What Students Need to Know About AP Exams

It’s important that students bring only the items permitted in the exam room. A student observed with any of the prohibited items during testing or breaks may be dismissed from the exam, the device may be confiscated, the student’s score may be canceled, and no retest may be permitted.

Note: Depending on the type of exam a student is taking (fully digital, hybrid digital, or AP Exams not in Bluebook), there are differences between what a student can and cannot bring to the exam room. 

Important: For digital AP Exams (fully digital and hybrid digital) on exam day, students need to remember their College Board student account information to sign in to Bluebook™ to access their digital AP Exam. Saving their password on their device won’t work. 

Students Should Bring

• A watch that isn’t a smartwatch.
• A government-issued or school-issued photo ID if they don’t attend the school where they’re taking the exam.
• For exams that allow the use of calculators: Students can bring up to 2 approved calculators with the necessary capabilities. (Note: The Desmos built-in calculator is also available as an option in Bluebook for these exams.)
• For AP Physics Exams: Students can bring a ruler or a straightedge.
• Pencils or pens.
  • For fully digital AP Exams and AP Chinese and AP Japanese Exams: Students should bring pencils or pens for taking notes on school-provided scratch paper.
  • For hybrid digital AP Exams: Students should bring 2 No. 2 pencils (with erasers) or 2 pens with black or dark blue ink to write in the free-response booklet.
  • For AP French, German, Italian, and Spanish Language and Culture, AP Spanish Literature and Culture, and AP Music Theory: Students should bring 2 sharpened No. 2 pencils (with erasers) for the multiple-choice answer sheet and 2 pens with black or dark blue ink for completing areas on the exam booklet covers and for free-response questions.

For All Digital AP Exams (fully digital and hybrid digital):

• Fully charged testing device with Bluebook installed.
• Charging cord/AC adapter that’s compatible with their testing device.
• External devices.
  • External mouse (optional)*.
  • External keyboard*: An external keyboard is required for students taking a fully digital AP Exam on a tablet. For students taking a hybrid digital AP Exam on a tablet, an external keyboard is recommended but not required. External keyboards are not permitted for students testing on a laptop.
  • Power banks and external laptop batteries are permitted. Students will need to leave any external power source on their desk for inspection prior to the start of the exam. Students may not share external power sources.

*Bluetooth external devices are approved in these scenarios. Bluetooth external keyboards and mice must be fully charged to last the duration of the exam.

Students Must Not Bring*

• Electronic equipment of any kind (except approved devices being used for the exam). Prohibited electronic equipment includes: phones, smartwatches, smart glasses or wearable technology of any kind, laptops, tablet computers, Bluetooth devices**, portable listening or recording devices, cameras or other photographic equipment, devices that can access the internet, separate timers of any type, and any other electronic or communication devices.
• All stylus pens, Apple pens, smart pens, iPad pencils, and other electronic writing instruments.
• Books, notebooks, compasses, correction fluid, dictionaries, highlighters, or notes.
• Mechanical pencils, No. 3 pencils, or colored pencils.
• Rulers or straightedges (these are allowed only for Physics exams).
• Protractors.
• Scratch paper.
• Computers or calculators (except as previously noted).
• Reference guides, keyboard maps, or other typing instructions.
• Watches that beep or have an alarm.
• Food or drink.
• Clothing or shoes with subject-related information.
• Head coverings (hats, brimmed caps, etc.) are not permitted while testing. Head coverings worn for medical or religious reasons are permitted during testing provided they do not obstruct testing staff’s ability to view the test taker’s eyes and ears.
• Ear plugs or headphones.
• Clipboards.
• Privacy screens.
• Separate computer monitors. 

*Unless an item has been preapproved as an accommodation by the College Board SSD office before the exam date. 

**Bluetooth devices are permitted only in the following scenarios: Bluetooth external keyboards for students taking digital AP Exams on tablets; Bluetooth external mice for all digital AP Exams.