AP Exam Terms and Conditions

You will be bound by these Terms and Conditions as they exist on test day. Visit this page prior to test day to review any updates. Updates will be clearly communicated on this page.

AP EXAM TERMS AND CONDITIONS

These Terms and Conditions (“Terms and Conditions” or “Agreement”) are a legal contract between you and College Board (“College Board” or “we”). They set forth important rules and policies you must follow related to taking an Advanced Placement® (“AP”) Exam (“AP Exam”). Please read them carefully. If you register for the AP Exam on behalf of another (for example, if you are a parent or legal guardian of the test taker), these Terms and Conditions govern both you and the test taker (collectively, “you”).

All disputes between you and College Board will be resolved through binding arbitration in accordance with Section 8 of this Agreement. You understand that by agreeing to arbitration, you are waiving your right to resolve disputes in a court of law by a judge or jury except as otherwise set forth in this Agreement.

CONTENTS:

  1. Required Items for Paper and Pencil Testing
  2. Required Items for Digital Testing
  3. Prohibited Items
  4. Digital Testing: Additional Rules

Section 1. Taking the AP Exam

In 2024, AP Exams will be administered in two formats, (i) paper and pencil and (ii) digital. Most AP Exams will be paper and pencil this year. For those AP Exams that are available digitally, the school where you test will decide which format to administer.

  1. Required Items for Paper and Pencil Testing
  2. Required Items for Digital Testing
  3. Prohibited Items
  4. Digital Testing: Additional Rules

Section 2. Prohibited Behaviors

  1. You may not engage in the prohibited behaviors set forth below and located at apstudents.collegeboard.org/exam-policies-guidelines/exam-security-policies :
  2. Original Work

Section 3. Score Cancellation and Disciplinary Measures

  1. Score Cancellation and Disciplinary Measures. In the event that College Board and/or its contractors determine that your scores are invalid under Section 3(b) below, or you have engaged in Misconduct under Section 3(c) below, we may, in our sole discretion, take one or more of the following measures (“Measures”): deny you the right to take an AP Exam, decline to score your AP Exam, cancel your scores, ban you from taking future College Board assessments (including, without limitation, the SAT, CLEP exam or any future AP Exam), and/or share information with others as set forth in Section 3(f) below.

CAUTION! THE CONSEQUENCES OF CHEATING ON THE AP EXAM ARE SEVERE. ALL INSTITUTIONS YOU SEND AP SCORES TO MAY BE NOTIFIED OF YOUR MISCONDUCT.

  1. Invalid Scores. We may cancel your scores and/or take any of the other Measures described above if after following the procedures set forth in this section, we determine, in our sole discretion, that there is substantial evidence that your scores are invalid (“Invalid Scores”). Examples of evidence of Invalid Scores include, without limitation, discrepant handwriting, unusual answer patterns, similar essays or code, inappropriate AI use, or other evidence that indicates these Terms and Conditions may have been violated. Before canceling your scores under this Invalid Scores section, we will notify you in writing (via email if an email address is available) and provide you with an opportunity to submit written information to us to help resolve our inquiry. If you opt for a further review by a College Board review panel, and it confirms, in its sole discretion, that your scores are invalid, we will offer you 3 options: applying a score of zero to affected sections, voluntary score cancellation or arbitration as set forth in Section 8 below. This process is referred to as the “Score Validity Process.” The arbitration option is available only for AP Exams administered in the United States and U.S. Territories. AP Exam score components rendered by a school and not College Board are not subject to review or adjustment.
  2. Misconduct. Notwithstanding Section 3(b) above, if we determine, in our sole discretion, that there is overwhelming evidence that you violated these Terms and Conditions (“Misconduct”), the Score Validity Process will not apply, and we may cancel your scores and/or take any of the Measures described above. Examples of Misconduct might include, without limitation, having someone else assist you during the AP Exam, having someone else take the AP Exam for you, giving assistance to another test taker during the AP Exam, or plagiarizing, which includes submitting an AP Exam with any material other than the exclusive product of your own work, or that includes any text, content, graphics, pictures, or other content from a third-party source. Misconduct may be established in various ways, including, without limitation, by evidence discovered after the administration.
  3. Testing Irregularities. We may cancel your scores if we determine, in our sole discretion, that any testing irregularity occurred (collectively, “Testing Irregularities”). Examples of Testing Irregularities include, without limitation, problems, irregular circumstances, or events associated with the administration of an AP Exam that may affect one test taker or groups of test takers. Such problems include, without limitation, administrative errors (e.g., using accommodations not approved by College Board or defective equipment), network outages, system errors, evidence of possible pre-knowledge of secure AP Exam content, and disruptions of testing administrations caused by events such as natural disasters, epidemics, wars, riots, civil disturbances, or other emergencies. When Testing Irregularities occur, we may cancel an entire administration or individual registrations, decline to score all or part of the AP Exam, or cancel scores. We may do this regardless of whether or not you caused the Testing Irregularities, benefited from them, or violated these Terms and Conditions. We may, in our sole discretion, give you a refund. This is the sole remedy that may be available to you as a result of Testing Irregularities.
  4. Test Taker Reporting Misconduct or Suspicious Behavior. You may confidentially report any suspected violation of these Terms and Conditions, or any suspicion concerning the security of an AP Exam administration, by immediately emailing the AP Hotline at [email protected] .
  5. College Board Sharing Information with Third Parties. We may share the results of test security investigations (including, without limitation, those relating to Misconduct and Invalid Scores described above, and other disciplinary-related information), with third parties, including with your test center, teacher, school, any score recipient, college, higher education institution or agency, scholarship organization, admissions office, potential score recipient, government agency in the United States or abroad, parents, legal guardians, or law enforcement. College Board may also share such information with third parties that have a legitimate reason for knowing the information or who may be able to assist College Board in its investigation or who may be conducting their own investigation. College Board may respond to inquiries from any institution to which you submitted a score. If you publicize any review, investigation, or decision of College Board, College Board may make any and all details of such matter public.

