AP Chinese Language and Culture

Logo of AP Chinese Language and Culture as of 2026

Advanced Placement (AP) Chinese Language and Culture (commonly known as AP Chinese) is a course and exam offered by the College Board as a part of the Advanced Placement Program in the United States. It requires proficiencies throughout the Intermediate range as described in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines. The course interweaves language and culture learning and is conducted mostly in Mandarin Chinese. The first AP Chinese courses were offered worldwide in the fall of 2006, followed by the exam in May 2007.

Topic outline

The course consists of six units, covering key topics relevant to both the coursework and the exam.

Units
Families and Communities
Language and Culture
Art and Creativity
Science and Technology
Contemporary Life
Global Contexts

Exam

The AP Chinese Language and Culture Exam is approximately 1 hour and 50 minutes in length. It assesses Interpersonal, Interpretive, and Presentational communication skills in Mandarin Chinese, along with knowledge of Chinese culture.

Section I consists of free-response questions.

Section II, consists of multiple-choice questions.

Grade distribution

The AP Chinese Language and Culture exam consistently has the highest percentage of 5 scores out of all AP tests, likely attributed to fluent Chinese speakers taking the exam for credit. The exception is in 2022, when the AP Japanese Language and Culture exam narrowly had a higher 5-rate by 0.5 percentage points. The 5-rate for the Chinese exam, on average, steadily declined as the years passed[original research?]. The grade distributions since the exam's debut in 2007 were:

Score 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
5 81.0% 85.5% 81.5% 76.7% 72.3% 71.1% 69.7% 68.5% 65.3% 62.8% 68.4% 66.1% 60.1% 55.4% 57.2% 49.3% 54.2% 53.3% 54.8% 48.0%
4 11.8% 8.1% 9.8% 13.2% 13.9% 13.2% 14.6% 14.4% 16.0% 16.4% 11.3% 12.2% 14.9% 15.5% 15.5% 19.6% 18.8% 19.4% 18.2% 19.0%
3 4.5% 4.7% 6.0% 6.6% 9.2% 10.9% 10.7% 11.6% 11.8% 14.4% 12.5% 13.0% 14.8% 17.9% 15.5% 18.0% 15.4% 15.9% 16.1% 18.0%
2 1.1% 0.8% 1.0% 1.5% 2.1% 2.3% 2.3% 2.8% 3.1% 2.7% 3.3% 3.7% 4.0% 5.1% 4.6% 5.3% 5.0% 4.9% 4.6% 60.%
1 1.5% 1.0% 1.7% 2.0% 2.5% 2.5% 2.8% 2.7% 3.9% 3.7% 4.5% 5.0% 6.2% 6.1% 7.1% 7.8% 6.6% 6.5% 6.2% 9.0%
% of Scores 3 or Higher 97.3% 98.3% 97.4% 96.5% 95.4% 95.2% 95.0% 94.5% 93.0% 93.7% 92.2% 91.3% 89.8% 88.7% 88.2% 86.9% 88.4% 88.5% 89.2% 85.0%
Mean 4.70 4.76 4.69 4.61 4.51 4.48 4.46 4.43 4.36 4.32 4.36 4.31 4.19 4.09 4.11 3.97 4.09 4.08 4.11
Standard Deviation 0.74 0.67 0.77 0.84 0.93 0.95 0.97 0.98 1.06 1.05 1.10 1.14 1.20 1.22 1.24 1.26 1.22 1.21 1.20
Number of Students 3,261 4,311 5,100 6,388 7,970 9,357 10,121 10,728 11,633 12,524 13,091 13,825 13,853 14,663 13,122 15,277 16,495 17,905 16,518 21,000

See also

References

  1. ↑ "AP Chinese Language and Culture Course". AP Central. College Board. Archived from the original on 1 May 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  2. ↑ "AP Chinese Language and Culture". College Board. Archived from the original on 13 August 2006. Retrieved 12 July 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. ↑ "AP Chinese Language and Culture – AP Students | College Board". apstudents.collegeboard.org. Retrieved 2026-05-17.
  4. ↑ "AP Chinese Language and Culture Course and Exam Description, Effective Fall 2026" (PDF). College Board. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 May 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  5. ↑ "AP Chinese Language and Culture Exam - AP Students". apstudents.collegeboard.org. Retrieved 2026-05-17.
  6. ↑ "2018 AP Exam Score Distributions".
  7. ↑ 2007 Grade Distributions
  8. ↑ Past AP Chinese Language and Culture Score Distributions
  9. ↑ "STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS" (PDF). Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  10. ↑ AP Chinese 2010 Score Distribution
  11. ↑ AP Chinese 2011 Score Distribution
  12. ↑ The College Board. "AP Chinese Language Student Score Distributions" (PDF). Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  13. ↑ AP Chinese 2013 Score Distribution
  14. ↑ "STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS" (PDF). Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  15. ↑ "STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS" (PDF). Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  16. ↑ "STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS" (PDF). Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  17. ↑ "AP Score Distributions – AP Students | College Board".
  18. ↑ "Student Score Distributions, AP Exams - May 2018" (PDF). The College Board. Retrieved December 24, 2022.
  19. ↑ "STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS" (PDF). Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  20. ↑ "STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS" (PDF). Retrieved June 9, 2021.
  21. ↑ "STUDENT SCORE DISTRIBUTIONS" (PDF). Retrieved July 6, 2022.
  22. ↑ "2022 AP Exam Administration Score Distributions: AP Chinese Language and Culture" (PDF). Retrieved April 29, 2025.
  23. ↑ "AP Chinese Language and Culture Scoring Distributions from the 2023 Exam Administration" (PDF). Retrieved April 29, 2025.
  24. ↑ "2024 AP® Chinese Language and Culture Student Score Distributions" (PDF). Retrieved April 29, 2025.
  25. ↑ "AP® Chinese Language and Culture Student Score Distributions – Global AP Exams – May 2025" (PDF). Retrieved 2026-06-22.
  26. ↑ Total Registration (2026-06-17). "2026 AP Exam Score Distributions". www.totalregistration.net. Retrieved 2026-07-05.