AP Exams
No AP at Your School? How to Take AP Exams as an Outside Student (2027)
If your school does not offer AP, there are two ways to take the May 2027 AP Exams: an AP school that accepts outside students, or an authorised test centre such as Prometric Istanbul. Fees, deadlines and the exams with extra conditions.
Can I take an AP Exam if my school does not offer it?
Yes. The College Board sets out a route for homeschooled students and students whose schools do not offer their AP subjects, and tells them to act as early in the school year as possible. Outside the US there are two routes: an AP school that agrees to test outside students, or a College Board–authorised test centre.
Route 1: an AP school that accepts outside students
The process the College Board describes:
- Find a school. Use the College Board's AP Course Ledger to look up nearby AP schools.
- Talk to the AP coordinator. Contact the school and ask whether it can arrange testing for you. Schools may have their own local deadlines and policies for outside students.
- Get a join code. A coordinator who agrees creates an "exam only" section for you and gives you its join code. Only the coordinator can create this code.
- Enrol in My AP. You join the section with the code in your College Board account, and the school orders your exam.
- Confirm exam-day details. The school tells you when and where to test and whether you need to bring your own testing device.
Fee: the College Board's fee at schools outside the US is USD 129 per exam. According to the College Board, schools may charge students more to cover proctoring and administration costs.
Deadline: the College Board's final ordering deadline for schools is 13 November 2026. If you contact a school after that, you can still be added to its order; a USD 40 late-order fee normally applies, but for homeschooled students and students whose school does not offer the exam, the coordinator can ask the College Board to waive it until 12 March.
Route 2: an authorised test centre
The College Board lists authorised AP test centres outside the US in China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, Türkiye, the UK, Jordan and India. In Türkiye this is Prometric Istanbul, which is open to eligible students from any country or school: students enrolled in secondary school, homeschooled and independent-study students, and recent graduates who need AP for university admission. Registration happens in two systems: you join the exam in My AP with a join code, then pay Prometric. See our Prometric Istanbul registration guide for the steps.
The two routes compared
| AP school (outside student) | Prometric Istanbul | |
|---|---|---|
| Who is accepted? | Depends on the school's policy | Eligible students from any country or school |
| Registration | The school's AP coordinator gives you a join code | Join code in My AP + payment to Prometric |
| Fee | College Board fee USD 129; schools may charge more | USD 239 (period 1), USD 279 (period 2) |
| Deadline | Set by the school; College Board ordering deadline 13 November 2026 | 6 November 2026 and 5 March 2027 |
| Late testing | Depends on the school | 17–21 May, at the late-testing fee |
| Device | Ask the school | Your own device with Bluebook installed |
Exams with extra conditions
- AP Computer Science Principles: at Prometric Istanbul this exam requires course enrolment, because part of it is a portfolio submission.
- AP Business with Personal Finance: 15% of the exam asks about the Business Canvas Project you carried out during the course, so self-study students need to run the project themselves. See our AP Business with Personal Finance exam guide.
- AP Cybersecurity: Prometric Istanbul offers this exam only on 18 May, in the late-testing week.
A self-study plan from September to May
- September–October: choose your AP Exams based on your target country and programme; choose where to test.
- Early November: complete registration (6 November for Prometric; your school's own date and 13 November for schools).
- November–March: work through the units in order and sit a practice test each month.
- April: full-length practice exams and free-response practice.
- May: the exam. Scores are released in July.
No AP at school is not a dead end
Not having AP at your school does not close the door; it means building the plan a little earlier and a little more carefully. Our self-study coaching combines a personal study plan, regular check-ins, practice exams and help registering with a test centre, and our FRQ feedback service scores your written answers against the official rubric. Let's work out which AP Exams serve your goal in a free pre-assessment.