Advanced Placement Costs

Advanced Placement examinations are taken by high school students who wish to build their profile before applying to higher educational institutions. Candidates who can clear a few AP examinations will be deemed college-ready by institutions since the content and exam format of the examinations are at a college level. Students will also be able to get extra credit from certain institutions or be exempt from certain first-semester courses if they have sufficient AP grades.

The AP examinations do not have a pass or fail grade and the required grade is often based on the college or university that one is applying to. Taking an AP examination can be an additional burden for students who are already neck-deep in high school academic content and college application stress but the College Board provides candidates with the AP exam dates a year earlier so one can prepare accordingly. The examination's cost depends on the location of the test center where one is taking the exam at. Those who are staying in the US, Canada, or any US territory will have a lesser fee whereas the candidates outside of these places will have to pay an increased fee per examination.

Making the Payment for AP Examinations

Candidates who wish to take the AP examination will have to apply for the same before November 14 or November 15 every year, and the fee has to be paid to the school that is administering the examination. Students should not be mailing the test fee to the College Board under any circumstance. They will be able to pay the fee in the form of cheques and money orders which will be payable at the school where they are taking the examination.

Cost for the AP Examinations

The cost for AP examinations is not limited to the cost one will have to pay according to the number of subjects they have chosen. For instance, providing the payment late and canceling a registered examination will all incur an additional fee. The details for the fee required are as follows-

Purpose	Fee Amount
Exam Fee for US, US Territories, Canada, DoDEA Schools	$98 per Subject
Exam Fee for Authorized Centers Outside US	$128 per Subject
Fee for Capstone Exams	$148 per Subject
Reduced Fee, if Applicable	$36 per Subject
Late Fee Payment	$225
Late Testing Fee, if applicable	$40 per Subject
Late Order Fee	$40 per Subject
Exam Cancellation Fee	$40 per Subject

Cost for AP Late Testing

The College Board offers candidates late testing dates especially targeting those who could not attend all examinations due to overlapping dates. Those who have personal reasons for not taking the test will also be able to take them on the late testing dates. Candidates who have academic reasons for not writing the test will not have to pay an additional fee for taking the test on these dates. The admissible reasons include-

• Attending an academic/athletic event
• Overlapping with IB/Cambridge Exam
• Overlapping with National, Province, or State-mandated tests
• Having documented disability issues
• Family emergencies or serious sickness
• Graduation ceremony in high school
• Due to a religious holiday
• Court appearance for student
• Overlapping AP examinations

Those who have reasons outside those listed above will have to pay an additional fee of $40 per subject for taking the test on late testing dates.

Cost of AP Exam Cancellations and Refunds

Candidates who wish to not take their AP exam and cancel a scheduled test after the November ordering deadline will have to pay $40 per subject as a cancellation fee. The amount one will have to pay for unused examinations will be the same. This is irrespective of whether the candidate is eligible for a College Board fee reduction for their examinations.

The only condition in which a candidate needn’t pay this cancellation fee is if they have transferred out of school. Upon canceling the examination, they will get a refund of the amount they paid minus the cancellation fee. There is no refund for any additional fee paid at registration. Candidates who had to pay a late fee will not get this amount as a refund.

Cost for Late Fee Payment

Candidates who have already registered for the AP examination will be required to pay their fee before the deadline for paying the final exam fee. Those who have not paid this fee by the deadline will be required to pay an additional $225 as the Late Fee Payment.

This amount is non-refundable if the candidate cancels the examination or if they leave the exam unused.

Cost for AP Exam Accommodations

Candidates who require accommodations while taking any of the AP examinations will be able to request the same before the examination dates. The accommodations provided are based on the documented disabilities that candidates have and are as follows-

• Candidates will be able to take the examination in a Braille format
• Candidates can take the exam in an assistive technology-compatible format.
• Candidates can have the exam paper in large print
• Candidates can request for extra time
• Candidates can take extra breaks
• Candidates can provide answers in large-block answer sheets
• Candidates can use a computer for writing essays
• Candidates can use a magnification device
• Candidates can request for a human reader to read out questions
• Candidates can request a writer who will record their responses
• Candidates can request a written copy of oral instructions if required.

Those who wish to request accommodations will have to do so before January 18. They will be able to do this online by submitting the necessary documentation on SSD Online. The approval for the same will be provided after March 15.

There is no additional cost to be paid for requesting accommodations.

Fee Reductions for AP Examinations

Candidates with financial needs will be able to request a fee reduction from their AP coordinators. These AP coordinators will then be in charge of indicating the eligibility of the candidate for the same on the AP Registration and Ordering section. The eligibility criteria that one will have to meet are based on the school or district from which they are taking the exam. The schools and districts that are part of the CEP/Community Eligibility Provision will have different eligibility requirements from those that are not in similar institutions. In all cases, the school or district will be able to decide whether a student is eligible for fee reductions or not.

The fee one will have to pay after the fee reduction is as follows-

Purpose	Fee after Reduction
Exam Fee for US, US Territories, Canada, and DoDEA Schools	$53 to $9 per Subject
Exam Fee for International Students	$83
Exam Fee for AP Seminar/Research Exams	$101

The reduced exam fee can range anywhere between $53 and $9 based on the state they are taking the examination. This is dependent on the additional funding the state receives which will enable them to provide a further reduction from what the College Board provides.

Students who qualify and have financial needs can receive a $36 fee reduction per Test from the College Board. For these students, schools are expected to forgo their $9 rebate. The school rebate fee generally covers the discounts provided to institutions by the College Board and candidates who have to pay the reduced fee will be exempt from paying the school rebate fee.