Should I withhold or cancel AP scores?

Unlike withholding, canceling an AP score is permanent and cannot be reversed. Students typically choose cancellation over withholding if they don't want a school to know they ever took that AP exam.

Is it better to cancel or withhold AP scores?

If you plan to cancel your score, use the score cancellation form. To withhold a score from colleges simply means that others are not informed you took the exam and are not shown your score. This is the safer option if you do have a score that you want removed from your record, since you can always change your mind.

What happens if I cancel an AP score?

The AP Program allows you to cancel your AP Exam scores. When you request cancellation, your exam won't be scored, and if it has already been scored, the score will be permanently deleted from our records. Once a score is canceled, it can't be reinstated.

Does it cost money to withhold AP scores?

The fee to withhold a score is $10 per score per score recipient. Payment methods include mailing a check or money order or mailing or faxing your credit card information.

Is there a downside to sending in bad AP scores?

Bad AP scores will not affect your college admission. You don't have to report bad AP test scores to the universities to which you are applying. Even if you report bad scores, the college may still consider it commendable that you took on the coursework.

Ranking All 38 AP Classes by Difficulty (Tier List)

Is sending an AP score of 3 bad?

Whether a 3 is a good AP score depends on what score the colleges you're applying to require for credit. If you're applying to a school that requires a 4 or 5, a 3 simply won't cut it.

Should I hide my AP scores?

AP scores have very, very little impact on college admissions, especially if the exam has nothing to do with your major. If you don't report, they probably won't really notice. They can't assume you failed, as maybe you never took the exam in the first place. They care more about your grade in the class.

Does withholding AP scores look bad?

If you have consistently high grades but low test scores, this can indicate to colleges that there's grade inflation at your high school. However, because you're probably going to self-report your AP scores anyway, there's nothing wrong with simply not reporting one or two scores you're not satisfied with.

Can colleges see Cancelled AP scores?

If you cancel an AP exam score, then it will be permanently deleted from the College Board records. Colleges cannot see whatever was deleted.

Will colleges rescind for bad AP scores?

If you get a low score, you don't have to report it. However, the grades you get in senior AP courses will be part of your final high school transcript, and these grades are supposed to be on the level that got you admitted. A college can rescind an acceptance offer if a student gets bad grades in the spring semester.

Why do people cancel AP scores?

The option to cancel a score helps a number of students. Perhaps some of those students took an AP course but found that the class didn't cover all the information on the test, or they didn't study for the test as much as they should have. (This happens more often than we'd like to think.)

Why would I withhold an AP score?

Students may choose to withhold an AP score if they question their performance on the exam or want to view it before their college does.

Is it too late to cancel AP tests?

Students who submit a cancellation request after November 5, 2023 and before 11:59pm PST on March 1, 2024, will receive a partial refund of the exam fees minus a $5 administrative processing fee and a $40 College Board cancellation penalty fee.

Should you report a 4 AP score?

Be sure to read what the colleges you're interested in are saying about AP scores on a school-by-school basis. For applications, I suggest self-reporting all fours and fives on your applications. Some colleges do use them to evaluate your applications and they can benefit your app for some college.

Do colleges really care about AP scores?

In the realm of college admissions, AP test scores can be a valuable asset, providing evidence of a student's academic abilities, subject-specific skills, and college preparedness. While the importance of AP test scores may vary among colleges, they can still play a significant role in the admissions process.

Do colleges care if you fail AP exam?

Now, to address your concerns: Failing an AP exam isn't ideal, but it's not necessarily a deal-breaker for college admissions. Colleges generally care more about the rigor of your coursework and your grades than your AP exam scores.

Will bad AP scores hurt me?

A bad AP score is often correlated with a poor grade in the corresponding course, which can hurt your GPA. While AP courses benefit you by improving your weighted GPA, it may not be worth it if your overall grade in the course is very poor.

Do Ivy Leagues care about AP scores?

In terms of Ivy League and Top 20 schools, even a 4 is a relatively low score to earn on an AP exam. It is routine for Ivy League admissions officers to review applications from students who have scored 5s on multiple AP tests.

Should I report a 3 on an AP exam?

If they will give you credit for the 3, then by all means report it! On the other hand, if they only give credit for a 5 on that exam (not even for a 4), you may want to hold off. The other thing to take into consideration is the selectivity of the college itself.

Is 4 a good AP scores for Ivy League?

As far as reporting your score to Ivy League schools, each school may have a slightly different preference, but generally, a 4 is considered a 'well-qualified' score and should not necessarily hurt your chances. In fact, many colleges and universities even offer credit or advanced placement for scores of 4.

Does a 4 on an AP exam look bad?

For these reasons, an AP® score like a 4 looks great on your application. If you score a 3 or higher, then more selective colleges will begin to accept your AP® exam scores. The score of 4 is deemed by the College Board as “well qualified”, meaning that you know the material and could do well in the college class.

Should I report a 2 on an AP exam?

In short, all scores of 5 on AP exams should be reported to elite colleges. However, for scores of 4 or 3, submitting the scores is dependent on the student's coursework and other AP results. Scores of 2 or 1 should never be shared.

Are AP late exams harder?

The College Board, which administers the AP exams, ensures that all versions of an AP exam—including late testing exams—assess the same content and skills at the same level of difficulty.

How long does it take to cancel AP scores?

Your cancellation request will be processed within 15 business days of receipt. Please allow for delays, especially if you are mailing from overseas. Once processed, you will see the cancellation reflected on your online AP score report.

Is it OK to miss an AP exam?

The Board also accommodates you through late testing (make-up exam), if you miss your AP exam due to an unplanned, unavoidable reason. However, you cannot choose your late testing date yourself, only your AP coordinator can do that for you.