Federal Money Will Help Cover AP Tests For Low-Income Students

The U.S. Department of Education announced Wednesday it had awarded $28.4 million in grants to 38 states, including Indiana, to help defray the costs of Advanced Placement (AP) tests, specifically those taken by low-income students.

The feds gave the Hoosier state $307,618, which should cover the cost of the anticipated amount of tests to be taken by historically underserved students.

Nationally, those figures are increasing. The number of tests covered by the program in 2015 was 831,913 – up from 768,772 the year prior, an improvement of more than seven percent.

More than 72,000 Hoosier students took one or more AP tests in 2014. (Photo Credit: Jessie/Flickr)

John King, senior advisor of deputy U.S. secretary of education, says the goal of the subsidy program is to encourage low-income students to take AP tests, which often allows them to earn college credit while still in high school. He says this can also reduce the time and cost necessary to get a college degree.

“We all know how important Advanced Placement courses are in schools. We also know that for historically underserved students, the cost of the exams can be a significant obstacle,” King said on a phone call with reporters Wednesday. “This grant program are about ensuring access to opportunity for all students, regardless of their family’s income. We want to see a college-going culture in schools that includes all of our students.”

In total, about 2.3 million students took an AP test in spring 2014; Indiana accounted for 72,958 of those kids. State and national score data for 2015 exams will be available this fall.

King says a significant share of the students covered by the grants identify as African American and Latino. Gaps exist in participation rates between students from these ethnic groups and their white counterparts: in 2014, for example, 25 percent of Hispanic male students took part in an AP program, as opposed to 35 percent of white males.

Data provided that same year by students taking AP exams in Indiana paints a similar portrait of disparity:

• 3,851 African-American
• 4,093 Latino (Mexican American, Puerto Rican, or Other Hispanic)
• 57,252 White

“One of the things we worry about is inequitable access to AP courses for low-income students as well as students of color,” King says. “Our hope is that this program, supplemented by state efforts, will help to close this gap.”

The feds anticipate the grants will pay for all but $12 of the cost of each advanced placement test taken by low-income students. Individual states may opt to require students to pay a portion of the costs.

In 2015, each individual AP Exam cost $91, with schools retaining an $9 rebate per exam. The College Board – the group that administers AP tests, along with the International Baccalaureate Organization and Cambridge International Examinations – provided students from low-income families a $29 fee reduction for each exam they took.

Indiana covered part or all of the cost of the exams for two categories of students this year:

• Category 1: Low-income students who qualified for the College Board’s fee reduction, but who are taking an AP exam not listed in Category 2. For these students, Indiana uses federal and state funds to pay $53 per test for students qualifying for the fee reduction.
• Category 2: 11th and 12th grade students taking Math and Science AP exams. For these students, Indiana uses state funds to cover the entire cost of each test.

Students in both categories must complete the respective AP course to be eligible for fee assistance.

State code exempts students who qualify for free or reduced price lunch from paying any exam fees.