AP testing was stressful for seniors this year. Terra Linda students were staying up late to study. Many students take these advanced classes to demonstrate willingness to learn and boost their GPAs. Sophomore year is the first year that AP courses are available to students. As students continue through high school, the number of AP classes available to them increases. While sophomores typically cannot take more than one or two AP classes, juniors and seniors often take four to five. 

Because so many students need to study for these classes, it’s important to learn the proper study methods. Many AP students often use teacher-provided materials to study for exams.  “Doing the recommended study guides by my teacher and doing the material in the AP classroom [help me prepare], and just studying alone really helps me focus more,“ said John Moore ‘26.

There are also certain things to avoid when preparing for an AP exam.“Waiting until the last minute to study, and just reviewing the wrong material,” Moore mentioned as common mistakes. “I did that last year for AP Lang, and I regretted it.“

A big debate among AP students is whether studying alone or in a group is more efficient. “I prefer to study alone and spend a lot of my time studying which I feel like it helps me develop the material more easily,“ Moore explained.

Regardless of specific method, studying is essential to passing AP exams, something that many students have to learn the hard way. 

“Studying is important because it helps you learn the material that’s gonna be on the AP test,” Moore explained. This shows that studying helps a lot of students remember all the information they learned all throughout the year. Planning out your schedule and preparing ahead of time can help a lot of students feel confident in themselves.

 “A lot of the material that’s [going to] be on the AP test is corresponding to material that you learn over the year so it’s really important to study that information instead of blowing past it.” explained Moore. This means that a lot of students should pay attention to what they learn all throughout the year because most of that information can be in an AP exam, and since most AP exams can affect college placement, it is really important to study carefully especially for the students that want to do well on these exams.

AP exams are different from a normal test. They determine more than just the student’s grades, but also their placement in college classes. With many students taking AP classes for the first time, it’s important to understand how to study properly for AP exams.