As AP exam season grows closer, students planning to take them are studying and taking advice from teachers to prepare for the tests that begin on Monday, May 1, with hopes of obtaining college credit. 

“I’ve taken AP classes all four years of high school,” senior Natalie Miranda said. “I know I would be bored in on-level, and even pre-AP in the past has been too slow for me. AP is the pace that I want, because we move really quickly, and then it saves money for college if I pass the exam.” 

However, other AP class students said they were discouraged by the price of admission for the test and chose not to take the exam. 

“I only didn’t do it because of money, and I didn’t want to take it just to fail,” sophomore Sierrah de los Santos said. “That was my mindset, I was like ‘I don’t know if I’m going to fail or pass it, so why would I pay like $90 for it?’ But then again, it’s cheaper if you do it now than if you go to college and take it again.” 

AP Human Geography teacher Robbyn Camp said studying for the AP exams is a year-round process rather than a simple month’s work. 

“The most efficient way is just to make sure you’re putting in the work all year, and not waiting until a month before the exam,” Camp said. “A lot of students just think they can just study a couple of weeks before and they’re good to go, but it’s putting in the work all year.” 

Miranda said preparation for the AP exam requires sacrificing time for socializing. 

“I don’t really have a social life when it’s AP exam season,” Miranda said. “I’m always scheduling everything else around when I need to do homework or if I need to catch up in something. All my free time, I basically put my AP class first, and then after that I’m like ‘OK, what else can I do?’” 

Camp said passing the exam offers benefits such as saving money via college credit. 

“When they pass the AP exam, that just means that they earn college credit,” Camp said. “They get to save money, because the AP test is only $90 and the average college credit; it depends on what school you go to, but it’s definitely over like $300,” Camp said. “Even if you don’t end up getting college credit, you still get to practice for when you get to take an AP class next year.” 

Miranda said her progress in AP classes has already helped her achieve a head start in deciding her college classes. 

“It’s already saved me so much money in college,” Miranda said. “I’ve started looking at classes I need to take my freshman year, and all my basics are out of the way, so I can start with my major.” 

Despite opting out of taking the exam, Santos said that she would recommend taking an AP exam to students who know a lot about the class, even though she opted out of taking it. 

“Yes, I think if you really know everything about the class and you have a good memory, you should take it,” Santos said. “But you shouldn’t doubt yourself like I did, because I should’ve taken it too.”