General Information

AP Biology Exam
General Information

      Purpose - to assess your knowledge of biology after one year of a college-level course

     Content - basically anything and everything covered in the year-long biology curriculum is fair game, but there are three main areas tested
          1. Molecules and Cells (25%)
          2. Heredity and Evolution (25%)
          3. Organisms and Populations (50%)

     Structure - two different sections are included in this three-hour exam
          1. 120 multiple choice questions over a 90-minute time span
          2. Four essay questions over a 90-minute time span

     Scoring - scores are given over a range of one through five
          1. A score of 4 or 5 is considered exceptional and shows knowledge comparable to that obtained after an introductory college course
          2. A score of 3 is considered average and is the minimum passing score
          3. A score of 1 or 2 is considered poor
          4. Multiple Choice questions account for 60% of the Raw Points available. One point is awarded for each correct answer; whereas 1/4 point is subtracted for each incorrect answer.
          5. Essay questions account for 40% of the Raw Points available.