Get to know the AP Spanish Exam ahead of time

The AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam date is coming up fast, so students across the country are making the most of this home stretch to be as prepared as possible.

In addition to being proficient in the language itself, one of the best ways to prepare for the Spanish Language and Culture Exam is to become familiar with the exam ahead of time. Here are the top tips we’ll explore today to help you prepare for the big day:

• Know what to expect in each section
• Practice with simulated exams, with links to past years
• Give yourself additional writing practice
• Learn from your mistakes
• Develop your test-taking skills

Of course none of this will help if you don’t already have a strong grasp of the language. For now we’ll keep our focus on getting to know the exam itself, but we definitely also recommend following our top language study tips to ace the AP Spanish Exam!

Want to guarantee your best AP Spanish score? Check out BaseLang’s exam prep program, where students get access to unlimited 1-on-1 tutoring and expert teachers.

Ok, with that out of the way, let’s get to know the AP Spanish Exam. We’ll start with a breakdown of what to expect in each of its sections, then we’ll offer some further tips on how to make the most of your AP Exam knowledge as you prepare for test day.

The Spanish AP Exam structure

The AP Spanish Language and Culture exam is broken down into four distinct sections, each of which is administered individually: it begins with two multiple choice sections, and concludes with two free response sections. Remember that all of the instructions, contextual texts, audio components, and questions in the exam are presented in Spanish.

We recommend getting to know the official AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam and Course Description. The AP Exam Overview also provides a good quick reference. We summarize the key points of those documents in the following sections.

Multiple Choice A: Text prompts

The first multiple choice section (Part A: 30 questions, 40 minutes, 23% of total exam score) is composed entirely of printed texts, broken down into four thematic subsections. You’ll be presented with contextual information in Spanish for each topic, and then need to answer a series of multiple choice questions that assess your comprehension and analysis skills. The topics are presented with authentic print materials drawn from the following types of sources: “journalistic and literary texts, announcements, advertisements, letters, charts, maps, and tables.”

Multiple Choice B: Text and Audio prompts

The second multiple choice section (Part B: 35 questions, 55 minutes, 27% of total score) assesses your listening comprehension, broken down into five subsections. The first two subsections include both printed texts and an audio component, while the other three are entirely based on audio recordings. You’ll be presented with “interviews, podcasts, public service announcements, conversations, and brief presentations,” and then need to answer a series of questions about each of them. Questions are based primarily on the contexts presented, but they also assess your cultural knowledge. Each audio recording is played twice.

Free Response A: Long-form written responses

The first free response section (2 questions, 1 hour 10 minutes, 25% of total score) is administered in one long block, broken down into distinct chunks of time for each question. The first (15 minutes) is an email that you’ll need to read and reply to in writing. Be sure to use the usted form of you, and don’t forget to include a formal greeting and farewell.

The second free response question, an argumentative essay, is the longest of the exam (55 minutes total). You’ll have 15 minutes to read written materials from two sources, and to listen to an audio recording from a third source (played twice), expressing multiple viewpoints. You then have 40 minutes to present your viewpoint on the topic in writing, incorporating information from all three sources to support your argument. Be sure to organize your thoughts into clear paragraphs, including a strong introduction and conclusion to the overall essay. And keep an eye on the clock so you don’t run out of time!

Free Response B: Spoken responses

For the last free response section of the exam (2 questions, 18 minutes, 25% of total score), all of your responses will be given as spoken recordings. The first question is a simulated conversation with a Spanish speaker. You’ll receive a written summary of how the discussion should flow, and then you’ll hear recordings of your conversation partner speaking to you. You’ll have 20 seconds to record each of your responses, going back and forth until you’ve had five turns in the conversation.

For the last question of the exam, you’ll receive a prompt about a specific cultural aspect of a Spanish-speaking community, and then deliver a presentation comparing that aspect between two communities that you’re familiar with. You have 4 minutes to read the prompt and prepare your argument, and two minutes to record your oral presentation.

Tip1 : Practice the exam questions from previous years

What better way to prepare for this year’s exam than by trying actual exam questions from past years? Taking past exams can help you understand the types of questions you’ll be facing, while also giving you real practice with your time management.

Although multiple choice questions from past years aren’t publicly available, you can access 13 years of free response questions on the College Board’s website. In addition to the questions themselves, you have access to the AP Spanish Exam rubrics that readers applied to score student responses. Sample responses are also provided, including oral recordings for the last two questions.

We recommend really taking these simulations seriously to make the most of the practice exercise. Find a quiet place where you won’t be distracted, and set a timer to allow yourself exactly the time allotted for each section. The more AP Spanish Language and Culture past exams you write ahead of time, the better prepared you’ll be for these free response questions on the real exam in mid-May.

Tip 2: Practice additional creative writing in Spanish

Past exam questions specifically prepare you for the free response questions, while writing in general helps you simply practice your grammar, draw in more vocabulary, and articulate points clearly.

If your Spanish teacher proposes a creative writing assignment, go for it! Or why not try expressing other thoughts in written Spanish, like writing out your goals for the week or even commenting on social media posts.

The more you use your Spanish, the more it’ll come naturally to you, and the more you’ll be comfortable with it. Don’t hesitate to write anything and everything in Spanish!

Tip 3: Review your mistakes

This is a luxury you have as you prepare for the AP Spanish Exam: reviewing your mistakes and learning from them. Make the most of it! Our Test Prep course is a great way to get constant feedback on your progress from our native-speaking teachers.

Whether you’re doing normal Spanish class assignments or you’re practicing with past AP Spanish Exams, take the time to see where you made mistakes. By identifying your weak points, you can focus your study on the areas which need the most attention.

Tip 4: Develop your test-taking skills

Knowing what to expect on the exam is a great start when it comes to applying effective test-taking skills. This is a strength that’s worth developing on its own though, whether for the Spanish AP Exam or any other other big test. This is a topic that could merit a post on its own, so we’ll just summarize the main points for you here:

• Maintain a consistent study schedule
• Develop time-management strategies
• Analyze the texts thoroughly
• Prepare yourself mentally and physically on exam day

Conclusion

Today we talked about the importance of getting to know the AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam ahead of time, along with some of our top tips to make the most of your prep time.

This post wasn’t about improving your Spanish language skills, even though having a strong grasp of vocab and grammar is obviously also fundamental. On that front, remember to check out our top tips for AP Spanish language review.

Finally, if you want some enthusiastic help to maintain your study schedule, our AP Spanish Test Prep course is surely a good fit. With a specific curriculum designed to prepare students for the AP Exam, including regular practice tests, BaseLang’s teachers will support you in the final stretch of your AP journey.

We wish you the best as you prepare and write the AP Spanish Exam!