Section 4. Privacy

  1. Privacy Policies. College Board recognizes the importance of protecting your privacy. Our privacy policies located at collegeboard.org/privacy-center(“Privacy Policies”) and also available to you under Help on the Application homepage are part of these Terms and Conditions. You consent to the collection, use, and disclosure by College Board of your information, including personally identifiable information, described in the Privacy Policies and in these Terms and Conditions. College Board may update its Privacy Policies from time to time, and they are subject to change up to one week prior to your AP Exam date. You are required to review the Privacy Policies located at collegeboard.org/privacy-center prior to taking the AP Exam.
  2. Testing Device and Activity Data.
  3. Kentucky Scholarship Program. If you’re a resident of the state of Kentucky, College Board automatically sends your AP Exam scores and personally identifiable information to the Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority (“KHEAA”). This information is used by KHEAA to consider your eligibility for and award its state scholarship program.
  4. Educational Reporting.
  5. Voluntary Student Search Service (where available). If you are provided an opportunity opt in to our voluntary Student Search Service (“Search”) and you choose to opt-in:
  6. Connections. College Board has a separate program called Connections that is offered to schools and school districts and that connects students with information about nonprofit colleges, universities, scholarship organizations, and other nonprofit educational organizations, without disclosure of their personally identifiable information. Where available, students who take the PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or the SAT during the school day can opt-in to Connections. You can't opt-in to Connections as part of this AP Exam, but if you have already opted-in to Connections or if you opt-in later, your AP Exam score range is included in the information used to match you to organizations as part of Connections. More information about Connections is available at satsuite.org/bigfutureschool .

Section 5. Miscellaneous

  1. In the event of a test security related concern, public health threat, natural disaster, terrorist act, civil unrest, epidemic, or other unexpected events or circumstances, College Board may cancel testing for all or a specific group of test takers. In addition, College Board may cancel at any time due to issues related to covid-19 in College Board’s sole discretion. If this occurs, College Board will notify you in advance, if feasible.
  2. To ensure the integrity of the AP Exam, for security reasons, or for other reasons in our sole discretion, College Board reserves the right to bar any individual or group of individuals from registering for and/or taking any College Board assessment.
  3. We reserve the right to contact the appropriate individuals or agencies, including your parents, guardians, high school, or law enforcement agencies if College Board becomes aware that you or someone else may be in imminent danger. We may also provide the relevant content, along with your personal information, to those contacted.
  4. College Board takes steps to ensure that registration records are properly handled and processed, and that answers are properly handled and scored. In the unlikely event of a problem with registration materials, answers, or score reports, or with scoring the AP Exam, or score reporting, College Board will correct the error, if possible, and may allow a retest for impacted test takers, offer a projected score when feasible, or provide a refund of the AP Exam fee. These are your sole remedies in relation to such issues. College Board has sole discretion in determining whether to score missing AP Exam submissions that are eventually recovered.
  5. Scoring of student responses and the determination of AP Exam scores are within College Board’s sole discretion. If any portion of your AP Exam or any of your submissions are scored by your school or AP Teacher, those scores are final and you may not challenge them in arbitration (under Section 8 below) or otherwise.
  6. Each College Board contractor is a third-party beneficiary and is entitled to the rights and benefits under this Agreement and may enforce the provisions of this Agreement as if it were a party to this Agreement.
  7. College Board is not responsible for providing an internet connection or for internet service interruptions or errors outside of College Board’s control, such as data transmission errors on the public internet.
  8. College Board is not responsible for any equipment.
  9. College Board is not responsible for personal property, including prohibited items, brought to the AP Exam that are lost, stolen, or damaged.
  10. College Board is not responsible for your failure to follow directions and instructions relating to taking the AP Exam.

