AP Exam requirements: who can take them

There are no formal prerequisites for AP Exams. Most students take them after a year-long AP course at school, but you can also take an exam without the class, including if you’re homeschooled, as long as a school or authorized test center orders it for you by the deadline.

From College Board’s AP Students and AP Central pages. Checked October 12, 2026.

Ways to take an AP Exam

• In your school’s AP class: join the class in My AP and your coordinator orders the exam.
• Without the class at your school: ask your AP coordinator to add you to an exam-only section before the deadline.
• Homeschooled or your school doesn’t offer it: find a nearby school or authorized test center willing to test you, well before November.

What you need

• A College Board account, used to join your class and to sign in to Bluebook.
• Payment to your school by its deadline.
• Approved accommodations from College Board’s Services for Students with Disabilities, if you need them, arranged through your school.