Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My senior is about to graduate and I'm having trouble with this AP exam payment issue:
February - I paid for all AP exams.
April - my teen decides not to take a few, after checking with his chosen college that they do not give credit for those. He tells the school.
May - the school calls me before the exams, and I confirm which exams he's taking.

Now the school is asking for "unused exam" fees, which apparently the College Board is charging them. They said that since I did not cancel these exams, I have to pay not only the $100 per exam that I've already paid, but a $40 fee on top of that for not canceling each exam. They are insinuating my son can't walk at graduation if these fees are not paid.

The College Board website is unclear, because it says there is such a fee assessed, but in replacement of the full exam fee. So a partial refund, so to speak. I didn't request such a refund, since I was not aware that was possible, and the decision to skip some exams happened at the last minute at the end of April, when my son chose his future college and called them to ask about AP credit. His high school never said we had to initiate a separate cancelation procedure, so we just thought telling the school was sufficient - so they wouldn't keep a seat for him, or worry he was late.

Can someone give me some advice? It's been a trying school year, and I'm seeing red.

AP exams don't cost $100 this year. If that is what your MCPS school told you, they are taking a profit on the exam cost.

AP Exam (except AP Seminar and AP Research) taken in the U.S., U.S. territories, Canada, and DoDEA schools*

$97

Schools get to keep $9 for each exam. If they are charging $100 then your school is keeping $12 per exam for their principal.
https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/exam-administration-ordering-scores/ordering-fees/exam-fees

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
“If you decide after the November ordering deadline not to take an exam that was ordered for you, the charge is $40 per exam instead of the full exam fee. The $40 fee applies to any unused or canceled exam, including an exam ordered for a student who qualifies for a College Board fee reduction. It’s important to tell your AP coordinator if you decide not to take an exam.
This fee doesn’t apply if you transfer out of a school.”

I read this as: if you decide and notify of your decision. No showing is different than informing school and College Board of your decision to not take an exam.

OP, consider this fee a stupid tax and an opportunity to demonstrate to your child the importance of paying attention to such details in college and life!

And then get on to celebrating graduation!

Anonymous wrote:
“If you decide after the November ordering deadline not to take an exam that was ordered for you, the charge is $40 per exam instead of the full exam fee. The $40 fee applies to any unused or canceled exam, including an exam ordered for a student who qualifies for a College Board fee reduction. It’s important to tell your AP coordinator if you decide not to take an exam.
This fee doesn’t apply if you transfer out of a school.”

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP the original cost will have gone to the college board, the school does not profit from those fees. They will be expected to pay these $40 per no show and it's on you.

Just pay up and be done with it. The college board and the MCPS are not going to side with you on this. You should have been more on top of it.

Whoa. Wrong information. AP exams are a profit center for MCPS schools. They do make money off of them.

These fees have never been authorized by the Board of Education or the legislature and are not in any way tied to your child's graduation from high school.

The school is trying to extort money from you. Period.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
OP here. What do you understand from the College Board's own words? The bolded is key.



Unused/canceled exam fee

$40 per exam for:

Exams canceled in AP Registration and Ordering after November 15 and by March 15 (11:59 p.m. ET)
Exams that aren't taken and are indicated as unused in AP Registration and Ordering before the school's invoice is generated. (Invoices are generated after late testing ends.)
The original exam fee is removed from the invoice.

Did you cancel before March 15th?

OP here.

No. Our case falls under number 2 (formatting disappeared when I copied and pasted):
"Exams that aren't taken and are indicated as unused in AP Registration and Ordering before the school's invoice is generated."

This means that regardless of whether someone canceled or not, the College Board just goes ahead and takes $40 from the school if the student does not show up.

And since the school never refunded my $100, it sure as heck isn't getting an extra $40 from me, per exam.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My senior is about to graduate and I'm having trouble with this AP exam payment issue:
February - I paid for all AP exams.
April - my teen decides not to take a few, after checking with his chosen college that they do not give credit for those. He tells the school.
May - the school calls me before the exams, and I confirm which exams he's taking.

Now the school is asking for "unused exam" fees, which apparently the College Board is charging them. They said that since I did not cancel these exams, I have to pay not only the $100 per exam that I've already paid, but a $40 fee on top of that for not canceling each exam. They are insinuating my son can't walk at graduation if these fees are not paid.

