Getting a 5 on AP Computer Science A: A High Schooler's Guide
The Computer Science A exam is the hardest computer science exam offered by CollegeBoard. While almost 50% (47.7%) of testers score at least a 4 on the exam, a sizable chunk (32.5%) score below a 3. At the same time, to most somewhat proficient coders, it shouldn’t be a problem whatsoever.
In any case, here’s my guide to getting a 5 on AP Computer Science A (written by a high schooler)!
A High Schooler’s Guide to Getting a 5 on AP Computer Science A
EXAM STRUCTURE
The exam is a total of 2 sections, each worth half of your final AP score.
Section 1: 40 Multiple Choice Questions (1 hour 30 minutes)
Section 2: 4 Free-Response Questions (1 hour 30 minutes)
From the CollegeBoard website, the exam covers primitive types, objects, Boolean expressions, if statements, iteration, classes, array, arraylist, 2D arrays, inheritance, and recursion.
On test day, you’ll get four packets, two of which are in shrink wrap. The first two packets are the multiple choice question packet and multiple choice answer packet. The multiple choice answer packet (which really is just a two-page affair) is where you’ll do much of the identification (bubbling in test ID, name, etc).
The free-response question packet and free-response answers packet are in the shrink wrap for security reasons. You’ll only be allowed to open the shrink wrap after the multiple choice section and the break.
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PREPARING FOR THE MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
In my opinion, this is the easier portion of the exam. 90 minutes means you should aim for a question every 2 minutes. In practice, some questions can be answered in half a second while others require a significant bit of reasoning (especially recursion).
If you have the content of this exam down, move straight to practicing multiple choice questions. Have your teacher release all the practice problems available on AP Classroom if possible.
If not, you’re a relative beginner to coding, and you are self-studying for this exam, this is going to be somewhat difficult. I’d suggest finding a study buddy or teacher who understands the theory, or find a copy of a prep book. Some of the logic-heavy questions of this exam are rather difficult if you don’t have the previous experience in Java. In my experience, I found sorting involving actual code and recursion questions the trickiest and most tiring to do. Allow yourself to take more time on these questions.
PREPARING FOR THE FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS
This is the more RNG (random number generator) portion of the exam. Some free-response questions are simply worded strangely and are quite harder than the other three. In any case, expect to spend roughly 20 minutes on each question.
Each question has a few parts, labeled A, B, and so on. Expect 1–3 parts to a question. Also, expect to get a 2D array question, a class design question, and a question that uses the Random class. This has been consistent through every exam.
Don’t worry about doing the questions in order. The answer packet has specific places to bubble the question number.
Don’t use outside classes that are not explicitly given in the AP exam reference sheet. Even for experienced coders, it’s a good idea to go over exactly what is on the reference sheet. All free-response questions can be answered with only what is found on the sheet. Ideally, you should know the reference sheet well enough to not need it during the exam.
The best way to prepare for this part of the exam is to first learn the syntax (or coding in general) by creating some projects. Our school used Greenfoot, which I’d recommend as well. If AP Computer Science A is going to be the extent of your computer science education, Greenfoot is really the extent of what you need.
However if you’re somewhat experienced and are looking for something with more options, I’d suggest Visual Studio Code. It has support for much more languages and offers better syncing abilities, besides many other features.
I’m not a big fan of the CollegeBoard’s Magpie, Elevens, and Picture labs, and I suspect many other students will feel the same way. If you don’t have any lab ideas, I’d suggest actually looking at free-response question samples, and try implementing those instead.
After learning syntax, algorithms, and class structure, the next thing to do is to practice sample free response questions, released on the CollegeBoard website. I’d recommend doing all of these on-paper because the experience is quite different from normal typing/coding. Make sure to self-grade with the given rubrics.
Remember, your one goal during the test-taking period is to get the most points possible. Take advantage of anything (legal) that can help you get points. On suggestion is to obey the conventional indentation rules. Even though Java doesn’t require proper indentation to compile, it’s much nicer for the reader, and you want to be nice to them :)
The score breakdown for every year should also be released. From there, you can see how much you would have needed on the multiple-choice section that year to get your desired score.
Last-Minute AP CS A Exam Tips
For all my AP exams, I like to bring:
an analog watch to keep track of time on my desk in case the proctors don’t have a clock ready,
a plastic water bottle with label removed,
a few pens usually ballpoint,
and a few sharpened and a few blunt pencils. The sharpened pencils are for free response questions, while the blunt pencils are for bubbling in multiple choice.
Know how your high school conducts AP tests. My high school, we were not allowed to go to the restrooms during the test, but could go during the break between the multiple choice and free-response question sections. Clocks were on the wall but were somewhat far and hard to see given how big the testing room was.
Congrats on making it this far! If you’re still reading, that means you’re motivated to score well on this exam, and that’s already 90% of the battle. Good luck on the exam!
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