The AP ® U.S. History exam, also known as APUSH, is a college-level exam administered every year in May upon the completion of an Advanced Placement U.S. History course taken at your high school. If you score high enough, you could earn college credit!
Check out our AP U.S. History Guide for the essential info you need about the exam:
The College Board requires your AP teacher to cover certain topics in the AP U.S. History course. As you complete your APUSH review, make sure you are familiar with the following topics:
The APUSH exam takes 3 hours and 15 minutes to complete and is comprised of two sections: a multiple-choice/short answer section and a a free response section. There are two parts to each section.
Timing |
Number of Questions |
Exam Weighting |
|
Section 1 |
Part A: 55 minutes |
55 multiple-choice questions |
40% |
Section 2 |
Part A: 60 minutes (including 15-minute reading period) |
1 document-based question |
25% |
Questions are grouped into sets of three or four questions and based on a primary source, secondary source, or historical issue. Each set of questions is based on a different piece of source material. This section will test your ability to analyze and engage with the source materials while recalling what you already know about U.S. history.
The three questions in this section will be tied to a primary source, historical argument, data or maps, or general propositions of U.S. history. Students are required to answer the first and second questions and then answer either the third or the fourth question. You are not required to develop and support a thesis statement, but you must describe examples of historical evidence relevant to the source or question.
The DBQ question requires you to answer a question based on seven primary source documents and your knowledge of the subject and time period. All the documents will pertain to a single subject. Students should develop an argument about the question and use the documents to support this argument.
For the long essay question, you’ll be given a choice of three essay options on the same theme, and you must choose one. You must develop and defend a relevant thesis, but there won’t be any documents on which you must base your response. Instead, you’ll need to draw upon your own knowledge of topics you learned in your AP U.S. History class.
For a comprehensive content review, check out our book, AP U.S. History Prep
AP scores are reported from 1 to 5. Colleges are generally looking for a 4 or 5 on the AP U.S. History exam, but some may grant credit for a 3. Here’s how students scored on the May 2020 test:
APUSH Score |
Meaning |
Percentage of Test Takers |
5 |
Extremely qualified |
10.8% |
4 |
Well qualified |
15.6% |
3 |
Qualified |
21.9% |
2 |
Possibly qualified |
23.0% |
1 |
No recommendation |
28.8% |
Source: College Board
AP classes are great, but for many students they’re not enough! For a thorough review of AP U.S. History content and strategy, pick the AP prep option that works best for your goals and learning style.
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