Students are bracing for a major shake-up in Advanced Placement testing as the College Board is set to transition 28 AP exams from the traditional paper format to a fully digital setup in May 2025. This shift impacts everything from test-taking logistics to the test-day experience, and marks one of the largest changes in AP history.
In may, the College Board faced security issues with its paper AP tests, which led to compromised test content in some schools, according to a July press release. In response to this, the College Board issued a press statement stating that it would be accelerating its digitization plan. By utilizing the Bluebook digital app for exams, the College Board seeks to ensure secure administration and a consistent testing experience for all students.
At Paly, this digital shift means that all AP exams will be administered on school-provided Chromebooks or personal laptops. With this new format, students will no longer bubble in answers on scantrons; instead, responses will be entered directly into the Bluebook app. This digital format also means students must use scratch paper for calculations and notes, moving away from the workspaces in paper test booklets.
The digital format also introduces improvements for students needing accommodations. Bluebook’s customizable settings offer built-in support for a range of needs, such as text enlargement and screen readers, which can provide a more accessible test-taking environment. Paly’s administration is working closely with students requiring accommodations to ensure these settings are configured correctly.
According to Assistant Principal and AP Coordinator Jerry Berkson, the online testing format should help streamline the testing process.
“There’s gonna be a lot more efficiencies, such as if a student has accommodations, it’s already embedded in the computer,” Berkson said. “So instead of us finding 14 different proctors to proctor a kid one on one, we might be able to do all 14 in one room.”
An important distinction in this transition is that while multiple-choice sections across all 28 tests will be fully digital, some exams will be hybrid, meaning that certain portions of the test will still be completed on paper. For example, AP Calculus and AP Physics exams will have digital multiple-choice questions, but students will handwrite their responses for free-response sections. Additionally, on these STEM exams, students will now get access to Desmos — an online graphing calculator.
With the May 2025 AP tests quickly approaching, Paly’s counseling and AP coordination teams are encouraging students to familiarize themselves with Bluebook’s features, including the on-screen scratch space for calculations and the lack of a traditional scantron. Practicing with this setup is particularly important for students who have never taken a digital test, as it reduces anxiety and offers a clearer understanding of what to expect on exam day.
Economics teacher Eric Bloom said the digital tests will make it harder to visualize problems, which is important in economics.
“The way I teach and the way that I do is by drawing and thinking and laying things out,” Bloom said. “It’s harder to conceptualize digitally than it is just to draw it out, or it’ll just be more complex… so I am a little concerned about it. The online part for the multiple choice I don’t think will be a big deal, but once again, on a paper test, you mark it up, you cross things out, you circle and you go back, so it’ll be interesting to see how it works [digitally].”
According to Bloom, he wants to make an online test so students feel comfortable going into the digital AP Macroeconomics test.
“I might try to create an online test so that you could be practicing for our final,” Bloom said. “[We’ll have] practice tests, definitely some prep on what can you expect and what it’s going to be like. They [the College Board] are putting out a ton of materials.”
To help prepare students, the College Board has recently released a preview of AP testing on the Bluebook app. The app includes tools like adjustable text size, highlighting options, and an on-screen timer — features that may help students with time management and focus.
Berkson said that given the school’s previous experience hosting standardized tests online, hosting AP tests digitally shouldn’t be too difficult.
“We’ve already done the SATs and the PSATs, so I know it’s doable,” Berkson said. “We’ve tested having more than 100 kids in the gym for the SAT, so as far as handling the Wi-Fi, I think that’s gonna be fine. Ms. [LaDonnna] Butler ran SATs and she said that was great.”
