This guide organizes advice from past students who got 4s and 5s on their exams. We hope it gives you some new ideas and tools for your study sessions. But remember, everyone's different—what works for one student might not work for you. If you've got a study method that's doing the trick, stick with it. Think of this as extra help, not a must-do overhaul.

📌 Overview

• Students are given free-response questions that test their understanding of chemistry knowledge, each worth 4 points.
• 17% of Exam Score.
• Recommended to spend 10 min on each of the short questions for 40 minutes in total.

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💭 General Advice

Tips on mindset, strategy, structure, time management, and any other high level things to know:

• 👀 Flip through the questions and identify those that you know will be easy for you. Circle them, mark them, anything, just so you know that if all else fails, you have something that you know how to answer. Then start working on the hard problems (and you don’t have as much pressure on you because you already know that you can solve something) and rock those out of the park!
• ⏰ Don’t spend too much time on one part of a question if you really can’t figure it out. Go back to it later if you have time! It’s better to have worked through multiple parts of all of the questions rather than having one perfect question and leaving the others unanswered.
• 🤔 Make note of the task verbs used in each section to ensure you’re answering the question the way you’re meant to.
• 📝 Before you take the test, take some time to see sample responses that earn points or do not earn points so you can see what to imitate and what traps to avoid.
• 📺 Show all your work and clearly explain your reasoning. Even if you make a calculation error, you can still earn partial credit for showing the correct method.

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🕐 Before you Write

What should a student do in the first few minutes, before they start writing?

• 📖 Read the question and write anything that comes to mind (formulas, possible outcomes, what terms mean, etc.)—this helps organize your thoughts and makes sure you don’t forget any valuable material under pressure!
• ✏️ Underline any given information you find while you read! You may find it easier to piece together the question once you know what variables/units you’re working with.
• ⛵ As you’re reading, it can help to categorize the problem into a specific unit/content area—while problems can span units, thinking of relevant/related content while you read can make it easier to find connections as you begin to solve.

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💈Question Styles

Interpreting Visual Representations

• PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE READ THE AXES FIRST! This will do so many things for you like establish the type of question, familiarize you with units and ensure that you are using the correct scale, because why would we get points off for misreading already organized data!

Designing Experiments

• Think back to the AP Chemistry labs you completed in class. What aspects of your experiences with them tie to the problem at hand?
• Don’t forget basic lab safety procedures and logical step-by-step planning!
• Take your time to think through the error questions. Go through each step of the procedure to see how certain inaccurate measurements/recordings will impact the final results of a lab.

Solving Problems Mathematically

• Make sure to read all of the given information clearly and have all of the proper inputs for your equations. Make note of different units and possible conversions (ex. J to kJ, g to kg).
• “When in doubt go to moles”, if lost at a question or in conversions, try turning what you have to moles to have an easier transition of needed units.
• Make sure your answers are in the correct significant figures.

Make/Justify A Scientific Claim and Support with Evidence

• Do not be vague! Use specific vocabulary. Show off all the knowledge you have!
• Use the CER method (Claim, Evidence, Reasoning)
  • Claim: your answer (conclusion)
  • Evidence: Data/experiment that supports your claim (solving with math/equations/theory or law)
  • Reasoning/Justification : Links your CE, “The Why?”
• Mention the equation that you are using to justify your claim

Create Graphs/Representations

• If applicable, make sure to label your axes and spread out your data as needed to fit. If a question asks for you to draw within a diagram, make sure to draw with a pen or dark pencil and clearly label everything you write/draw.