2021 AP Exam Schedule + Study Tips

What’s Covered:

• 2021 AP Exam Schedule
• Impact of COVID-19
• How AP Exams Impact Your College Chances
• Average AP Exam Scores

Performing well on AP exams has numerous benefits for college-bound applicants; they help students create attention-grabbing academic profiles and may allow them to test out of introductory college courses. 

Consequently, AP students are always anxious to learn the AP Exam calendar. In this post, we’ll go over the 2021 AP exam schedule, discuss potential COVID-19 complications, and offer our tips for performing your best on test day.

2021 AP Exam Schedule

Testing Period 1 (Paper, In School)

Testing Period 2 (Digital)

Testing Period 2 (Paper, In School)

Testing Period 2 (Digital, In School, At Home)

Testing Period 3 Digital (In School, At Home)

Testing period 3: Paper (In School)

Testing Period 3 (Digital, In School, At Home)

The only exception to the AP Exam calendar is Alaska, where exams start an hour earlier than everywhere else—beginning at 7 am, 11 am, and 1 pm. 

Digital Portfolio Due Date

The deadline for schools to submit the digital portfolios required in 2-D Art and Design, 3-D Art and Design, and Drawing is May 20, at 11:59 p.m. (Eastern time). Students are advised to submit their portfolios to their teachers well in advance of this date. 

AP Exams and COVID-19 

COVID-19 has been extremely disruptive to seemingly every aspect of education and the AP Exams are not immune—but the College Board has developed a flexible schedule for 2021 AP exams. The 2021 exam schedule provides three testing dates (Administrations 1, 2, and 3) for each subject between early May and mid-June. Students will take exams in person if possible, or a digital version will be made available. Individual schools will make all decisions about which exams are offered and in which periods they will take place.

• In Administration 1, all exams are paper, administered in school.
• In Administration 2, half of the subjects are paper, administered in school, and half are digital, administered in school or taken at home.
• In Administration 3, most subjects are digital, administered in school or taken at home.

Unlike in 2020 where students took a condensed 45 minute version of the AP exams, this year students should ready themselves to be assessed on the entire course content.

How Do AP Exams Impact Your College Chances?

Your course rigor significantly impacts your chances of acceptance. In fact, many selective schools use a metric called the Academic Index (AI) as a screening tool in admissions. This number represents the strength of your grades and test scores. If you don’t meet the college’s minimum AI threshold, you may be automatically rejected. (Some exceptions are first-generation, low-income, under-represented, and legacy students).

Taking AP classes will certainly help boost your AI. Not sure how if your current academic profile is competitive? We recommend using our free chancing engine. This tool will tell you how you stack up against other applicants, and give you tips on improving your profile (both for academics and extracurriculars).

How Do Most Students Do on Each AP Exam?

Interested in learning more about the score distribution of each exam? Check out the table below. For each row, the percentage listed indicates the percentage of students receiving the score in the corresponding column. For example, 8.8% of students got a 5 in AP Research.

Tips for AP Exam Success

No matter whether a test is taken in-person or online, there are some steps students can take to ensure an impressive AP exam score. 

Prepare Early 

Cramming for a test is no fun and ineffective; therefore, students should take a proactive course of action and begin studying early—at least a month before the exam date. Practice tests are a fantastic test-prep resource, as they:

• Highlight strengths and weaknesses (illuminating areas that need extra attention)
• Familiarize test-takers with question styles and exam formats
• Perfect test timing 
• Ease test anxiety
• Track preparation progress 

There are numerous great free practice tests and resources available online—for example, our Guides for Acing Your AP Exams. 

Test-Day Preparation

Make sure you know ahead of time what is needed to have on hand for each AP exam, whether in-person or online. Must-have items for in-person AP exams include:

• #2 Pencils and black or dark blue colored pens
• Government or school-issued identification
• Six-digit school code
• A ruler or straight-edge for those taking the AP Physics exam
• An acceptable calculator if the exam allows or requires one

Just as important as what to bring to your in-person exam is what not to bring. These items include: 

• Food and drinks—they’re not allowed in the exam room 
• Smartphones and smartwatches 
• Laptops and tablets
• Cameras 
• Separate timers 

Get caught with any of these prohibited items and risk consequences from having them confiscated to having your test score canceled and not being permitted to retest. 

Relax

Studying is important for test day success, but so is showing up to the test well-rested and relaxed. Make sure in the weeks leading up to exam day that you’re getting enough sleep and eating a healthy, balanced diet. Sometimes getting an extra hour of sleep is more valuable than spending an extra hour reviewing material—this is especially true for students who started studying early and stuck to a consistent schedule.