Firstly, I’d like to thank the College Board for its hard work and continued efforts to respond and innovate during these difficult times. Thank you for working to give every Advanced Placement (AP) student the opportunity to earn the college credit and placement they’ve been working toward all year while prioritizing the health and safety of communities. 

That being said, the College Board does not seem to prioritize providing all students an equal path to success.

On April 4th, the College Board released the 2020 AP Exam testing schedule in an email sent to all AP students. It announced that each subject’s exam will be taken on the same day at the same time, worldwide, at either 12 pm, 2 pm, or 4 pm ET. Here’s what that means for students around the world:

• UK: 5 pm, 7 pm, and 9 pm
• Germany: 6 pm, 8 pm, and 10 pm
• Turkey: 7 pm, 9 pm, and 11 pm
• UAE: 8 pm, 10 pm, and 12 am
• India: 9:30 pm, 11:30 pm, 1:30 am
• Thailand: 11 pm, 1 am, and 3 am
• China: 12 am, 2 am, and 4 am
• Japan: 1 am, 3 am, and 5 am
• Guam: 2 am, 4 am, and 6 am

Holding a single exam time is unthinkable for a worldwide test. By issuing this decree, the College Board forces students based outside of the US to take these exams in the middle of the night, hindering students' ability to perform at their best and putting them at a distinct disadvantage. How is this equitable? As an international student, I feel overlooked.

At least one additional version of the test should be made available for students to take the exam at an alternate time. For example, exams scheduled at 12 pm ET could have an alternate testing time at 12 am ET. Since the 45-minute exams do not include multiple-choice questions, and the exam questions are designed to be not “googleable,” the integrity of each exam will be protected.

College Board: We know you can do better. We as students deserve better than this.

Students, parents, and educators: Please join me in signing this petition and urge the College Board to provide alternate AP Exam start times for international students.