects in case you’re interested: Again, good luck!
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