It’s that season again– exam season! With AP’s looming around the corner, students taking these Advanced Placement classes may feel panic starting to set in. These exams feel like they’re in another universe when you compare them to your quizzes at school. The stakes feel higher, the questions get harder, and the tests get longer, with students required to follow a strict time limit for each question in order to finish the exam. Preparation for AP exams eats up hours of your time, with some students beginning their studying months in advance.
If test day is starting to feel a little too soon, too close for comfort, here’s a list of resources you can refer to for extra practice or clarification. Most of these resources are general, while others are specific to a certain course.
The Obvious Choice: AP Classroom & Bluebook
Link: AP Classroom
I know if seems obvious, and most of you may be rolling your eyes right now, but it’ll surprise you to find out about how many new AP students overlook AP Classroom and Bluebook for practice. Bluebook’s comprehensive full-length practice tests are perfect for last-minute cramming before your exam, and may be the most helpful/accurate resource for your studying. Additionally, College Board also posts past papers and free-response questions for you to try. What better place to get AP study materials from than College Board, the organization that creates the exams?
The Godsend: Khan Academy
Link: https://blog.khanacademy.org/khan-academy-is-the-official-practice-partner-for/
Khan Academy is truly a life-saver for every student, no matter how old. With lessons on everything from finances to grammar, it’s no surprising that they offer AP courses too. If you’re feeling swamped with your practice, try some of Khan Academy’s short quizzes, which are usually around 4 questions and perfect for a quick, low-stakes refresher. Unit tests for each unit, as well as videos with detailed explanations on each concept are available for you to access for free as well. As a bonus, you can collect points based on how much practice you do, and level up your cool avatars as well 😉
An Underrated Platform: Knowt
Link: https://knowt.com/exams/AP
A personal favourite of mine, Knowt is a platform that offers the services of multiple study apps and flashcard tools in one place. With lengthy AP reviews and flashcards available for you to browse, Knowt is the Duolingo of studying. They offer resources in most AP courses, from flashcards to cheat sheets, and “must-memorize” lists. If you’re feeling stuck, you can use one of the “Knowt Ultimate Guides” for your AP course for help.
Our Collective Savior: The Organic Chemistry Tutor
Link (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@TheOrganicChemistryTutor
For the average highschool student, the Organic Chemistry Tutor is our go-to YouTuber for anything and everything. With exhaustive videos on mathematics, chemistry, physics, and more, his teaching style and worked-out problems make complex concepts seem manageable. His lessons are detailed and address every potential question you may have, making his videos great for a quick review of concepts.
Everything Science: Bozeman Science
Link: https://www.bozemanscience.com/
Paul Andersen at Bozeman Science may seem familiar to you, as his videos are usually the ones teachers play in class to further explain a concept. He offers thorough videos on AP Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Environmental Science, and content on Statistics as well. I highly recommend his videos for detailed explanations with clarity. His website offers resources on several other non-AP courses as well, which I highly recommend.
Improve Your Writing: Quill
Link: https://www.quill.org/ap
Quill is a great website for those of you writing essays for your AP exam. This tool provides constructive feedback and lots of resources to give you the opportunity to improve your writing. You can stimulate the test environment and practice writing with a time limit using this platform, allowing you to get better at essay writing faster.
For Insider-Advice & Hacks: Reddit
Whether you’re on r/APChem like me, or r/APStats, there’s a Reddit forum for everything. Although it’s not a reliable source of information, lots of gracious students who survived AP exams make posts with advice and resources that helped them with their studying. These Reddit threads can be helpful as they contain personal experiences, allowing you to see what worked for other students like you. Some students post questions they have about the concepts, which are answered by the AP veterans, which can be helpful to read through. As long as you make sure you’re careful with what you post and read, you’ll find Reddit very helpful!
For History, Literature, Psychology, and Geography: Marco Learning
Link: https://marcolearning.com/students/ap-study-guides/
Marco Learning provides free study guides for all the English, Literature, History, and Psychology AP courses. Although an initial step of making an account must be completed
Aesthetic Study Guides: Naeha’s Active Recall Guides
Link: https://www.apactiverecall.com/
I LOVE this website and its aesthetics, everything is super easy to navigate. and the study guides are both clear and comprehensive. This website offers active recall guides for AP courses like AP Gov, APUSH, AP Psych, and AP Human Geography. I highly recommend using the study guides for last minute cramming before your exam!
The Lifesaver: MahadTheMentor AP Guide
Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nciTvBjgy6046nihfJ_URzAzqgJngIuAbJx-jcFx3Ks/edit?tab=t.0
You’ll thank me (and MahadTheMentor) later. No matter what AP course you’re doing, you’ll find something useful from this document!
Conclusion
For extra study resources, refer to the videos and study guides above, but make sure you continue to utilize the AP Classroom resources as well, as they are ultimately the best tools for exam preparation. You’re getting a 5 on this exam, I know it!
Good luck!