Survey Results - College Board's Fall Registration Deadlines
In response to client requests, Total Registration surveyed schools regarding changes in the AP Exam process that the College Board piloted for the 2018 exam and is implementing for 800 schools in the 2019 exams. The College Board plans to make these changes mandatory for all schools in 2020.
1st Survey - CB Implementation Dates/Fees
Schools piloting the proposed changes expressed apprehension with the new dates/fees and requested a broader survey to see if other AP stakeholders verified their opinions. Thus, Total Registration surveyed 2600+ students, parents, teachers, administrators and AP coordinators about the proposed dates/fees. 90% of respondents disagreed with facets of the planned changes.
91.9% |
Thought students would not be able to assess their preparedness for a May AP Exam in November |
92.2% |
Thought the average student taking an AP Exam in May would not know which college they would attend nor the college’s credit policy in November | 78.7% |
Did not think families would be prepared to pay for May AP Exams in November |
92.8% |
Did not think their families would be comfortable with a $40.00/exam late fee starting in mid-November |
91.6% |
Did not think their families would be comfortable with a $40.00/exam cancellation fee for exams canceled after mid-November |
In the spirit of transparency, you can view the actual Fall Registration Poll results here. You may find it interesting to read through all the comments in the last question to really see what people think.
Do you still need to participate in the survey? You can take the quick poll here.
Based on these surprising responses, the question arose that if the College Board’s dates and fees are egregious to AP constituents, as clearly indicated by the results, then what AP dates/fees would the schools choose on behalf of their students, families, and staff?
2nd Survey - Ideal Dates/Fees
A second survey asked schools to indicate their ideal date/fee structure in an open-ended format, where schools could freely choose their options. Not surprisingly, the results contrasted sharply from those being currently implemented by the College Board.
- The majority of schools opted for February (36.5%), January (25.2%) and March (20.3%) as the ideal date to begin AP Exam Registration.
- The majority of schools indicated that March (51.9%), February (20.46%) and April (16.2%) as the ideal deadline for AP Exam Registration.
- The majority of schools thought the ideal deadline for students to cancel an AP Exam and receive a full refund was Apri (42.8%), March (36.1%) and January ( 7.7%)
- The majority of schools thought the ideal date to start assessing a late fee to be in April (38.7%), March (38.3%) and February (11.4%)
In the spirit of transparency, you can view the actual Ideal AP Registration Dates survey results here. We found the diversity of the free response comments very enlightening, we encourage to read through them when you get a chance.
You can respond to the Ideal AP Registration Dates survey here if you have not yet done so.
Why the discrepancy?
We asked schools to speculate as to why there was such a large discrepancy between what the school stated was their ideal with respect to dates/fees and the College Board’s dates/fees that are being implemented. What rationale could explain why the College Board would be planning to force schools to a date/time schedule that is not in their best interest? Two responses comprised the majority of comments:
- 41.4% - To make more money for The College Board
- 27.7% - The second most common response was literally "I don't know"
Next Up . . . Follow the Money
Perhaps the College Board has a legitimate need for additional funding in order to bear the costs of the changes for the 2019-2020 exams. As schools suggested, this might explain the justification for the College Board to enforce dates/fees that are very different from what schools would choose for themselves.
At the request of client schools, Total Registration will take the next couple of days to examine the College Board’s government filings to see if, in fact, they are facing a budgetary crisis or financial hardship that would support the need for changes to increase their monetary gain from AP exams. We will report on the findings in a subsequent email. Stay tuned… Learn about the College Board's Finances.
Worried About the Changes? Take Action!
Many AP Stake Holders are expressing their concerns regarding the changes by signing and circulating petition, https://www.change.org/p/demand-the-college-board-not-mandate-fall-ap-exam-requirements-and-deadlines
Testimonial
This was my second year as the AP Coordinator and I love Total Registration! I would not have made it through my first year without using TR, and I found I needed it just as much this year. Everything works—the student registration is so easy, Total Registration collects all the money and our business office loves that part! All of the reports are very helpful, including room rosters and seating charts to print. TR also sends reminders about due dates, like when to order the tests! Everything to keep me on track. The service also emails and texts the students and parents their exam schedules as a reminder. Customer service is excellent, I always hear back within an hour or so to get answers to my questions, and they are always trying to make things easier for us. I will only run my AP exams with Total Registration!
THANK YOU TO THE AMAZING TR TEAM. It was a crazy run to the finish line and November 15th. There is absolutely NO WAY I could have pulled it off without Total Registration. You are always one step ahead of what we (AP Coordinators) need. The final CB to TR reconciliation step is so synchronized that I was able to hit SUBMIT hours before the CB deadline.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.
Having the answer sheets pre-printed eliminated hours of pre-admin sessions, as well as eliminating incomplete answer sheets. The big and small labels were so helpful - we purchased a bar code scanner and scanned all of our AP numbers into TR.
I am in my third year with TR, and I am still discovering new ways to make my job easier through the system. The support staff is constantly helpful and patient. I cannot believe the ease with which I am able to organize this AP project. You never asked about registration before TR and the hours we spent having students register with paper registrations and collecting money and recording the registrations, counting and recounting before ordering. Cancellations involved writing up a refund from the business office, and alternate tests involved collecting more money. It is almost painful to remember those awful days 4 years ago.
Thank you to the entire TR team for being so quick to respond to questions and help me throughout this process. It was our first year using Total Registration to collect money, and the process was so incredibly smooth. The website itself is a bit overwhelming, trying to navigate. But whenever I had a question, I had my answer within moments. Thank you for providing such an invaluable service to schools! Last year, I spent HOURS changing fees and tracking down students and trying to get them to pay for the tests they ordered. This year? 0 minutes. Once the November deadline passed, I have only had to talk to a handful of kids about special circumstances. And because of the posted refund policy, I have not had parents complaining about paying for tests their students didn't take, etc. I will be highly recommending Total Registration to whoever takes over the AP Coordinator position at my school next year - you really helped make the process easy!