The Advanced Placement (AP) is a program created by the College Board offering college-level curriculum and examinations to high school students. Colleges often grant placement or credit to students who obtained high scores on the examinations. The AP curriculum for the various subjects is created for the College Board by a panel of experts and college-level educators in that subject. For a high school course to have the "AP" designation, the course must be audited by the College Board to ascertain it satisfies the AP curriculum. If the course is approved it will be publicly listed on the AP Ledger and the school may use the AP designation for the course.
 

The most taken AP exam in 2008 was AP United States History with 346,641 students, and the least taken was AP Italian Language and Culture with 1,930 students.
 

Scoring

AP tests are scored on a 1 to 5 scale as follows: 

• 5 – Extremely well qualified

• 4 – Well qualified

• 3 – Qualified

• 2 – Possibly qualified

• 1 – No recommendation
 

Grading the AP exam is a long and complicated process. The multiple choice component of the exam is scored by computer, while the free response and essay portions are scored by trained Readers at the AP Reading each June. The scores on various components are weighted and combined into a raw Composite Score. The Chief Reader for each exam then decides on the grade cutoffs for that year's exam, which determine how the Composite Scores are converted into the final grades. During the process a number of reviews and statistical analyses are performed to ensure that the grading is reliable. The overall goal is for the grades to reflect an absolute scale of performance which can be compared from year to year. 
 

Some colleges use AP test scores to exempt students from introductory coursework. Each college's policy is different (see link below), but most require a minimum score of 3 or 4 to receive college credit. Typically this appears as a "CR" grade on the college transcript, although some colleges and universities will award an A grade for a 5 score. Some foreign countries, such as Germany, that do not offer general admission to their universities and colleges for holders of an American high school diploma without lengthy preparatory courses will directly admit students that have completed a specific set of AP tests, depending on the subject they wish to study there.
 

In addition, completing AP courses help students qualify for various types of scholarships. According to the College Board, 31 percent of colleges and universities look at AP experience when making scholarship decisions. 
 

Beginning with the May 2011 AP Exam administration, the College Board changed the scoring of AP Exams.  Total scores on the multiple-choice section are now based on the number of questions answered correctly. Points are no longer deducted for incorrect answers and, as was the case before, no points are awarded for unanswered questions. However, scoring requirements have also been increased.