A Guide To AP Chemistry Cut Scores

Results from the AP exams are scored as a number from 1-5. This system must be thought of very differently than percent-based grades and letter grades.

What is the format of the exam?

The AP exam is split into 2 parts.

1. 60 multiple choice questions (MCQ) worth 50% of the grade in 90 minutes. Questions are given and answered using Bluebook software online.
2. 7 free response questions (FRQ) worth 50% of the grade in 105 minutes. Questions are given on Bluebook software online and students respond in a paper booklet. There are 3 long questions worth 10 points each, and 4 short questions worth 4 points each, giving a total of 46 points.

The exam should not be thought of like a classroom test.

These exams are designed differently from most classroom assessments.

In a typical classroom test, a student's percentage score is converted directly into a letter grade.

For example, if a student answers 20 out of 25 questions correctly, they score 80%, which might correspond to a B grade. Because students are usually at least somewhat prepared for a classroom assessment, scores generally cluster near the top of the distribution, with most students earning between 70% and 90%.

The AP Chemistry exam has a different purpose. Rather than assigning percentages or letter grades, the College Board must place students into one of five score categories: 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5. To do this effectively, the exam includes questions that spread student performance across a much wider range.

As a result, the exam is designed to distinguish between students with different levels of understanding. It can differentiate between students who are exceptionally well prepared, well prepared, adequately prepared, slightly prepared, and not prepared at all.

This is one reason why AP Chemistry cut scores may seem surprisingly low compared with classroom grades. The goal of the exam is not to determine whether a student earned 80% or 90%, but rather to determine which AP score best reflects their overall level of chemistry understanding.

What AP Chemistry exam score is needed for a 5? or a 4? or a 3?

The raw score required to get a certain grade is often the most asked question by students (and teachers) as they are doing practice questions and practice exams leading up to the real exam. College Board doesn't officially publish the cut scores required to get a given score. But there is some unofficial data that estimates the cut scores for each year, which is below. Many students and teachers find the cut scores lower than expected, which is an indication that the exam questions are quite challenging and the questions are graded strictly.

The AP Chemistry cut scores vary slightly from year to year, but give a rough estimate of the next year's cut scores.

College Board does officially publish score distributions, which can be found here, and the recent years are shown below.

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from these data is that most (about 2/3rd's) students score a 3 or 4, and scoring a 5 is quite challenging, showing a deep understanding of the course.

Why are AP Chemistry cut scores different every year?

College Board doesn't officially publish the cut scores required to get a given score, but they do change each year. In fact, there are multiple versions of the exam given each year, and there are also make-up and international exams given at different times. The changing cut scores are a way to adjust for the difficulty of a specific exam. A more challenging exam will have slightly lower cut scores and vice versa for a less challenging exam.