AP® Computer Science A 2025 Scoring Guidelines - Applying the Scoring Criteria

Q: How should scoring criteria be applied in AP Computer Science A 2025?

Apply the question scoring criteria first because it always takes precedence. Penalty points can only be deducted in a part that already earned credit via the rubric.

Q: What are the rules for assigning penalty points?

A penalty can be assessed only once for a question even if it occurs multiple times across parts. No part may have a negative point total, and a maximum of 3 penalty points may be assessed per question.

Q: How do the guidelines handle problems caused by misrendered characters or missing punctuation?

The digital decision rules instruct treating certain badly displayed non-ASCII characters as likely punctuation if they make sense. They also direct assumptions for missing closed quotes or parentheses and missing or implied curly brackets/indentation where feasible.

Sep 22, 2026

Uploaded by Pentious

AP® Computer Science A 2025 Scoring Guidelines define how to apply question scoring criteria and enforce precedence: rubric-credited parts can receive penalty points, but no part may have a negative point total. The guidelines specify limits and conditions for assessing penalties (max 3 per question; each penalty only once even if repeated) and enumerate common 1-point penalties versus “No Penalty” cases. They also include digital decision rules for handling misrendered non-ASCII characters and missing quotes or brackets, plus scoring details for Question 1 on methods and control structures.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages24

Reading Time1 h 0 min

AccessFree to download

Applying the Scoring Criteria

1-Point Penalty

No Penalty

2025 Digital Decision Rules

Question 1: Methods and Control Structures

2025 AP® Computer Science A Scoring Guidelines © 2025 College Board. College Board, Advanced Placement, AP, AP Central, and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of College Board. Visit College Board on the web: [collegeboard.org](collegeboard.org). [AP Central is the official online home for the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org](AP Central is the official online home for the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org). AP® Computer Science A 2025 Scoring Guidelines Applying the Scoring Criteria Apply the question scoring criteria first, which always takes precedence. Penalty points can only be deducted in a part of the question that has earned credit via the question rubric. No part of a question (a, b, c) may have a negative point total. A given penalty can be assessed only once for a question, even if it occurs multiple times or in multiple parts of that question. A maximum of 3 penalty points may be assessed per question. 1-Point Penalty v) Array/collection access confusion ([] get) w) Extraneous code that causes side-effect (e.g., printing to output, incorrect precondition check) x) Local variables used but none declared y) Destruction of persistent data (e.g., changing value referenced by parameter) z) Void method or constructor that returns a value No Penalty • Extraneous code with no side-effect (e.g., valid precondition check, no-op) • Spelling/case discrepancies where there is no ambiguity * • Local variable not declared provided other variables are declared in some part • private or public qualifier on a local variable • Missing public qualifier on class or constructor header • Keyword used as an identifier • Common mathematical symbols used for operators (× • ÷ ≤ ≥ <> ≠) • [] vs. () vs. <> • = instead of == and vice versa • length/size confusion for array, String, List, or ArrayList; with or without ( ) • Extraneous [] when referencing entire array • [i,j] instead of [i][j] • Extraneous size in array declaration, e.g., int[size] nums = new int[size]; • Missing ; where structure clearly conveys intent • Missing { } where indentation clearly conveys intent • Missing ( ) on parameter-less method or constructor invocations • Missing ( ) around if or while conditions *Spelling and case discrepancies for identifiers fall under the “No Penalty” category only if the correction can be unambiguously inferred from context, for example,“ArayList” instead of “ArrayList”. As a counterexample, note that if the code declares "int G=99, g=0;", then uses "while (G < 10)"instead of "while (g < 10)", the context does not allow for the reader to assume the use of the lower case variable. © 2025 College Board AP® Computer Science A 2025 Scoring Guidelines 2025 Digital Decision Rules • Some non-ASCII characters are not printing correctly in ONE, particularly extended punctuation. Certain kinds of double-quotes may display as â⍰⍰; a character that displays as ï¼⍰ may be a parenthesis, comma, or semicolon (or other punctuation) . If the badly displayed character makes sense as one of those, evaluate the response accordingly. • If there are missing closed-double-quotes or closed-parentheses, assume they are at the end of the line where they opened, immediately before the semicolon or curly bracket (if any) . • Assume an open/left curly bracket { immediately after any method header or class header that does not already have one. • Assume an appropriate amount of closing brackets before any method header to close all open brackets from the previous method or constructor. • If there are missing curly brackets, clear indentation can "convey intent". Evaluate the response accordingly. • Inside a method with left-justified code, indentation cannot "convey intent", so missing curly brackets cannot be assumed. Without bracketing or indentation, only the first line of a while / if / for is controlled by the statement; with open curly bracket and no indentation cues

FAQs

How should scoring criteria be applied in AP Computer Science A 2025?

Apply the question scoring criteria first because it always takes precedence. Penalty points can only be deducted in a part that already earned credit via the rubric.

What are the rules for assigning penalty points?

A penalty can be assessed only once for a question even if it occurs multiple times across parts. No part may have a negative point total, and a maximum of 3 penalty points may be assessed per question.

How do the guidelines handle problems caused by misrendered characters or missing punctuation?

The digital decision rules instruct treating certain badly displayed non-ASCII characters as likely punctuation if they make sense. They also direct assumptions for missing closed quotes or parentheses and missing or implied curly brackets/indentation where feasible.

Sep 22, 2026

Uploaded by Pentious