Survey Results - College Board's Fall Registration Deadlines

In response to client requests, Total Registration surveyed schools regarding changes in the AP Exam process that the College Board piloted for the 2018 exam and is implementing for 800 schools in the 2019 exams. The College Board plans to make these changes mandatory for all schools in 2020.

1st Survey - CB Implementation Dates/Fees

Schools piloting the proposed changes expressed apprehension with the new dates/fees and requested a broader survey to see if other AP stakeholders verified their opinions.  Thus, Total Registration surveyed 2600+ students, parents, teachers, administrators and AP coordinators about the proposed dates/fees.  90% of respondents disagreed with facets of the planned changes. 

91.9%	Thought students would not be able to assess their preparedness for a May AP Exam in November
92.2%	Thought the average student taking an AP Exam in May would not know which college they would attend nor the college’s credit policy in November
78.7%	Did not think families would be prepared to pay for May AP Exams in November
92.8%	Did not think their families would be comfortable with a $40.00/exam late fee starting in mid-November
91.6%	Did not think their families would be comfortable with a $40.00/exam cancellation fee for exams canceled after mid-November

In the spirit of transparency, you can view the actual Fall Registration Poll results here. You may find it interesting to read through all the comments in the last question to really see what people think. 

Do you still need to participate in the survey?  You can take the quick poll here.

Based on these surprising responses, the question arose that if the College Board’s dates and fees are egregious to AP constituents, as clearly indicated by the results, then what AP dates/fees would the schools choose on behalf of their students, families, and staff?

2nd Survey - Ideal Dates/Fees

A second survey asked schools to indicate their ideal date/fee structure in an open-ended format, where schools could freely choose their options. Not surprisingly, the results contrasted sharply from those being currently implemented by the College Board.

• The majority of schools opted for February (36.5%), January (25.2%) and March (20.3%) as the ideal date to begin AP Exam Registration.
• The majority of schools indicated that March (51.9%), February (20.46%) and April (16.2%) as the ideal deadline for AP Exam Registration.
• The majority of schools thought the ideal deadline for students to cancel an AP Exam and receive a full refund was Apri (42.8%), March (36.1%) and January ( 7.7%) 
• The majority of schools thought the ideal date to start assessing a late fee to be in April (38.7%), March (38.3%) and February (11.4%)

In the spirit of transparency, you can view the actual Ideal AP Registration Dates survey results here.  We found the diversity of the free response comments very enlightening, we encourage to read through them when you get a chance.  

You can respond to the Ideal AP Registration Dates survey here if you have not yet done so.

Why the discrepancy?

We asked schools to speculate as to why there was such a large discrepancy between what the school stated was their ideal with respect to dates/fees and the College Board’s dates/fees that are being implemented. What rationale could explain why the College Board would be planning to force schools to a date/time schedule that is not in their best interest?  Two responses comprised the majority of comments:

• 41.4% - To make more money for The College Board
• 27.7% - The second most common response was literally "I don't know"

Next Up . . . Follow the Money

Perhaps the College Board has a legitimate need for additional funding in order to bear the costs of the changes for the 2019-2020 exams. As schools suggested, this might explain the justification for the College Board to enforce dates/fees that are very different from what schools would choose for themselves.

At the request of client schools, Total Registration will take the next couple of days to examine the College Board’s government filings to see if, in fact, they are facing a budgetary crisis or financial hardship that would support the need for changes to increase their monetary gain from AP exams. We will report on the findings in a subsequent email. Stay tuned… Learn about the College Board's Finances.

Worried About the Changes? Take Action!

Many AP Stake Holders are expressing their concerns regarding the changes by signing and circulating petition, https://www.change.org/p/demand-the-college-board-not-mandate-fall-ap-exam-requirements-and-deadlines

Sign the Petition!