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Advanced Placement (AP) and International Exam Credit

Many MIT students study beyond the level of the traditional secondary school curriculum while still in high school. In certain cases MIT offers credit and, where appropriate, advanced placement for this study on the basis of scores on standardized exams such as the College Board's Advanced Placement Exams (AP), the GCE A-Level exams, the International Baccalaureate (IB), and other international exams.

Because advanced placement and credit affect selection of subjects in your first term at MIT, it's best to report any relevant exam scores well before you arrive for your first term. (Transfer credit requests, by contrast, are reviewed once you're on campus.) If credit or placement are still in process on Registration Day, be sure to discuss this with transfer credit staff in the Office of Undergraduate Advising and Academic Programming (UAAP), Room 7-104, and with your departmental advisor.

Credit given for previous study applies in various ways to degree requirements. Please see below for the details of credit offered by MIT's departments. If you are granted degree credit equivalent to a particular MIT subject and then register for that subject, your credit will be canceled.

College Board Advanced Placement Program

If you want to seek MIT credit for Advanced Placement (AP) exams taken before beginning your original degree program, ask the College Board to report your scores directly to MIT (institution code 3514). The Board reports scores electronically to MIT, so there's no need for rush reports. About two weeks after you've requested a report, check with UAAP transfer credit staff to see if your scores have been received. MIT will not accept scores from paper reports sent to you.

Except for Calculus, only scores of 5 are given MIT credit. If you have taken an AP exam more than once, MIT will look at the higher score. Specific department policies follow:

  • Biology:

    No credit is given for the College Board AP Biology exam. To receive credit for 12 units of Introductory Biology (7.012, 7.013, or 7.014) without enrolling in the subject, you must pass the Biology Advanced Standing Examinations 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, without enrolling in the subject, you must pass the Advanced Placement (Advanced Standing) exams 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 is equivalent to passing the Freshman Essay Evaluation (FEE), which is required of transfer students. Scores lower than 5 on either examination are not equivalent to passing the FEE.

    If an AP score exempts you from the FEE, you must still take a Communication-Intensive (CI) subject your first year at MIT as part of the Communication Requirement. See the Communication Requirement site for details of the requirement for transfer students.

  • 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 U.S. History exam would earn 18 total units of general elective credit. For scores lower than 5, no credit is awarded.

     

    • Art History
    • Chinese Language and 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 Literature
    • Japanese Language and Culture
    • Latin Literature
    • Latin Vergil
    • Music Theory
    • Psychology
    • Spanish Language
    • Spanish Literature
    • Studio Art—2D
    • Studio Art—3D
    • Studio Art—Drawing
    • US History
    • World History

    Note that no credit is given for the AP Environmental Science and Statistics exams.

Other Examinations

If you took the GCE A-Level examinations, the French Baccalaureát, International Baccalaureate (IB) examinations (Higher Level only), the German Abitur, or similar exams, please consult UAAP transfer credit staff (contact information below). Credit will be granted consistent with the practices described for the Advanced Placement exams or for the review of college transcripts. Except for IB exams, you must present original certificates in order to gain MIT credit; IB scores must be reported directly to MIT from the International Baccalaureate Organization regional office that administered your exams.

More Information

Inquiries about placement and credit for transfer students at MIT should be addressed to:

Transfer Credit Staff
Office of Undergraduate Advising and Academic Programming (UAAP)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Avenue, Room 7-104
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-253-6771, ap@MIT.EDU

 
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