AP Comparative Government and Politics - Study Guides, Flashcards, AP-style Practice & Mock Exams

The exam is 2 hours and 30 minutes long and has two sections. You will have 60 minutes for 55 multiple-choice questions and 90 minutes for four free-response questions (FRQs). The FRQs require specific skills, including conceptual analysis, quantitative analysis, comparative analysis, and crafting an argument essay.

This course develops five core skills essential for political science. You will practice Concept Application, Country Comparison, Data Analysis of quantitative information, and Source Analysis of texts. The final skill, Argumentation, requires you to build a defensible claim with specific evidence from the course countries.

We recommend a sequential approach to master the ~24 hours of content. Progress through the 5 units by completing each topic and its AP-style quiz. After each unit, take the Unit Exam to solidify your knowledge. Finally, use the two full-length mock exams to simulate test-day conditions and gauge your overall readiness.

The Argument Essay requires you to develop a defensible claim and support it with a line of reasoning. You must use specific evidence from one or more of the six course countries to support your thesis. This question directly assesses the skill of argumentation and your ability to construct a cohesive political science argument.

This FRQ presents quantitative data, like a chart or table, and asks you to analyze it. You must accurately identify a trend or pattern in the data and then use your course knowledge to explain that pattern or draw a conclusion. This task directly tests your Data Analysis skill within a political context.

The course focuses on the political systems of six specific countries. You will conduct in-depth comparative analysis of the United Kingdom, Russia, China, Iran, Nigeria, and Mexico. You must be able to apply course concepts and provide specific examples from these countries on both sections of the exam.

Consistent practice is the most effective way to prepare for the multiple-choice questions. Use our 457 practice questions to test your knowledge of the 43 course topics and get comfortable with the question formats. Focus on questions that require source analysis of texts, charts, and maps, as these are common on the exam.

FRQs are scored using rubrics that award points for completing specific tasks. To earn full credit, you must accurately define concepts, provide specific evidence from course countries, and clearly explain relationships. Understanding the rubric language for skills like comparison and argumentation is key to maximizing your score.

You do not need to memorize exact statistics like GDP or specific election percentages. Instead, focus on understanding broad trends and the political significance of data. The exam will provide any necessary quantitative data and test your Data Analysis skills, not your ability to recall specific numbers from memory.

Effective practice involves actively applying concepts to the six core countries. Use our 513 flashcards to master key terminology, then apply those terms in practice FRQs. This helps build the Concept Application skill, which is crucial for explaining political institutions, processes, and behaviors as required by the exam rubrics.