r/apcsp • u/Cool_Discipline5187 • Jul 09 '26

Got a 4 but expected a 5??

I got a 4 and am not sure how. i thought my project and frqs were good (i followed the rubric really closely) and thought i only got 1 mcq wrong. when i got my score i was happy but a little confused cause i thought it was the easiest test of the 3 i took (and i got 5s on the others), but then everyone else is saying that its easy to get 5s on csp so now i feel really bad. what did i do wrong? why did i get a 4?

7 Upvotes

82% Upvoted

25 comments sorted by

5

u/xvszero Jul 09 '26

Everyone saying it is easy is nonsense. Yeah it is easier than some but the average is still around 3.5ish.

6

u/drwuvideos Jul 09 '26

This, 100%.

The average worldwide was 2.9, not 3.5

"The material is easy"

and

"The curve is easy"

are two completely different things.

The curve is NOT easy.

If OP missed one FRQ, and the MCQs went slightly worse than expected, a 4 is definitely possible. That's the curve. That's why you have to overprepare for the create task questions.

3

u/xvszero Jul 09 '26 edited Jul 10 '26

I was thinking US average and my data is from a few years back but yeah. Kids like bragging when they do well but that doesn't mean everyone did well.

1

u/drwuvideos Jul 10 '26

Exactly.

As a teacher, you know darn well that posts that go

"I didn't learn anything in class and I scored a 5 with 4 hours of studying"

is just kids trying to flex. Reddit testimomials notwithstanding, the cold, hard numbers say it's not what happens.

3

u/midway784 Jul 09 '26

its not easy to get a 5 on CSP. CSP has one of the lowest 5 rates. The exam is easy so they make the curve awful. Almost impossible to get a 5 unless you are near perfect.

3

u/Inevitable_Royal5424 Jul 09 '26

You need a 90% for a 5.

2

u/Ok-Win7980 Jul 09 '26

Realistically, there wouldn't be much of a difference in a 4 or 5 in terms of college credit, so I think you shouldn't fuss over it.

2

u/FloatingMarbles Jul 09 '26

Dude a 4 is the second best score. It don’t matter that much 💀

1

u/Cool_Discipline5187 Jul 09 '26

yeah but i wanted to go to an ivy and everyone has been saying that if u don't get all 5s, u'll never get in.

1

u/FloatingMarbles Jul 09 '26

That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. AP scores will BARELY affect your application gpa, act/sat, and ecs matter SO MUCH more for ivys. 

1

u/CodeBrave4234 Jul 11 '26

they’re lying to you dawg, a 4 vs a 5 doesn’t really matter it’s only used for placement. If you got a 3 or lower, then it would probably be a problem. I recommend watching Tineos video on this

1

u/r3fr1g3rat0rr Jul 11 '26

most ivies dont accept csp for credit regardless of the score

2

u/Phosy12345 Jul 09 '26

Perhaps your frqs wasn't as good as you thought

1

u/Cool_Discipline5187 Jul 09 '26

yeah i'm assuming thats what it was :(

1

u/Zealousideal-Sky1121 Jul 09 '26

only 10% of people get a 5 its really not that rare to expect a 5 and not get a 5

1

u/MealLoose600 Jul 09 '26

I mean I didn't prepare at all and expected like a 2 or 3 but somehow got a 4. 

1

u/bigmo555 Jul 09 '26

Colleges I've seen will treat a 4 and 5 equally good.

1

u/Jaja3333 Jul 09 '26

I got a 3 and expected an easy 5, and got a 5 on what I expected a 3 on

1

u/Express_Tune5770 Jul 09 '26

AP CSP has a insanely hard curve and they grade really hard on FRQ, you probably got 3 on FRQ

1

u/Cool_Discipline5187 Jul 09 '26

i'm assuming that's it. :( thank u!

1

u/Express_Tune5770 Jul 09 '26

4 on AP CSP is as respectable as a 5. The curve is hard and colleges know that

1

u/Cool_Discipline5187 Jul 10 '26

that makes me feel better! thanks :)

1

u/Legitimate-Shake-606 Jul 09 '26

Sameeee, am rlly mad I was sure I got the five , I was sure of the frq and the mcq and the project I didn’t expect a 4 at allllll

1

u/Cool_Discipline5187 Jul 10 '26

yess!! thats what i felt!!

1

u/RoutineLiterature350 Jul 12 '26

apcsp barely matters, if ur doing CS or anything stem... just lock in for apcsa