5 Steps to a 5 AP Psychology 2019

4 ❯ STEP 1. Set Up Your Study Plan

Some Frequently Asked Questions About the

AP Psychology Exam

Why Take the AP Psychology Exam?

AP Psychology is an exciting course to take not only because it gives you an opportunity

to understand your own behavior and mental processes better, but also because it enables

you to learn more about other people and animals. Benefits of taking such a challenging

course can include strengthening your transcript, proving to yourself that you can do it,

and starting college with some credit. Admissions officers from Adelphi University to Yale

University have told me that their number one criterion for admissions decisions is the

strength of an applicant’s high school program.

Additional benefits are sometimes offered. Some high schools weight or scale AP course

grades. Because some colleges charge per credit, you can save money. Getting three or more

credits for the price of the exam is a good value.

The College Board reports, “Studies have shown that AP students are more likely

to maintain a high grade point average and graduate from college with honors than their

college classmates of similar ability... .”

What Is the Format of the Exam?

Table 1.1 summarizes the format of the AP Psychology exam.

Table 1.1 AP Psychology

Section Questions Time Limit

I. Multiple-Choice Questions 100 1 hour and 10 minutes (70 minutes)

II. Free-Response Questions 2 50 minutes

The exam is 2 hours long. During the first 70 minutes, you have 100 multiple-choice

questions to answer. At the end of the 70 minutes, your booklet and answer sheet will be

collected. However, no matter how early you finish this first part of the exam, you cannot

begin the free-response questions (essays) early. The multiple-choice section counts for

two-thirds of your score. If you have time remaining after you complete the questions,

you can go back to those you were uncertain about or want to reread. You are limited to

50 minutes to answer two required essay questions.

Who Writes the AP Psychology Exam?

Development of each AP exam is a multiyear effort that involves many education and testing

professionals and students. At the heart of the effort is the AP Psychology Development

Committee, a group of highly regarded college and AP high school teachers from diverse

backgrounds who are typically asked to serve for 3 years. The committee and experienced

test-item writers create a large pool of multiple-choice questions. With the help of psy-

chometricians (measurement psychologists) at Educational Testing Service (ETS), these

questions are then pretested with college students who are enrolled in introductory psychol-

ogy at selected colleges and universities. Questions are evaluated for accuracy, appropriate-

ness, clarity, and assurance that there is only one possible answer. Data from pretests allow

each question to be categorized by degree of difficulty.

In general, the easiest questions to answer are at the beginning of Section I, and the most

difficult questions are at the end. After additional development and refinement, Section I of

the exam is ready to be administered.

“I knew that
as a pre-med I
wouldn’t be able
to fit psychol-
ogy into my col-
lege program, so
I wanted to take
it in high school.
My knowledge
of psychol-
ogy helps me
understand my
patients.”
—Dr. Jerry C.,
former AP
student

STRATEGY

“I’m glad I took
AP Psychology
in high school.
It eased my
transition to
college. I knew
the level of work
I needed to do
to succeed and
what studying
for a college final
is like before
enrolling.”
–Kim, college
student