Speaking Mandarin: AP Program Grows, Goes Global

High school students used to dread strenuous exams and difficult material. Now many teenagers are volunteering for college-level classes to get a head start on their higher education.
A record number of ambitious high school students attempted to qualify for college credit in 2012, with courses in Chinese Language & Culture and Computer Science receiving the highest crop of new students. Collegeboard.com's annual research report revealed that students took 574,567 tests in 2012, which is 50,000 more tests than were taken in 2011. That number has grown every year since the Advanced Placement (AP) program's inception, but last year marked the largest jump since 2009.
College Board's AP data offers a snapshot of students today and a projection of education in the future. Dive into the numbers and see what's next.

Foreign Flavor

Here's a long-running joke: What do you call a person who only speaks one language? Answer: an American. The U.S. is a melting pot, but its native citizens have been slow to adopt new languages. AP courses give students the chance to catch up with much of the rest of the world, offering exams in an array of languages, including Spanish, French, German, Japanese and the current trending dialect: Mandarin Chinese.
The number of students that took the Chinese language AP exam rose 17 percent in 2012, which is more than any other language, according to Collegeboard.com. This marks the fifth straight year that the Chinese language has boasted the highest growth. Call it globalization or the world shrinking, but high school students are savvy to the ever-growing connection between the U.S. and China.

Classic Classes

It wasn't just trendy subjects that contributed to the overall AP growth in 2012. Economics, Calculus, English and World History all grew by at least six percent. Test-taking in all of those subjects has risen each of the last 10 years, so it's clear that while some subjects are on a faster ascent, the AP program as a whole is on the rise. The number of schools offering AP exams rose by just two percent in 2012, while total tests rose by seven percent.

AP Log-In

Most students are fluent in all-things computer, but AP courses are giving students a formal foundation in the virtual world. Computer Science was the largest growing subject in 2012, with an 18 percent increase from 2011. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the computer software industry is projected to grow faster than average through 2020, so these tech-savvy high school students are setting themselves up for the future. In 2013, College Board is making a 21st-century shift itself, offering AP scores online for the first time.

College Fever

The University of Texas - Austin received 33,139 AP scores, more than any other college or university. Large public universities dominated the top 10 list of schools that received the most AP scores. As students gain college credit in high school, they lower the cost of college. Each AP exam costs $89, which is well below the price for a three-credit class at most colleges.
Whether it is to save money down the road or avoid lower-level classes, students are jumping at the chance to start college early. That enthusiasm is sure to carry them to better and brighter opportunities.