Your first session is about building a personalized plan. A tutor will assess your current understanding of key historical periods and themes, review your practice test scores if available, and identify which sections of the exam challenge you most—whether it's the multiple-choice questions, short-answer questions, or the long essay. From there, you'll develop a targeted study schedule that fits your timeline before the May exam.

Many students struggle with three main areas: managing the breadth of content across 500+ years of history, analyzing primary source documents under timed conditions, and crafting thesis statements that directly address the prompt. Additionally, the transition from multiple-choice to free-response questions requires different skills—you need both factual recall and the ability to construct historical arguments with supporting evidence.

Tutors teach you concrete strategies like how to decode multiple-choice questions to avoid common traps, how to quickly identify relevant documents in the Document-Based Question, and how to structure essays that earn maximum points. They'll also help you practice pacing—many students run out of time on the free-response section—and teach you how to prioritize which questions to tackle first based on your strengths.

Practice tests are essential because they reveal exactly where you stand and where to focus your studying. Taking full-length practice exams under timed conditions helps you build stamina for the 3-hour exam and identifies content gaps or question types that trip you up. A tutor can review your practice test performance with you, pinpoint patterns in your mistakes, and adjust your study plan accordingly.

Ideally, starting 3-4 months before the May exam gives you time to fill content gaps, practice all question types, and refine your strategies. However, even a few weeks of focused tutoring can help if you're already familiar with the material—a tutor can accelerate your progress by targeting exactly what you need rather than reviewing everything. The key is consistency: regular sessions are more effective than cramming.

Look for tutors who have scored well on the AP exam themselves, have teaching experience with AP-level history, and understand the specific rubrics AP graders use. They should be able to explain not just historical facts, but how to construct historical arguments and analyze sources—skills that are central to the exam. Many expert tutors have backgrounds in history education or have successfully coached multiple students through the AP exam.

Yes—essay writing is one of the most improvable areas with targeted tutoring. A tutor will teach you how to write a clear, specific thesis that directly answers the prompt, how to use historical evidence effectively to support your argument, and how to avoid common pitfalls like vague claims or listing facts without analysis. With practice and feedback on multiple essays, most students see significant improvement in their free-response scores.