The College Board is a fraudulent, thieving organization.
The College Board charges $89 for students to take a test in order to receive college and AP credit. The problem is that in its mission statement, the College Board defines itself as a nonprofit. Its Communications coordinator, Katherine Levin, claims the Board does everything in its power to keep the costs down, explaining that the Board waives $70 million in fees every year.
As public school students, we are supposed to have an affordable education. Charging such a high price for the exams discourages students who are interested in learning at the highest level.
Further, the fact that we are obligated to take AP tests in order receive a GPA bump is problematic. Students take extremely challenging classes and work hard all year, only to be mandated to pay a large sum of money in order to receive the credit that they deserve. This is unfair and elitist.
According to New York Times, many desirable colleges will not consider students who do not take at least two Advanced Placement (AP) credits per year. In other words, get ready to pony up $178 dollars per year if you hope to be admitted.
Even if students do foot the bill for numerous tests, most academically inclined schools accept only scores of four and above. Many elite schools that AP students aim to attend don’t accept AP credit at all.
According to Newsweek, ETHS’ average 2013 AP score was 3.2, meaning the average person taking an AP test would receive no college credit for the $89 fee.
Levin justifies the tests, pointing to the fact that students who receive a three or higher are more likely to graduate college. This is an obvious correlation; of course students who do well on tests hold the advantage in college. However, correlation is not causation, and this is no justification for demanding that students take AP tests.
Evanston can easily fix this problem. Ceasing to require students to take AP tests in order to receive the GPA bump would prevent the College Board from taking money from students. Those who are looking for college credit would still able to take the tests, but would not be required to do so. The school would lose nothing, while students would save money.