Sheryl Grey is a freelance writer who specializes in creating content related to education, aging and senior living, and real estate. She is also a copywriter who helps businesses grow through expert website copywriting, branding and content creation.
Sheryl Grey Education WriterSheryl Grey is a freelance writer who specializes in creating content related to education, aging and senior living, and real estate. She is also a copywriter who helps businesses grow through expert website copywriting, branding and content creation.
Written By Sheryl Grey Education WriterSheryl Grey is a freelance writer who specializes in creating content related to education, aging and senior living, and real estate. She is also a copywriter who helps businesses grow through expert website copywriting, branding and content creation.
Sheryl Grey Education WriterSheryl Grey is a freelance writer who specializes in creating content related to education, aging and senior living, and real estate. She is also a copywriter who helps businesses grow through expert website copywriting, branding and content creation.
Education Writer Brenna Swanston Deputy EditorBrenna Swanston is an education-focused editor and writer with a particular interest in education equity and alternative educational paths. As a newswriter in her early career, Brenna's education reporting earned national awards and state-level accol.
Brenna Swanston Deputy EditorBrenna Swanston is an education-focused editor and writer with a particular interest in education equity and alternative educational paths. As a newswriter in her early career, Brenna's education reporting earned national awards and state-level accol.
Brenna Swanston Deputy EditorBrenna Swanston is an education-focused editor and writer with a particular interest in education equity and alternative educational paths. As a newswriter in her early career, Brenna's education reporting earned national awards and state-level accol.
Brenna Swanston Deputy EditorBrenna Swanston is an education-focused editor and writer with a particular interest in education equity and alternative educational paths. As a newswriter in her early career, Brenna's education reporting earned national awards and state-level accol.
Updated: May 13, 2024, 10:19am
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For many high school students, taking AP courses is a great way to prepare for—and test out of —the coursework they will encounter in college. The AP Capstone™ offers diploma and certificate credentials that signals AP students have developed the essential abilities they need for college.
Rather than focusing on specific academic subjects, AP Capstone courses take an interdisciplinary approach, allowing students to develop their research, critical thinking, presentation, collaboration and time management skills. These tools help students succeed in their college coursework and future careers.
This article explores the AP Capstone program to give you an overview of what you should know if you’re considering choosing this educational path. Keep reading to learn more about this unique program and determine if it fits your needs.
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The AP Capstone Program helps students prepare for college while still in high school. College is a rigorous experience that requires excellent research, time management, collaboration, presentation and critical thinking skills. Students who earn the capstone program’s diploma or certificate may thrive in college because they have spent time developing crucial skills they need for higher education coursework.
The AP Capstone program combines subject-based coursework and skills-based classes to provide a well-rounded learning experience for students. Below, we examine the program’s structure and required courses.
Alongside subject-specific AP courses, students in the AP Capstone program take two year-long classes: an AP Seminar course and an AP Research class. These courses teach students how to analyze and understand complex subjects, investigate issues, communicate effectively and collaborate with peers to solve problems.
The AP Capstone program uses the QUEST framework to help students develop these essential skills. The components of this framework are:
If you score 3 or higher in your seminar and research courses—and on at least four other AP courses—you earn the AP Capstone Diploma™. If you score 3 or higher in your seminar and research courses but not on at least four other AP courses, you earn the AP Seminar and Research Certificate™.
You can take your AP Seminar in 10th or 11th grade. AP Seminar is a prerequisite to the AP Research course. The seminar class focuses on building critical thinking, collaboration and research skills through interdisciplinary approaches. You learn how to read and analyze articles and other written materials, gather information, understand multiple perspectives and develop evidence-based arguments.
You take your AP Research course after completing your AP Seminar class. This course builds on the skills you develop in the AP Seminar. It allows you to demonstrate your research and critical thinking skills through a subject of your choice. You learn how to conduct an in-depth investigation, analyze evidence and sources, apply multiple perspectives, write an academic paper and present your research findings.
AP courses explore specific subjects, including English, the arts, sciences, history, social sciences, math, computer science and world languages and cultures. The exams for these classes test the depth and breadth of your knowledge in these fields.
In contrast, AP Capstone is a program consisting of a two-course sequence. To receive the AP Capstone Diploma, you must earn a score of 3 or higher on your AP Seminar class, your AP Research course and four other AP classes. If you earn a 3 in the AP Capstone courses but not four other AP classes, you receive the AP Seminar and Research Certificate.
Unlike other AP classes, the seminar and research courses do not focus on particular subjects.
Whether completing the AP Capstone program is worth it depends on your educational goals and how dedicated you are to achieving them. If you want to get a jump start on understanding how to engage in college-level research and coursework, then it may be worth it for you to participate in the AP Capstone program.
The benefits of an AP Capstone program include:
While AP Capstone programs can improve many important academic and communication skills, they are also quite demanding. Taking on the additional time commitments required for the AP Capstone classes may not appeal to you.
Earning an AP Capstone Diploma demonstrates your college readiness, which may be helpful during the admissions process at some colleges and universities. The College Board, who developed the AP Capstone Diploma program, created these courses in response to academic leaders’ desire for classes that prepare students for the rigorous demands of academic research, collaboration and writing.
According to College Board research, students who earn an AP Capstone Diploma in high school are more likely to have higher grades and retention rates in their first year of college than students who did not take AP exams during high school.
The point of the AP Capstone program is building college-level research and academic skills for high school students. The two-course sequence also helps develop interdisciplinary thinking and collaboration skills.
AP classes are subject-specific courses that focus on topics like English, history and the sciences. The AP Capstone program is a two-class sequence—AP Seminar and AP Research—that helps prepare you for college while in high school.
Yes, some colleges offer course credit for passing scores on AP Capstone classes. Earning an AP Capstone Diploma or Certificate also appears on your AP score report, and schools may value applicants with these credentials.
Schools typically offer the AP Seminar course in either 10th or 11th grade, with the AP Research class the following year. The seminar course is a prerequisite for the research course.
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Education WriterSheryl Grey is a freelance writer who specializes in creating content related to education, aging and senior living, and real estate. She is also a copywriter who helps businesses grow through expert website copywriting, branding and content creation. Sheryl holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications from Indiana University South Bend, and she received her teacher certification training through Bethel University’s Transition to Teaching program.
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