Exam Overview
Get an overview of the exam structure.
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The AP Computer Science A exam assesses a student’s understanding of the computational thinking practices and learning objectives focused on throughout the course.
The exam is hours ( minutes) long. It includes:
- multiple choice questions
- free response questions
As part of the exam, students will be given the Java Quick Reference (see Appendix), which lists accessible methods from the Java library that may be included in the exam.
Weighting and timing
Section | Question Type | No of Questions | Exam Weighting | Timing |
I | Multiple Choice Questions | 40 | 50% | 90 minutes |
II | Free Response Questions | 4 | 90 minutes | |
Q1: Methods & Control Structures (9 points) | 12.5% | |||
Q2: Class (9 points) | 12.5% | |||
Q3: Array/ArrayList (9 points) | 12.5% | |||
Q4: 2D Array (9 points) | 12.5% |
The exam accesses content from the three big ideas for the course:
- Big Idea 1: Modularity
- Big Idea 2: Variables
- Big Idea 3: Control
The AP Exam also assesses each of the 10 units of the course with the following weighting on the multiple choice section:
Unit | Exam Weighting |
Unit 1: Primitive Types | 2.5 - 5 % |
Unit 2: Using Objects | 5 - 7.5 % |
Unit 3: Boolean Expressions and if Statements | 15 - 17.5 % |
Unit 4: Iteration | 17.5 - 22.5 % |
Unit 5: Writing Classes | 5 - 7 % |
Unit 6: Array | 10 - 15 % |
Unit 7: ArrayList | 2.5 - 7.5 % |
Unit 8: 2D Array | 7.5 - 10 % |
Unit 9: Inheritance | 5 - 10 % |
Unit 10: Recursion | 5 - 7.5 % |