[2024-25] How Hard Is AP Seminar? Answer: ‘Moderate Difficulty’ (Real Student Reviews + Pass Data)

Is AP Seminar easy or hard? Read on to discover why we’ve given AP Seminar a difficulty rating of “Moderate Difficulty”, based on our unparalleled, deep-dive analysis of 2024 (and historic) pass rate data and over 3200 course reviews from alumnae.

An overview of the data: how difficult is AP Seminar?

Here’s an overview of all the data we’ve analysed on AP Seminar, from both 2024 pass rates and alumnae reviews:

• AP Seminar is considered moderate difficulty, with class alumnae rating it 5.0/10 for overall difficulty
  • That makes it the 13th-easiest course out of the 28 large AP classes we surveyed
• The pass rate is much higher than other AP classes, with 89% graduating with a 3 or higher. This is the highest pass rate of the 28 AP large classes we surveyed.
• AP Seminar is quite a small class (approximately 94,000 entries a year)
• Only 66% of alumnae would recommend the class, which is the lowest of all AP classes

Alumnae recommendations: the tl;dr

AP Seminar forms part of the Capstone Diploma Program in tandem with AP Research.

Alumnae reviews rate AP Seminar as moderately difficult but are divided on the usefulness of the course and skills developed. The course requires completion of a group project, and as such is not recommended by class alumnae for self study.

Taking a visual comparison:

Here’s a fun visual on how AP Seminar compares to other classes, by difficulty, the amount of study time required, and class size:

We’ve only highlighted AP Seminar here, but you can see the full multi-coloured version of this chart in our popular, definitive difficulty ranking of ALL the AP classes!

Behind the scenes: our Data Analyst and methodology

Analysing AP class data: the methodology

We want to be transparent about how we research, collect and analyse the AP data we use to provide you with our assessments and recommendations. This methodology gives a brief outline of our source material and analytical processes:

Please click here to learn more about our rigorous editorial policies here at Exam Study Expert.

Source material for AP data:

We use two primary sources of data:

1. Pass rate data from College Board itself, including the proportion of students who pass overall (3+ score) and the proportion of students who score a 5. This data is taken from the College Board website plus tweets from Head of AP Trevor Packer, which include the score breakdown and numbers of students taking each class.
2. Student reviews posted by users from r/APStudents who actually took the AP courses (as of 2024 the dataset includes 3,295 reviews). These reviews include a rating for:
   • Overall difficulty rating
   • Difficulty if self-studying
   • How much time is required

The data we post is based on College Board’s June data release and may shift slightly as late-arriving exams are scored. This shift has historically been negligible.

How we evaluate and use the data on AP classes:

We consider class alumnae’s difficulty ratings to be the most reliable indicator of difficulty, more so than pass rate.

Pass rate, or percentage of students scoring a certain grade, is a misleading metric for two main reasons:

1. Some classes attract highly able students, so may have a high pass rate, but this is more a reflection of the calibre of students taking the class. This particularly applies to language classes.
2. Research has shown that popular, widely taken AP classes tend to have lower passing rates. So, a low passing rate could indicate a larger variety of student skill, not necessarily class difficulty.

Our assessments of course difficulty

We have given each every AP class a graded ranking of difficulty, primarily based on class alumnae difficulty ratings. Many other important factors are taken into consideration when making our recommendations for how easy or hard you may find the AP course.

The rankings are determined as followed:

• Very Easy – scores less than 4.0
• Quite Easy – scores between 4.0 and 4.9
• Moderate Difficulty – scores between 5.0 and 5.9
• Quite Hard – scores between 6.0 and 6.9
• Very Hard – scores more than 7.0

You should take every available metric into account when making your choice of AP classes. Remember that some students tend to find certain fields easier or harder than others, based on pre-existing experience.

And remember, as College Board’s Trevor Packer reminds us, an AP score is only one indicator of student learning and achievement.

A deep dive into the 2024 exam data on AP Seminar

If you want to know more about how AP Seminar stacks up against the average AP class, and against previous years’ results: read on for five charts that set out all the data you could want.

1. Difficulty: a look at the ratings

AP Seminar is considered moderate difficulty, with class alumnae rating it 5.0/10 for overall difficulty, making it the 13th-easiest course out of the 28 large AP classes we surveyed.

2. The AP Seminar pass rate in 2024

In 2024, the AP Seminar pass rate was much higher – over 20% higher! – than other AP classes, at 89%. Two thirds of students passed with a 3, more than twice than the all-AP average. 9% attained a 5 and, impressively, only 1% of examinees failed with a 1.

