Program Overview
AP Capstone™ is an innovative college-level program based on two courses—AP Seminar and AP Research—that complement and enhance discipline-specific AP courses.
- In AP Seminar, students are assessed on 2 performance tasks completed during the school year and a 2-hour end-of-course written exam administered in May. Check the AP Exam schedule.
- In AP Research, students are assessed on a 4,000–5,000 word academic paper, and presentation and oral defense of their research. There is no exam administered in May.
Students who earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research and on four additional AP Exams of their choosing earn the AP Capstone Diploma™. Students who earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research but not on four additional AP Exams earn the AP Seminar and Research Certificate™.
Schools must apply to participate in the program. To learn more, go to collegeboard.org/apcapstone.
Role of the AP Coordinator
If you are an AP coordinator in a school that is participating in the AP Capstone diploma program, you must take the following steps to ensure students are set up to submit performance tasks for AP Seminar or AP Research and/or take the AP Seminar End-of-Course Exam.
AP coordinators order AP Seminar and AP Research Exams along with all other AP Exams in AP Registration and Ordering. AP Seminar End-of-Course Exams can be ordered for regular testing or late testing. AP Research Exams can only be ordered for regular testing. Reminder: AP Research does not have an end-of-course exam, but an exam must be ordered for each student enrolled in the course so their performance task can be scored by College Board.
The AP Digital Portfolio is directly linked to My AP. When students enroll in an AP Seminar or AP Research class section in My AP, their enrollment will carry over to the AP Digital Portfolio. An AP ID will be assigned to the student through My AP and will also carry over to the AP Digital Portfolio.
The AP Digital Portfolio is a separate system from My AP. Students will use the AP Digital Portfolio to submit their performance tasks for AP Seminar or AP Research, and teachers will use the AP Digital Portfolio to submit their scores. Additionally, AP Seminar teachers will use the AP Digital Portfolio to publish stimulus materials to students and assign students to teams.
AP coordinators will log in to the digital portfolio to check the final submission status of students’ performance tasks and status of teacher scoring.
Because students provide registration information when they first enroll in a class section in My AP, AP Seminar and AP Research students won’t complete a paper answer sheet.
Validate Online Submission
Students taking AP Seminar and AP Research will use the AP Digital Portfolio to submit final individual and team performance tasks for scoring. In the spring, the AP coordinator will use the digital portfolio to validate that uploaded student work is ready to be submitted to College Board for scoring by the April 30, 11:59 p.m. ET submission deadline and that all presentations have been scored by AP Seminar and AP Research teachers.
Additional instructions about using the AP Digital Portfolio are available in the Help section of the application.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
For AP Seminar and AP Research, students with documented disabilities may be eligible for accommodations for through-course assessments (performance tasks) and the end-of-course exam for AP Seminar. For information about requesting an accommodations approval, go to collegeboard.org/apssd or contact College Board Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) at 844-255-7728 or 212-713-8333.
Key Dates
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- AUGUST 2020
AP Digital Portfolio Opens
Teachers who complete the AP Course Audit for AP Seminar or AP Research will have access to the AP Digital Portfolio to create online classrooms and enroll their students. -
- FRI, NOV 13, 2020, 11:59 PM ET
Final Ordering Deadline
This is the deadline for the AP coordinator to submit the exam order in AP Registration and Ordering for all full-year and first-semester AP courses, and all exam only sections. -
- FRI, MAR 12, 2021, 11:59 PM ET
Ordering Deadline for Spring Courses and to Change Fall Exam Orders
This is the exam ordering deadline for AP courses that begin after November 13—that is, second-semester, trimester, or block schedule courses—as well as the deadline to make changes to fall orders in AP Registration and Ordering. -
- FRI, APR 30, 2021, 11:59 PM ET
Performance Tasks Due Date
All student presentations must be scored by AP Seminar and AP Research teachers by this deadline. All performance tasks that have been submitted as final by a student, and any teacher scores associated with those performance tasks, will automatically be sent to College Board.
Related Resources
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AP Capstone Implementation Guide 2020-21
This guide is the primary source of information for implementing the program in your school. It includes guidance for school administrators, AP coordinators, and teachers of AP Capstone courses.
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AP Coordinator’s Manual, Part 1 2020-21
This manual provides detailed information about everything AP coordinators need to do from the start of the school year through the November 13 exam ordering deadline.