How much does it cost to participate?

Professional learning fees:
- Pilot 2 teachers are required to attend a week-long Career Kickstart Summer Institute during the summer 2025.
- Registration costs $900 per attendee. Registration fees are typically a qualified use of multiple state and federal funding sources.
- College Board will cover the cost of lodging for Career Kickstart Summer Institute participants in summer 2025.
- There are no additional fees for teachers to participate in the Career Kickstart pilots.
Exam fees:
- Pilot 1: There are no exam fees for 2024-25.
- Pilot 2: For 2025-26, the Career Kickstart Exam fee will be the same as for that year’s standard AP Exams. This includes fee reductions for eligible students and applicable school rebates. AP Exam fees are set and published the prior July each year so fees for 2025-26 are not yet known. For reference, schools will pay $99 for AP Exams in 2024-25, with a $9 rebate for every exam plus an additional $37 reduction for every exam taken by a low-income student.
As a pilot program, Career Kickstart is exploring various state and federal funding options to support students, schools, districts, and states in the future. State subsidies in place for AP Exams in 2025 may not be applicable to Career Kickstart Exams in 2025.
All states and districts have access to CTE funding sources, and the Career Kickstart program will work with schools and districts to identify available sources of funding support to minimize or eliminate students paying out-of-pocket for exam fees.