Table 2. Percentage distribution of academic year 2003–2004 high school seniors who completed at least one Advanced Placement (AP) examination, by the selectivity of the first postsecondary institution attended and the examination subject area: 2006

Education Longitudinal
Study of 2002 (ELS:2002)

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Examination subject	Highly selective, 4-year institution	Moderately selective, 4-year institution	Inclusive, 4-year institution		Selectivity not classified, 4-year institution		Selectivity not classified, 2-year institution	Selectivity not classified, less than 2-year institution		Nonenrollee, or still enrolled in high school
Total	48.2	29.3	3.3		3.5		11.9	0.4	!	3.4

Mathematics¹	64.8	23.7	1.9	!	2.0	!	5.9	0.2	!	1.4	!
Science²	63.4	23.0	2.2	!	1.7	!	6.7	0.1	!	2.8
English³	52.7	29.7	3.3		3.1		8.3	0.2	!	2.9
Social Science⁴	53.2	27.3	3.2		3.0		9.8	0.1	!	3.4
Foreign Language⁵	52.0	18.5	4.5	!	5.8		12.7	1.3	!	5.2
Other⁶	43.7	31.9	5.0	!	3.9	!	15.4	#		‡
# Rounds to zero.
! Interpret data with caution. Estimate is unstable because the standard error represents more than 30 percent of the estimate.
‡ Reporting standards are not met.
¹ The Mathematics examinations offered include: Calculus AB, Calculus BC, and Statistics.
² The Science examinations offered include: Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science A, Computer Science AB, Physics B, Physics C: E&M, Physics C: Mechanical, and Environmental Science.
³ The English examinations offered include: English Literature & Composition, and English Language & Composition.
⁴ The Social Science examinations offered include: Comparative Government and Politics, European History, Art History, Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, Psychology, US Government & Politics, US History, Human Geography, and World History.
⁵ The Foreign Language examinations offered include: French Language, French Literature, German Language, Latin/Vergil, Latin Literature, Spanish Language, and Spanish Literature.
⁶ The Other examinations offered include: Music Theory, Studio Art: Drawing, Studio Art: 2-D Design, and Studio Art: 3-D Design.
NOTE: AP examinations are developed and administered by The College Board. Not all high schools offer all AP courses in each of these subject areas, but students can apply to take any of the AP examinations in any of the areas. The selectivity of institutions is defined according to the definition used in NCES’s Institutions of Postsecondary Education Data System, which is based on the the 2005 Carnegie Classification of Institutions. The "inclusive", "moderately selective", and "highly selective" categories correspond to 25th percentile ACT-equivalent scores of students who applied to attend the institution. The score ranges for the categories are less than 18, between 18 and 21, and greater than 21 points, respectively. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002), “Second Follow-up, 2006.”

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