In an economy suffering from inflation, every penny saved is important even while the “College-Fund” change jar is no longer enough. The possibility of earning credits in highschool from dual-enrollment and AP testing is detrimental to students’ finances–but when the expenses are high, the availability of the tests are low. The price of the AP exams has nearly doubled in cost in the PRJUSD district since last year to a regular cost of $99. However, some students are able to access a fee-waived price of $53, reduced to $28 after efforts from staff, which in past years has made the tests cost-free.
As of Spring 2024, 440,000 students nationally participated in AP Testing (Total Registration), which accounts for around 500 of PRHS students. While AP tests have shown to be very beneficial when applying to colleges, the late notice and increase of cost this year has been anticipated to scare many students away from taking them. Despite that, many students still are proceeding to take their tests.
Junior Faye Patchett, eligible for the fee-reduction and taking four AP tests this year, plans on attending college in-state. Even though she is dual enrolled, she still finds AP testing to be beneficial. “I’m still taking the AP tests because I want to go into science, so that’ll help me get college credit so I don’t have to take those classes in college,” Patchett said. “[The fee reduction] is beneficial for me because taking four AP tests would equal almost $400 and it’s half that price, which really helps.”
While the fee reduction continues to be available, only about half of this year’s AP students are eligible for it. The reduction is available to students who were originally part of the free-meal plan. The remainder of the students, who were barely notified on October 21, just ten days before sign-ups and payments are due, had to find the funds for their tests before the $40 late fee pounds them further into the ground. The remaining students that take more than one AP class are expected to pay nearly a hundred dollars for each.
Due to their concerns, AP English Language and English Literature teachers Morgan Couture and Sarah Ramirez decided to voice their and their students’ troubles. “The notification timeline was very short,” Ramirez explained. “I know that a lot of families need to save up to purchase these exams for students, so it did feel a bit rushed. Additionally, we were hoping to get more information about the reduction price a lot sooner.”
After Ramirez and Couture got in touch with Principal Megan Fletcher and other admins, affirmative action for price reduction was quick; the reduced price was lowered by $25 and the deadline to sign up was extended by a week.
The accessibility to the tests was an important issue to Couture due to her own personal experiences as not just a former highschooler, but as a Bearcat alumni. “When I was in high school, my family went through really intense financial hardship, and things like paying for an AP exam and other senior things weren’t an option. So I needed the financial support, and I qualified because my family was low income,” Couture said. “The credits saved me a decent amount of money going into Cal Poly because I did pass the AP exams. So I think it’s really, really important to provide support where we can on a district level.”
However, reimbursement for those who already paid the original reduced price has not been organized yet.