3. So, how does this compare to the last five years?

Over the many years we’ve been doing this analysis, we’ve learnt that AP pass rates can fluctuate wildly – although some subjects remain steady. So to get a better picture, let’s examine the score distribution for the past five years of exams – all the way back to 2020.

The AP Seminar score distribution has not varied significantly over the past 5 years of exams. However, since 2021 a larger percentage of students passed the exam and attained a higher grade than in previous years. 2024 had the highest pass rate of the past five years.

4. How time consuming will AP Seminar be?

AP Seminar is rated as quite time-intensive relative to other AP classes.

N.B. A survey of AP alumnae asked for a rating out of 10 for time needed to study each class, with 1 = least time needed, 10 = most time. The average rating for AP Seminar was 6.7/10 (vs the average across all AP classes of 5.4/10).

5. How hard is it to self-study for AP Seminar?

AP Seminar is rated as very hard to self-study relative to other AP classes. That may make it much harder for you.

N.B. A survey of AP alumnae asked for a rating out of 10 for how easy each class is to self study, with 1 = easiest to self study, 10 = hardest to self study. The average rating for AP Seminar was 7.1/10 (vs the average across all AP classes of 5.7/10).

Reviewing the course: 35 alumnae share their experiences

If you’re looking forward to taking AP Seminar, it’s important to take both the positive and negative feedback in context. There are multiple factors that could contribute to a great or poor experience of the class, such as a particularly weak teacher, an unenthusiastic group for the group project, and your personal preferences as a learner.

Only 66% of class alumnae would recommend the class, which is the lowest score of the 28 large AP classes surveyed.

The majority of reviews focus on the group project, the usefulness of the skills developed, and the importance of avoiding procrastination.

1.      Some students find AP Seminar useful and the skills it teaches valuable …

“AP Seminar is honestly one of the most useful AP courses one could take. The research skills are INVALUABLE and the capstone diploma isn’t anything to ignore.” – Score: 4

“Of all the APs I have taken, this class proved most surprising in how useful it is. Above basic research skills the class also teaches you how to manage time well and work with others intensely in a way few other classes can. I have no doubt I am better prepared for college.” – Score: 5

“It’s a really good course (depending on your teacher, I suppose) and you develop lots of important skills. I think it’s important to really do a lot of research and practice writing essays and giving presentations.” – Score: 3

“I strongly suggest AP Seminar. It’s a great experience where you learn to understand arguments and research in depth. It teaches you proper vetting skills for making sure a source is credible. You truly get to learn about what you want to learn about. It’s a very experimental program, which works to your favor in terms of passing.” – Score: 3

2.      … However, other students didn’t find AP Seminar useful at all

“Did not enjoy – you have much less freedom than the class promises. Not difficult but time consuming. The class is about testing if you can write to a rubric more than anything else (I’m strong in writing and argumentation, but I didn’t write with the rubric in mind which knocked my score down) – also, many people do badly on this exam.” – Score: 4

“Teaches useful skills but SUCH a BORING CLASS oh my god I regret taking it. Also most colleges don’t give credit for it, except American University if you want to go there.” – Score: 3

“Useless without planning to complete AP Research. Easiest exam to pass, hard to make a 4 or 5.” – Score: 3

3.      A lot depends on the group project …

“Hope you get a good, reliable team. Our teacher let us influence our choices, which set me up with a group who’d do their share. Make sure you choose a topic that you can argue for in your papers” – Score: 5

“The fact that a group project determines some of your AP score is wack since high school kids have varying degrees of “caring” about doing well on the AP exam. I basically did the entire group project myself and barely made it out with a passing grade.” – Score: 3

 “If there are people in your ap sem class who you wouldn’t want to work with for a month-long group project, I recommend dropping the class because I guarantee you will get assigned them in your group.” – Score: 3

4.      … which makes it difficult to self study for AP Seminar

“You can’t self study for this course since you need to do a group project and submit a portfolio, some of which is graded by your teacher I believe.” – Score: 3

“You probably won’t be able to self-study this class – as one project you need to complete for the class is a group project.” – Score: 3

What does it take to succeed in the AP Seminar exam?

Well, a good starting place is knowing what’s required of you – and what the experts say went well (or not!) this year:

What is AP Seminar? Course Outline & Requirements

According to College Board:

“AP Seminar is a foundational course that engages students in cross-curricular conversations that explore the complexities of academic and real-world topics and issues by analyzing divergent perspectives.”