The College Board website is unclear, because it says there is such a fee assessed, but in replacement of the full exam fee. So a partial refund, so to speak. I didn't request such a refund, since I was not aware that was possible, and the decision to skip some exams happened at the last minute at the end of April, when my son chose his future college and called them to ask about AP credit. His high school never said we had to initiate a separate cancelation procedure, so we just thought telling the school was sufficient - so they wouldn't keep a seat for him, or worry he was late.

Can someone give me some advice? It's been a trying school year, and I'm seeing red.

AP exams don't cost $100 this year. If that is what your MCPS school told you, they are taking a profit on the exam cost.

AP Exam (except AP Seminar and AP Research) taken in the U.S., U.S. territories, Canada, and DoDEA schools*

$97

Anonymous wrote:My senior is about to graduate and I'm having trouble with this AP exam payment issue:
February - I paid for all AP exams.
April - my teen decides not to take a few, after checking with his chosen college that they do not give credit for those. He tells the school.
May - the school calls me before the exams, and I confirm which exams he's taking.

Now the school is asking for "unused exam" fees, which apparently the College Board is charging them. They said that since I did not cancel these exams, I have to pay not only the $100 per exam that I've already paid, but a $40 fee on top of that for not canceling each exam. They are insinuating my son can't walk at graduation if these fees are not paid.

The College Board website is unclear, because it says there is such a fee assessed, but in replacement of the full exam fee. So a partial refund, so to speak. I didn't request such a refund, since I was not aware that was possible, and the decision to skip some exams happened at the last minute at the end of April, when my son chose his future college and called them to ask about AP credit. His high school never said we had to initiate a separate cancelation procedure, so we just thought telling the school was sufficient - so they wouldn't keep a seat for him, or worry he was late.

Can someone give me some advice? It's been a trying school year, and I'm seeing red.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
OP here. What do you understand from the College Board's own words? The bolded is key.



Unused/canceled exam fee

$40 per exam for:

Exams canceled in AP Registration and Ordering after November 15 and by March 15 (11:59 p.m. ET)
Exams that aren't taken and are indicated as unused in AP Registration and Ordering before the school's invoice is generated. (Invoices are generated after late testing ends.)
The original exam fee is removed from the invoice.

Did you cancel before March 15th?

OP here.

No. Our case falls under number 2 (formatting disappeared when I copied and pasted):
"Exams that aren't taken and are indicated as unused in AP Registration and Ordering before the school's invoice is generated."

This means that regardless of whether someone canceled or not, the College Board just goes ahead and takes $40 from the school if the student does not show up.

And since the school never refunded my $100, it sure as heck isn't getting an extra $40 from me, per exam.

It’s probably the schools fault, if they did not flag it is being unused or whatever the bolded above says.

Either way, I’d pay the money just to eliminate the stress. Your kid probably wants to feel confident that they are walking in graduation, and there may be school deadlines associated with settling any fees prior to.

Just toss it up As a $40 (or whatever) “graduation fee”. I understand principle, but You’re about to pay tens of thousands for college. Instead of stressing about $40, you should be celebrating your kid and enjoying this milestone, without creating negative emotions related to their graduation and the school.

Anonymous wrote:OP the original cost will have gone to the college board, the school does not profit from those fees. They will be expected to pay these $40 per no show and it's on you.

Just pay up and be done with it. The college board and the MCPS are not going to side with you on this. You should have been more on top of it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MCPS charges students to take AP Exams?

Sad to see Pay to Play education.

Yes, because AP exams are not run by MCPS, but the College Board.

Even Florida paid AP fees for students.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
OP here. What do you understand from the College Board's own words? The bolded is key.



Unused/canceled exam fee

$40 per exam for:

Exams canceled in AP Registration and Ordering after November 15 and by March 15 (11:59 p.m. ET)
Exams that aren't taken and are indicated as unused in AP Registration and Ordering before the school's invoice is generated. (Invoices are generated after late testing ends.)
The original exam fee is removed from the invoice.

Did you cancel before March 15th?

OP here.

No. Our case falls under number 2 (formatting disappeared when I copied and pasted):
"Exams that aren't taken and are indicated as unused in AP Registration and Ordering before the school's invoice is generated."

This means that regardless of whether someone canceled or not, the College Board just goes ahead and takes $40 from the school if the student does not show up.

And since the school never refunded my $100, it sure as heck isn't getting an extra $40 from me, per exam.

Anonymous wrote:If the school is forced to pay for things for your kid, he can't walk at graduation. It's a financial obligation. Why don't you call the College Board? The school can't cancel the fees.