Section 6. Policies and Requirements

  1. All College Board policies and requirements (i) referenced in these Terms and Conditions and (ii) relating to registering for the AP Exam located at apstudents.collegeboard.org/register-for-ap-exams, taking the AP Exam located at apstudents.collegeboard.org/about-ap-exams, and scores located at apstudents.collegeboard.org/about-ap-scores are part of these Terms and Conditions.
  2. College Board may update its policies and requirements from time to time and they are subject to change up to one week prior to your test date. You are required to review these prior to each test administration.

Section 7. Intellectual Property Rights

  1. All College Board tests, including AP Exams, test-related documents and materials, and test preparation materials (“Test Content ”) are copyrighted works owned by College Board and protected by the laws of the United States and other countries.
  2. All software, webpages, algorithms, processes, and technologies, including the Application, through which you access and take the AP Exam, your answers are scored, and the test is secured and proctored, but excluding your device, your internet service provider (ISP) and the public internet, (collectively, the “Test Platform ”) belong to College Board and its licensors.
  3. You shall not screenshot or attempt to make any image, copy, or download Test Content or the Test You shall not attempt to decompile, reverse engineer, or disassemble the Test Platform.
  4. All answers and answer documents you submit including all essay responses, portfolios, and audio or visual work are owned by the College Board, and these may be used by College Board for any purpose, subject to the Privacy Policies located at privacy.collegeboard.org, and in these Terms and Conditions; however, you have independent rights to your scores, including the right to access, retain, and use your scores.

