Advanced placement (AP) exams are a stressful time of the year for high school students. Each year in May, AP tests are held to test students on their knowledge of a subject at a collegiate level. The AP exam is a test of all of the content that students have learned throughout the whole year in their AP course to earn college credit. This causes the majority of students to have a lot of anxiety for these exams as it is difficult to prepare for such a large quantity of information on one exam.  As AP exams come to a close, students have mixed feelings about how each of their exams went.

A common feeling that students have after completing their AP exams is relief. After studying and preparing  the whole year for the exam, a huge burden is taken off students’ shoulders after the test is completed. Additionally, after the exam, AP classes in school tend to slow down as most of the material learned in that class is in preparation for the exam. This allows students in that AP class to relax as the most stressful part of the year is over. “After my exam, I felt very relieved because I have been preparing for this test throughout the whole year. It is very good to know that the test is over, and I can relax for the remainder of the year in my AP Lang class,” junior Sofie Vinick said.

The second feeling that students feel after the exam is anxiety. This is due to the fact that if a student receives a poor score, they could feel taking the class was a waste of time. This is not the only reason for anxiety during AP season as before or after taking an AP exam, students could feel underprepared for the test. “I am very anxious after taking the AP Psych exam as many of the terms that were on the test this year we learned early throughout the year. It caused me a lot of stress to tie back to all of my knowledge from very early in the year during my AP exam,” junior Sai Mandhan said.

The third feeling that students have after taking AP exams is hunger. AP exams are rigorous and long tasks in which students are prevented from eating or drinking. Students have mixed feelings about this as not eating or drinking prevents students from cheating but also prevents them from getting any intake of food during the three to six hours when taking the exam. “After the exam I was very hungry as they did not allow me to eat. This was very annoying as food is used as brain power and without it I feel my academics are inhibited. I understand why there is no eating but am still frustrated with the College Board,” junior Spencer Becker said.

If a student were to receive a three or higher on their AP exam, they are eligible for college credit for that course. The college that each student attends determines whether the student will receive credit for their exam. This is one of the main reasons why AP exams are so important in high school as students are able to receive credit for classes, allowing them to not take that class again in college.