AP® English Language and Composition Exam: Format and 2027 Date
How the exam is built – sections, questions, timing and weighting – and when it happens in 2027.
Learn how – Exam course packs: watch the 1-minute video · print (PDF) · also Teacher Information Packs
- Exam date
- Wednesday, May 12, 2027, 8 a.m. local
- Total time
- 3 h 15 min
- Students in May 2025
- 616,294 (rank 1 of all AP exams)
Plan the whole year: open this course in the Year Planner – every lesson dated around your school calendar, with a coverage check. Free.
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Exam sections
| Section | Questions | Time | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section I: Multiple Choice Reading questions on nonfiction passages plus writing questions about revising sample texts. | 45 | 1 h | 45% |
| Section II: Free Response Three essays: a synthesis essay from six sources, a rhetorical analysis and an evidence-based argument (time includes a 15-minute reading period). | 3 | 2 h 15 min | 55% |
Section summaries are our own words. Not yet confirmed by us: Unit list not read yet.
Official links
All 2027 AP® exam dates · US tests · Find another TIP
Facts only (exam dates, section times, question counts, weightings and exam-taker numbers) from College Board's AP Central pages, read 20 October 2026; the summaries are our own words. No course and exam description text, questions or scoring guidelines are reproduced. Always check AP Central before you plan around a date.
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