Section 8. ARBITRATION OF DISPUTES AND CLASS ACTION WAIVER

  1. General Arbitration Rules ("General Arbitration Rules") All disputes between you and College Board (each a “party”) that relate in any way to registering for, participating in, or taking an AP exam, including but not limited to requesting or receiving test accommodations, score reporting, the use of your data, test security issues, or the Score Validity Process (defined in the “Invalid Scores” Section herein), will exclusively be resolved in binding arbitration or small claims court. By agreeing to arbitration in accordance with this Section, you are waiving your right to have your dispute heard by a judge or jury except as set forth below. Disputes relating to the Score Validity Process are subject to both these General Arbitration Rules and the Supplemental Arbitration Rules defined in Section 8(b) below. If there is a conflict between the General Arbitration Rules and the Supplemental Arbitration Rules, the Supplemental Arbitration Rules will control. Either party can seek to have a claim resolved in small claims court if the rules of that court will allow it. Additionally, and except for disputes relating to the Score Validity Process under the Supplemental Arbitration Rules below, if the claims asserted in any request or demand for arbitration could have been brought in small claims court, then either you or College Board may elect to have the claims heard in small claims court, rather than in arbitration, at any time before an arbitrator is appointed, by notifying the other party of that election in writing. Any dispute about whether a claim qualifies for small claims court will be resolved by that court and not by an arbitrator. In the event that either party elects to have their claims heard in small claims court, the arbitration proceeding will remain closed unless and until there is a decision by the small claims court that the claim should proceed in arbitration. All claims that are not decided in small claims court must be resolved through binding, individual arbitration before a single arbitrator. The arbitration will be administered by the American Arbitration Association ("AAA") under the AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules, supplemented the AAA Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules as applicable, in effect at the time a request for arbitration is filed with the AAA. Copies of the AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules and the AAA Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules are located at adr.org. The arbitrator will have the authority to resolve any dispute regarding the scope or enforceability of this Agreement, except only a court can decide claims that a party violated the intellectual property rights of the other party. In addition, only a court can decide issues relating to (a) the pre-arbitration requirements contained in this Agreement or (b) the interpretation of the prohibition of class and representative actions contained in this Agreement. Before commencing a small claims court or arbitration proceeding, that party (the “complainant”) must provide the other party (the “respondent”) with a written notice of dispute that includes the complainant’s name and contact information, a detailed description of the dispute, relevant documents, the specific relief sought, and the complainant’s physical signature (signature by counsel to the party is not sufficient). If you are the complainant, you must send the notice of dispute by first class mail, FedEx, or UPS to Legal Department, 250 Vesey Street, New York, NY 10281. College Board will send its notice to your address as reflected in College Board’s records. Also, before the complainant may commence a small claims court or arbitration proceeding, the parties must attempt to resolve the dispute through informal, good-faith negotiation. If the parties have not resolved the dispute within sixty (60) days of the respondent’s receipt of the written notice of dispute, the parties will mutually schedule a settlement conference which must occur within fourteen (14) days of the completion of the sixty (60) day period, unless otherwise mutually agreed by the parties. Each party must personally appear at the settlement conference (if a party is represented by counsel, their counsel may also participate), and appearances may be made telephonically or by video. If the parties are unable to resolve the dispute at the settlement conference, either party may commence arbitration or file a small claims court proceeding. The statute of limitations and any filing fee deadlines will be tolled while the parties engage in this informal dispute resolution process. If any aspect of the requirements in this subsection 8(a) have not been met, a court can enjoin the filing or prosecution of an arbitration or the assessment of any arbitration fees. In addition, unless prohibited by law, the AAA cannot accept or administer the arbitration, nor assess any fees for an arbitration that has not met the requirements of this subsection 8(a). If the arbitration already is pending, it must be dismissed. If the dispute proceeds to arbitration, the complainant must personally attend all arbitration conferences, hearings, and mediations scheduled by the AAA or by an arbitrator or mediator appointed by the AAA. If the complainant is represented by counsel, complainant’s counsel may also participate, and all participation may be made telephonically or by video except as directed by the arbitrator or mediator. If a complainant fails to personally appear at any conference, hearing or mediation scheduled by the AAA or by a AAA arbitrator or mediator, regardless of whether the complainant’s counsel attends, the arbitrator will administratively close the arbitration proceeding without prejudice, unless the complainant shows good cause as to why the complainant was not able to attend the conference, hearing, or mediation. This arbitration will be conducted as a documents-only arbitration (i.e., there will be no in-person or telephonic hearing) unless otherwise agreed by the parties or required by the arbitrator. If the parties agree to or the arbitrator requires proceedings, such proceedings should be conducted at a location which is reasonably convenient to both parties with due consideration of their ability to travel and other pertinent circumstances. If the parties are unable to agree on a location, the parties agree that the proceedings will be conducted via a video or telephonic call or, in the event that face-to-face proceedings are agreed to by the parties or required by the arbitrator, at a location that is reasonably convenient to both parties in accordance with the AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules. The arbitrator may consider rulings in arbitrations involving other individuals, but an arbitrator's rulings will not be binding in proceedings involving different individuals. The existence and content of the arbitration proceedings, including documents and briefs submitted by the parties, any correspondence from the AAA, and correspondence, orders, and awards issued by the arbitrator, will remain strictly confidential and will not be disclosed to any third party without the express written consent from the other party, unless disclosure to the third party is reasonably required in the context of conducting the arbitration proceedings or related court proceedings. For disputes meeting the definition of “Mass Arbitration” under the AAA Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules, the parties agree that the dispute is subject to the AAA’s Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules and the parties agree to the appointment of a Process Arbitrator, except as may otherwise be decided by the arbitrator or the AAA. The parties agree that the Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA") 9 U.S.C. § 1 et seq. governs this Section, and it is the intent of the parties that the FAA will preempt all State laws to the fullest extent permitted by law. No arbitration may be maintained as a class or collective action; a party may only bring a claim only on their own behalf and cannot seek a relief that would affect other individuals. Unless all parties agree otherwise, the arbitrator will not have the authority to consolidate the claims of more than 1 individual, conduct any class or collective proceeding, make any class or collective award, or make an award to any person or entity not a party to the arbitration, without the express written consent of College Board. Payment of all filing, administrative, and arbitrator fees and costs will be governed by the AAA's rules. If the arbitrator finds that either the substance of your claim or the relief sought was frivolous or was brought for an improper purpose (as measured by the standards set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b)), then College Board may seek applicable fee-shifting.
  2. Supplemental Arbitration Rules for the Score Validity Process ("Supplemental Arbitration Rules") If you receive a notice from College Board that your scores are subject to the Score Validity Process, you may be provided with the option to choose arbitration. In addition to the General Arbitration Rules, except as set forth herein, the below rules will apply. The sole issue for the arbitrator to decide is whether College Board acted in good faith and followed the Score Validity Process. This arbitration will be based only on (i) the documents you submitted to College Board pursuant to the Score Validity Process and (ii) College Board documents unless otherwise agreed by the parties or required by the arbitrator. If the arbitrator finds that College Board did not act in good faith in deciding to cancel your scores, your scores will not be canceled (or they will be reinstated, if applicable). All other disputes with College Board will be resolved solely by the General Arbitration Rules in Section 8(a) above, except as set forth herein.

