Press Releases

Contact: Krisztina Vida, 609.896.1800, Ext. 53146

Lawrenceville, N.J., June 26, 2007—Advanced Placement* (AP) courses are becoming increasingly prevalent in high schools across the country. Last spring more than 1.2 million students around the globe took 2.1 million AP exams. This is no surprise considering the variety of benefits derived from taking AP courses and performing well on tests: earning college credit, demonstrating college-level proficiency to an admission committee and in-depth study of a subject. The powerful combination of these benefits was found to be the impetus behind taking AP courses for nearly half of college-bound students, according to a recent online poll by Peterson’s, a Nelnet company, and leading provider of education and career guidance.

Looking at each benefit individually, almost one-third of college-bound respondents said they take AP classes primarily because it will look good on their transcripts. The best time- and money-saving benefit—earning college credit with a high score on the AP exam—was the primary reason for less than one in five students. Love of subject matter was indicated only by a few as a sole reason for taking AP classes; less than one in ten students selected it as the primary factor.

“Taking an AP course is a great way to immerse yourself in a subject that you are interested in and get college credit for your work,” said Del Franz, editor-in-chief at Peterson’s. “Because of the growing popularity of AP classes, Peterson’s new AP test prep books not only provide in-depth preparation for AP exams, but also include a college-by-college guide to AP credit and placement.”

More than half of students not yet in high school anticipated they will take more than four AP courses during high school, with an additional third planning to take between two to four courses. This number may be overstated because “the majority of students taking AP classes today take just one course during their entire high school careers.

Of students exploring a graduate degree, four out of five took AP courses in high school. Of the remaining 20 percent who did not take AP courses, two-thirds wished they had. Likewise, nearly fifty percent of students looking into continuing education took an AP course in high school, and more than half of those who didn’t wish they had.