There are no prerequisite requirements for completing the course.

You will develop skills in:

• Investigating problems and issues
• Understanding and analysing arguments
• Evaluating different perspectives and sources
• Constructing evidence-based arguments
• Synthesising information from multiple sources
• Collaborating with others to accomplish team goals

The AP Seminar assessment consists of one 2-hour exam (45%), one “individual research-based essay and presentation” (35%), and a team project and presentation (20%).

The exam is divided into two components: Part A (30 mins) where “students are asked to analyze an argument using evidence”; and Part B (90 mins) where “students are asked to build their own arguments” using four provided sources.

For more details, see: College Board’s AP Seminar course page.

Takeaways for success from the Head of AP

Every year as the exam results come out, College Board’s Head of AP, Trevor Packer, offers an update on what’s gone on in each subject this year, including what people found easy and hard.

In 2024, Trevor made the following comments about the AP Seminar exam results:

• “Congratulations to this year’s AP Seminar students and teachers, who demonstrated strong performance across their projects, presentations, and essays, while also expanding access to 33% more students, the largest growth of any AP subject this year.”

• “AP Seminar’s large growth has come primarily as schools have opted to offer the course to a broad range of students in English 10, a practice supported by the research on the ways AP Seminar boosts academic performance in grades 11, 12, and college.”

• “AP Seminar students did consistently good work across all components of the team and individual performance tasks and the final exam; particularly so in the Team Multimedia Presentation & Defense, with 20% earning all 24/24 possible pts.”

• “Like last year, AP Seminar students excelled at their Oral Defenses, with 42% earning all 12/12 possible pts.”

• “View the 2024 AP Seminar free-response questions here: https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap24-frq-seminar-set-1.pdf, https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/ap24-frq-seminar-set-2.pdf“

How to (self) study for AP Seminar, with advice from alumnae

Let’s turn back to those alumnae reviews. Many students who’ve taken the course also have great advice on how to study – and self-study – for the exam, including what to practice and the best resources. We’ve collated a selection for you:

1. Develop your essay writing and public speaking skills

“Really easy to pass with a 3, provided you can write a basic structured essay and use proper grammar.” – Score: 5

“This isn’t one of those classes that you buy books, absorb information, and cram for. It’s testing your writing and speaking skills, and needless to say, you can’t learn how to write a proper argumentative essay in one year; you CAN get over a fear of public speaking/stuttering/other oratory issues though. The best and only thing your teacher can do for you is offering feedback on essays you write and identifying weak spots to improve. If you’re someone that doesn’t like arguing or cannot identify complex problems for ideal solutions quickly and easily, this class isn’t for you.” – Score: 5

2. Use your class time wisely – don’t procrastinate!

“Don’t procrastinate” – Score: 3

“Don’t procrastinate and work with your teammates.” – Score: 3

“For the love of god DO NOT PROCRASTINATE.” – Score: 3

“Don’t procrastinate on any of the essays. Start and try to finish you first draft by the end of the week they are assigned.” – Score: 4

“Be sure to have an open mind when you are taking this course. You’ll need to not only depend on yourself but also other students to be able to succeed on your projects. Don’t procrastinate on your research and your essays. If you ever need help, be sure to ask for it!” – Score: 5

“Find a good group, and actually spend the available class time working on the paper. Practice the formats of the essays.” – Score: 3

3. Start early, and practice for the exam

“Practice the hell out of the EOC exam. That separates the men from the boys. Be strong in your presentation. Read all the stimulus material. Don’t take it too seriously.” – Score: 3

“The most important tip I guess I have is to make sure you begin practicing the EOC’s early, primarily Part B. …. I goofed pretty badly on Part B despite all the time I spent IRR/IWA, rip. :/ Also make sure to get a good group at the start of the year, so you don’t screw up the TMP.’ – Score: 4

Best books and test prep resources for AP Seminar

If you’re looking for the best books to study to help you ace AP Seminar, we’ve crunched the numbers on the available textbooks. Check out the winners, according to reviews from successful AP students, in our overview of the best AP study guides for every subject.

Where next?

Find out how AP Seminar compares to other classes: click here for our popular, definitive overview of all AP Classes ranked by difficulty.

If you’ve found our analysis helpful, have a question for our Data Analyst and AP expert, William – or just have some thoughts to share: please leave a comment below and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. Good luck!