College Board Advanced Placement Credit
This page applies to members of the Class of 2016 only. For information about the use of AP and other exam scores in Admissions decisions, please visit the MIT Admissions website. UAAP cannot answer questions about qualifications for admission to MIT.
MIT grants credit for high scores on some College Board Advanced Placement (AP) exams. It does not grant credit for secondary school courses teaching AP curricula.
General Information
MIT grants credit for a score of 5 on many AP examinations (4 or 5 on the BC Calculus exam). It does not offer partial credit. For scores lower than 5 (or 4 for BC Calculus), credit will not be awarded. If you took an AP exam more than once, only your higher score will be counted.
You are responsible for making sure that your AP scores are sent to MIT. You may designate MIT as a recipient (code 3514) when you register for your AP exams, or order a report later from the College Board. The Board reports scores electronically to MIT, so there's no need for rush reports. MIT will not accept scores from paper reports sent to you.
Any AP scores received by MIT will appear in your Online Freshman Advising Folder which becomes available in mid-August.
If you register for any version of 8.01 or 18.01 after receiving AP credit for it, note the following:
- You lose the AP credit.
- AP credit can be reinstated only if you drop the matching subject before Add Date (fifth week of the term).
- You must pass the subject in order to meet the relevant General Institute Requirement.
- See the Mathematics and Physics sections below for information on general elective credit granted in this case.
Credit in Subject Areas
Click below for specific information on receiving credit in the following areas:
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Computer Science
- Mathematics
- Physics
- Communication Requirement
- Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences
More information about MIT's requirements in these areas is on the General Institute Requirements page.
Biology
No credit is given for the College Board AP Biology exam. To receive credit for 12 units of Introductory Biology (7.012), you must pass the Biology Advanced Standing Examination administered during Orientation.
Chemistry
No credit is given for the College Board AP Chemistry exam. To receive credit for 12 units of 5.111, Principles of Chemical Science, you must pass the Advanced Placement (Advanced Standing) exam administered during Orientation.
Computer Science
No credit is given for either the Computer Science A or the Computer Science AB exam.
Mathematics
For a score of 4 or 5 on the BC Calculus examination, credit is given for 12 units of 18.01, Calculus I. For scores lower than 4, no credit is given.
If you earn 18.01 credit and then take 18.01A (a variation of 18.01) for review purposes, the 12 units of credit initially given for 18.01 will convert to 3 units of general elective credit. You will also receive 12 units of credit for a passing grade in 18.01A.
If you take 18.014 (calculus with theory), your 18.01 credit will convert to 9 units of general elective credit, and 12 units of credit is given for passing 18.014.
Although no credit is given for the Calculus AB exam, a score of 4 or 5 places you into the accelerated Calculus sequence 18.01A/18.02A. A score of 4 or 5 on the AB portion of the BC Calculus exam offers the same placement as the regular Calculus AB exam.
Physics
For a score of 5 on both parts of the Physics C exam, credit will be given for 12 units of 8.01, Physics I, and you may enroll in subject 8.02 or 8.022 (Physics II). No credit is given for the Physics B exam. For scores lower than 5, no credit is awarded.
If you earn 8.01 credit and then enroll in 8.012 (the advanced version of 8.01), the 12 units of credit initially given for 8.01 will convert to 6 units of general elective credit. You will also receive 12 units of credit for a passing grade in 8.012.
Communication Requirement
A score of 5 on either the English Language and Composition or English Literature and Composition exam places you in the "CI-H/CI-HW Required" category without taking the Freshman Essay Evaluation (FEE).
You are still required to take a Communication-Intensive subject (CI-HW or CI-H) your first year as part of the Communication Requirement. You do, however, have a wider range of Communication-Intensive subjects to choose from than students who do not either submit a score of 5 or demonstrate competency in the FEE. Students with scores lower than 5 on either exam should take the FEE or plan to complete a CI-HW subject.
Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences
Advanced Placement credit cannot be used to satisfy any part of the HASS Requirement. If you receive a score of 5 on the College Board Advanced Placement exams listed below, you will receive 9 general elective units for each exam, applicable as unrestricted electives only. For example, a score of 5 on the AP Spanish Language exam and a score of 5 on the AP US History exam would earn 18 total units of general elective credit.
For scores lower than 5, no credit is awarded.
- Art History
- Chinese Language/Culture
- Economics—Macro
- Economics—Micro
- English Language
- English Literature
- European History
- French Language
- French Literature
- German Language
- Government & Politics—US
- Government & Politics—Comparative
- Human Geography
- Italian Language and Culture
- Japanese Language and Culture
- Latin Literature
- Latin Vergil
- Music Theory
- Psychology
- Spanish Language
- Spanish Literature
- Studio Art—2D Design
- Studio Art—3D Design
- Studio Art—Drawing
- US History
- World History
Note that no credit is given for the AP Environmental Science or Statistics exams.
For More Information
Direct questions regarding MIT's policies and procedures on credit for Advanced Placement scores to ap@mit.edu or 617-253-6771.
For information about the use of AP and other exam scores in Admissions decisions, please visit http://www.mitadmissions.org/. UAAP cannot answer questions about qualifications for admission to MIT.
