As high school students sweat over their Advanced Placement exams this month, more evidence is out that their effort may pay off.
A new working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research shows a link between students who score high enough on AP exams to get college credit and on-time degree completion.
“Giving College Credit Where it is Due: Advanced Placement Exams Scores and College Outcomes” by Jonathan Smith and Michael Hurwitz of the College Board, along with Christoper Avery of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, analyzed scores for 4.5 million AP exams of high school students who graduated between 2004-2009 and tracked if they attended colleges that granted credit for their scores.
