Questions Frequently Asked About the
AP Biology Exam
Here are some common questions students have about the AP Biology exam and some
answers to those questions.
If I Don’t Take an AP Biology Course, Can I Still Take
the AP Biology Exam?
Yes. Although the AP Biology exam is designed for students who have had a year’s course
in AP Biology, some high schools do not offer this type of course. Many students in these
high schools have also done well on the exam, although they had not taken the course.
However, if your high school does offer an AP Biology course, by all means take advantage
of it and the structured background it will provide you.
How Is the Advanced Placement Biology Exam Organized?
The exam has two parts and is scheduled to last three hours. The first section is a set of
63 multiple-choice questions and six grid-in (calculation-based) questions. You will have
90 minutes to complete this part of the test.
After you complete the multiple-choice section, you will hand in your test booklet and
scan sheet, and you will be given a brief break. The length of this break depends on the par-
ticular administrator. You will not be able to return to the multiple-choice questions when
you return to the examination room.
The second section of the exam is a 90-minute essay-writing segment consisting of two
long free-response questions and six short free-response questions. This section will be split
into a 10-minute reading period followed by an 80-minute writing period. All of the ques-
tions will test your understanding of the four big ideas in biology and how science investi-
gators actually work.
Must I Check the Box at the End of the Essay Booklet That Allows
AP Staff to Use My Essays as Samples for Research?
No. This is simply a way for the College Board to make certain they have your permis-
sion if they decide to use one or more of your essays as a model. The readers of your
essays pay no attention to whether or not that box is checked. Checking the box will not
affect your grade.
How Is the Multiple-Choice Section Scored?
The scan sheet with your answers is run through a computer, which counts the number of
correct answers. The AP Biology questions usually have four choices. A question left blank
receives a zero. The verycomplicated formula for this calculation looks something like this
(whereN=the number of answers):
Nright=raw score rounded up or down to nearest whole number
OK, that is not complicated at all.
How Are My Free-Response Answers Scored?
Each of your essays is read by a different, trained AP reader called a faculty consultant.The
AP/College Board members have developed a highly successful training program for their
What You Need to Know About the AP Biology Exam ❮ 5
KEY IDEA
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