One way to prepare students for the AP® exam is to have them take practice exams and released exams as practice or as a final exam before the AP® Exam.
My students do both. For practice tests, I have them fill in diagnostic worksheets based off of my textbook. Then, for the final exam, they review the Zipgrade printout and check the curve below to see how close they are to the score they want. They can also see my curve for their final exam. The spreadsheet is based off of the most recent released exams which are curved harder than older exams.
My students practice with the multiple choice only. My students do not need more FRQ practice at this time–they need to memorize information and use it in complex, higher-order thinking questions. But, your students may need more FRQ practice. If your students take both the MC and FRQs use the Scoring Worksheets provided by the College Board with the practice or released exams for score predictions.
Since I give my final a few days before the AP® Exam, students can use those days to cram and get a higher score. I have a good number of kids who bring themselves from a 2 to a 3 each year in the final days. And, many students who are at a 4 for the final exam cram more to get that 5. Encourage students that they can do it too!
Note: The scores below reflect the changes in the exam starting in 2020. These are ESTIMATES based on the most recent released exam and adjusted. We will not know the exact cut offs for the new exam until the exam is “normed” and the curve is set by a committee in June.
| # Correct on MC | % on Final Exam | Also need: avg per FRQ | AP® Score |
| 80 | 100 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 79 | 100 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 78 | 100 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 77 | 100 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 76 | 99 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 75 | 99 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 74 | 99 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 73 | 98 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 72 | 97 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 71 | 96 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 70 | 95 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 69 | 94 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 68 | 93 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 67 | 93 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 66 | 92 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 65 | 92 | 6/10 | 5 |
| 64 | 91 | 5/10 | 4 |
| 63 | 90 | 5/10 | 4 |
| 62 | 90 | 5/10 | 4 |
| 61 | 89 | 5/10 | 4 |
| # Correct on MC | % on Final Exam | Also need: avg per FRQ | AP® Score |
| 60 | 81 | 5/10 | 4 |
| 59 | 79 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 58 | 78 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 57 | 77 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 56 | 76 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 55 | 75 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 54 | 74 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 53 | 73 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 52 | 72 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 51 | 71 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 50 | 70 | 4/10 | 3 |
| 49 | 69 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 48 | 68 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 47 | 68 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 46 | 67 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 45 | 66 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 44 | 66 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 43 | 65 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 42 | 64 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 41 | 64 | 3/10 | 2 |
| # Correct on MC | % on Final Exam | Also need: avg per FRQ | AP® Score |
| 40 | 63 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 39 | 62 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 38 | 61 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 37 | 60 | 3/10 | 2 |
| 36 | 59 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 35 | 58 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 34 | 56 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 33 | 55 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 32 | 53 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 31 | 51 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 30 | 50 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 29 | 48 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 28 | 46 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 27 | 44 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 26 | 42 | 2/10 | 1 |
| 25 | 40 | 2/10 | 1 |
3 thoughts on “AP® Released Exams, Score Predictions, & the Final Exam “Curve””