AP Capstone Diploma Program

By participating in AP Capstone, students can:

• Distinguish themselves in the college application process.
• Build essential academic skills that will benefit them in other courses, college, and future careers.
• Grow into confident, independent thinkers and effective problem-solvers.
• Earn college credit, as many colleges award credit for qualifying AP scores.

If you earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research and on four additional AP Exams of your choice, you’ll receive the AP Capstone Diploma™ .

If you earn scores of 3 or higher in AP Seminar and AP Research, you’ll receive the AP Seminar and Research Certificate™.

*Information Taken from the College Board website

In this course, you’ll explore issues from multiple perspectives, assess credible sources, analyze the strengths and weaknesses of different arguments, and develop logical, evidence-based recommendations. You'll investigate diverse topics through various viewpoints that interest you. Throughout the course, you'll complete a team project, an individual paper, and a presentation, along with a written exam at the end of the course, all of which contribute to your overall AP Seminar score.

• Students enrolled in this course must take the AP® exam to earn college credit.
• AP Seminar is a prerequisite for AP Research.

Advanced Placement® Seminar Klein ISD Course Information

Klein ISD #: 9930
Grades: 9-12
Credit: 1
Prerequisite: None
Advanced Grade Points: Yes

AP® Seminar is a foundational course that engages students in cross-curricular conversations that explore the complexities of academic and real-world topics and issues by analyzing divergent perspectives. Using an inquiry framework, students practice reading and analyzing articles, research studies, and foundational, literary, and philosophical texts; listening to and viewing speeches, broadcasts, and personal accounts; and experiencing artistic works and performances. Students learn to synthesize information from multiple sources, develop their own perspectives in written essays, and design and deliver oral and visual presentations, both individually and as part of a team. Ultimately, the course aims to equip students with the power to analyze and evaluate information with accuracy and precision in order to craft and communicate evidence-based arguments.

In AP Research, you'll delve into different research methods and undertake an independent research project. Your project can expand on a topic, issue, or problem you studied in AP Seminar, or it can focus on a completely new topic of your choice. At the end of the project, you’ll submit an academic paper and present and defend your research findings. These elements together determine your overall AP Research score.

• There is no end-of-course exam.
• Students enrolled in this course must take the AP® exam to earn college credit.

Advanced Placement® Research Klein ISD Course Information

Klein ISD: # 9931
Grades: 10-12
Credit: 1
Prerequisite: AP  Seminar
Advanced Grade Points: Yes

AP® Research, the second course in the AP Capstone experience, allows students to deeply explore an academic topic, problem, issue, or idea of individual interest. Students design, plan, and implement a yearlong investigation to address a research question. Through this inquiry, they further the skills they acquired in the AP Seminar course by learning research methodology, employing ethical research practices, and accessing, analyzing, and synthesizing information. Students reflect on their skill development, document their processes, and curate the artifacts of their scholarly work through a process and reflection portfolio. The course culminates in an academic paper of 4,000–5,000 words (accompanied by a performance, exhibit, or product where applicable) and a presentation with an oral defense.