Indiana Students Continue Graduating Better Prepared for College as AP Exams Offered, Taken, and Passed Increases Again

Better Prepared for College

In partnership with the College Board and the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE), the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) announced today another year of increases in the number of Advanced Placement (AP) exams offered, taken, and passed.

“Preparing students for success beyond high school is a priority for Indiana’s K-12 education system,” said Dr. Jennifer McCormick, Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction. “The continual increase in the number of schools offering AP exams, and the number of students passing exams shows once more Indiana is preparing students for the rigors of post-secondary experiences. We have the responsibility to aid in the preparation of students for their next four decades not just their next four years beyond high school. I congratulate and thank the teachers, administrators, students, and partners whose work has made this possible.”
 
AP is a research-based method to facilitate student participation and success through delivery of college-level courses and corresponding exams in the high school setting, to qualified high school students. Research suggests students who perform well in AP courses are predicted to not only outperform their peers, but have greater college success. For the 2017-2018 school year, Indiana reported the following increases:

• For the 2018 graduating class, 25,892 Indiana public school students took an AP exam, compared to 24,659 in the class of 2017.
• Since 2008, the percentage of Indiana public school graduates taking an AP exam during high school increased from 20.0 percent to 38.9 percent.
• In the past 10 years, the number of Indiana public school students scoring 3 or better on at least one AP exam has increased from 6,284 to 13,403.
• In the past three years, the number of Indiana public school students scoring 3 or better on at least one AP exam has increased 12.6 percent. 

“Our recent datashow more Hoosier high school students are earning early college credit through AP and dual credit courses than ever before,” said Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education Teresa Lubbers. “We are encouraged by this trend, as early college credit leads to higher success rates and cost savings for students and the state.”
 
For more information regarding IDOE efforts to expand AP in Indiana schools, and for AP related data, please visit: www.doe.in.gov/ap.
 
For more information regarding early college credit data, please visit: www.in.gov/che.