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 start-
ing 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 PsychologySection Questions Time Limit
I. Multiple-Choice Questions 100 1 hour and 10 minutes (70 minutes)II. Free-Response Questions 2 50 minutesThe 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 psycho-
metricians (measurement psychologists) at Educational Testing Service (ETS), these ques-
tions are then pretested with college students who are enrolled in introductory psychology
at selected colleges and universities. Questions are evaluated for accuracy, appropriateness,
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 1, and the most
difficult questions are at the end. After additional development and refinement, Section I of
the exam is ready to be administered.4 STEP 1. Set Up Your Study Plan“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
“I knew that as a
pre-med I
wouldn’t be able
to fit psychology
into my college
program, so I
wanted to take it
in high school.
My knowledge of
psychology helps
me understand
my patients.”
—Dr. Jerry C.,
former
AP student
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