Dive Brief:
- The Arkansas Research Center at the University of Central Arkansas has tracked students who took Advanced Placement classes as part of the Advanced Initiative for Math and Science since 2008-09 to find out how course participation impacts earnings.
- The Daily Progress reports students who took AP classes earned more in 2015 than their peers who didn’t take them, even if they didn’t score high enough on the AP exams to get college credit for them, and they went to college at higher rates.
- According to the study, non-AP graduates were earning an average of $19,388, former students who took AP but didn’t get college credit for them were earning $23,215, and those who did get qualifying marks on their exams were earning $24,041.
Dive Insight:
There is a wealth of evidence supporting increased access to rigorous coursework in high school for its connection to college-going rates, college performance and later earnings. The International Baccalaureate foundation reported in June that low-income students who take even one IB course are more likely to graduate from high school and go on to college. The problem, however, is that access to advanced coursework is still limited for many low-income and minority students, whether because their schools don’t offer them at all or because they are not encouraged to take them.
Many districts are working hard to increase access to AP courses, in particular, and they are providing additional supports to help students be successful in them. Even if students cannot pass end-of-year exams in these classes, however, research indicates they benefit from the exposure to challenging material and the study habits they develop to approach it.