Section 9. Governing Law, Venue and Waiver of Jury Trial

This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the state of New York without regard to choice or conflict of law principles. All disputes arising from or related to this Agreement that are not subject to arbitration under Section 8 shall be resolved exclusively in the state and federal courts located in New York County, New York State and each party to this Agreement irrevocably consents to the jurisdiction of such courts. Each Party expressly waives any right to a jury trial in any lawsuit arising from or related to this Agreement.

Section 10. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT FINALLY DETERMINED TO BE PROHIBITED BY LAW, THE TOTAL LIABLITY OF COLLEGE BOARD TO YOU OR ANYONE CLAIMING BY OR THROUGH YOU OR ON YOUR BEHALF, FOR ANY CLAIMS, LOSSES, COSTS, OR DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR RESULTING FROM OR IN ANY WAY RELATED TO COLLEGE BOARD, OR ANY TEST ADMINISTRATION BY COLLEGE BOARD, FROM ANY CAUSE, SHALL NOT EXCEED THE TEST REGISTRATION FEES YOU PAID OR $100.00, WHICHEVER IS GREATER. IN ADDITION, COLLEGE BOARD WILL NOT BE LIABLE IN ANY EVENT FOR ANY CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY, OR SPECIAL DAMAGES.

Section 11. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES

COLLEGE BOARD MAKES NO WARRANTIES REGARDING THE AP EXAM, EXAM CONTENT, OR TESTING APPLICATION INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION A WARRANTY THAT THE TESTING EXPERIENCE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE. YOU ACCEPT THE AP EXAM, EXAM CONTENT, AND TESTING APPLICATION AS IS.

Section 12. Severability

If any section or part of this Agreement is held to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable, the remaining sections or parts will nevertheless continue in full force and effect without being impaired or invalidated in any way and to the extent possible, the invalid, illegal, or unenforceable provision shall be modified so that it is valid, legal, and enforceable and, to the fullest extent, reflects the intention of the parties.

Section 13. Restricted Registrations

College Board, along with our service providers outside of the U.S., is subject to U.S. economic sanctions, laws, and regulations and is prohibited from providing testing services to, or accepting registrations from, persons residing in certain areas or designated by the U.S. government as Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (collectively, “Sanctioned Persons”), unless specifically licensed or otherwise authorized by the U.S. government. If a Sanctioned Person attempts to register despite U.S. sanctions that prohibit College Board from doing business with such Sanctioned Person, College Board or a U.S. financial institution may block the registration or payments submitted by or for such Sanctioned Persons. If payment is not blocked, College Board will cancel the registration and may not be able to refund the payment. Please contact AP Customer Service at 888-225-5427 (+1-212-632-1780 internationally) or visit home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/financial-sanctions/sanctions-programs-and-country-information to obtain the current list of sanctioned programs and Sanctioned Persons.

Section 14. Accessibility of These Terms and Conditions

If you have difficulty accessing these Terms and Conditions, including our policies and requirements, please contact AP Customer Service at 888-225-5427 (+1-212-632-1780 internationally) or fill out the AP Services for Students contact form in advance of registering for or taking the AP Exam. We will be happy to provide these Terms and Conditions in an alternative format or assist you in some other manner as reasonably necessary to enable you to access these Terms and Conditions.