Most students would agree that the first nine weeks of the school year is primarily about getting familiar with classes, developing an understanding of how a teacher runs a class, or adjusting to a new schedule and homework load. Students in AP classes would probably venture to say that AP Exams in May are barely a concern at this point in the year. However, the College Board’s new registration policy may change that viewpoint.

Beginning this year, AP Exam registration takes place in the fall, with NA’s deadline being November 8th — a little over two weeks away.

Similar to previous years, the cost of each test is still $94. However, the new deadline gives students less time to decide if they can, or want to, pay the hefty fee for the test.  AP classes commonly feature a high level of rigor and heavy work load, largely due to the amount of material that needs to be covered by May.

“I don’t know if the $94 is a good investment yet, because I have no idea how hard the rest of the course is going to be,” said senior Rory Kooker, who takes AP Calculus AB.

The College Board’s rationale for the change is simply that students will be more engaged and motivated to work harder throughout the year, translating into a higher AP Exam score. During the 2017-2018 school year, they tested fall registration with a group of 40,000 students. Scores of 3 or higher, which typically earn a student college credit, increased and had the strongest effect for those underrepresented (low-income, minority, or female STEM students) in the AP program.

The College Board has not released any additional information on how underrepresented students were able to see score increases, specifically from fall registration.

Some NASH students agree that the earlier deadline is helpful.

“Taking my first AP class this year, I didn’t realize that [the AP test] was as serious as it is, and the deadline brought that to my attention,” junior Haley Dubovecky explained.

While the score increases might entice even more students to take AP Exams, having to register three months earlier can hinder students from making more informed decisions.

Senior Chelsea Chao said, “I think it’s a really pressuring decision for students to decide by November because it’s still really early in the year. The drop period for classes isn’t even over yet, so while some students are considering dropping a class, AP registration is opening up at the same time.”

Junior Nathan Greenberg expressed similar sentiments. “I feel that it’s especially unfair because I’m in AP Economics, and we don’t start any of the AP Macro material, which is its own separate exam, until the second semester,” he said.

Some are worried that their credit might not pay off in the long run.

Greenberg added, “I’ve only just started to look at colleges, so not being confident in what tests I want to take worries me. [The colleges] I’m looking at all take various amounts of AP credit, and so if I had until late winter like last year, I would be able to make a better decision to get the right amount of credit instead of taking a shot in the dark.”

However, given the pattern of past behavior by the College Board, some would say that there is another obvious, yet unstated, reason.

“I’m 90% sure that the fact that students are less likely to back out when it comes time to sign up for the AP test with the early deadline just means more money for the College Board,” AP Calculus teacher Mrs. Volpe said.

The College Board also introduced AP Classroom this year– a potentially helpful resource including practice questions and progress checks.  Teachers are required to have their students sign up for their class on the AP Classroom, and some teachers are looking forward to utilizing the site.

 “Right now, I feel like it will be beneficial for finals and the AP test because of the additional resources and questions they have posted,”  AP Psychology teacher Mrs. Failla said,” but I’m still trying to figure out how to best use them in addition to just review.”

With such a major change at hand, students can only hope that their choices will ultimately reap future benefits.