# AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism

Advanced Placement (AP) Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism (also known as AP Physics C: E&M or AP E&M) is an introductory physics course administered by the College Board as part of its Advanced Placement program. It is intended to serve as a proxy for a second-semester calculus-based university course in electricity and magnetism. Physics C: E&M may be combined with its mechanics counterpart to form a year-long course that prepares for both exams.

## History

Before 1973, the topics of AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism were covered in a singular AP Physics C exam, which included mechanics, electricity, magnetism, optics, fluids, and modern physics. In 1973, this exam was discontinued, and two new exams were created, which each covered Newtonian mechanics and electromagnetism.
Before 2006, test-takers paid only once and were given the choice of taking either one or two parts of the Physics C test. This was changed, so now test-takers have to pay twice to take both parts of the AP Physics C test.
Before the 2024–25 school year, the multiple choice and free response section were each allotted 45 minutes, with 35 questions for the former and 3 questions for the latter. This made AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism, along with Mechanics, the shortest exams offered by the College Board. Unlike other exams, the AP Physics C exams also had 5 options that test-takers could choose from rather than the typical 4. This was changed in an announcement made by College Board in the February 2024 regarding changes to their AP Physics courses for the 2024–25 school year onward, which explained that the multiple choice sections would have 40 questions and the free response sections would have 4 questions. To compensate, College Board allotted 80 minutes for the multiple choice section and 100 minutes for the free response section, making the exams as long as the ones for AP Physics 1 and AP Physics 2.

## Curriculum

E&M is equivalent to an introductory college course in electricity and magnetism for physics or engineering majors. The course modules are:
| Topic | Exam Weighting |
| Electric Charges, Fields, and Gauss's Law | 15–25% |
| Electric Potential | 10–20% |
| Conductors and Capacitors | 10–15% |
| Electric Circuits | 15–25% |
| Magnetic Fields and Electromagnetism | 10–20% |
| Electromagnetic Induction | 10–20% |
The content of Physics C: E&M overlaps with that of AP Physics 2, but Physics 2 is algebra-based and covers additional topics outside of electromagnetism, while Physics C is calculus-based and only covers electromagnetism. Methods of calculus are used wherever appropriate in formulating physical principles and in applying them to physical problems. Therefore, students should have completed or be concurrently enrolled in a calculus class.
Starting in the 2024–25 school year, all units in AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism are numbered sequentially after the 7 units in AP Physics C: Mechanics. This starts with Electric Charges, Fields, and Gauss's Law as unit 8 and ends with Electromagnetic Induction as unit 13.

## Exam

| Section | Questions | Time | Exam Weighting |
| Section I: Multiple Choice | 40 MCQ | 1 hour 20 minutes | 50% |
| Section II: Free Response | 4 FRQ | 1 hour 40 minutes | 50% |
The course culminates in an optional exam for which high-performing students may receive some credit towards their college coursework, depending on the institution.

### Science Practices Assessed

Multiple Choice and Free Response Sections of the AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism exam are also assessed on scientific practices. Below are tables representing the practices assessed and their weighting for both parts of the exam
Section 1: Multiple Choice :
| Science Practice | Exam Weighting |
| 2. Mathematical Routines | 65–85% |
| 3. Experimental Design and Analysis | 20–35% |
Section 2: Free Response :
| Science Practice | Exam Weighting |
| 1. Creating Representations | 20–35% |
| 2. Mathematical Routines | 40–45% |
| 3. Scientific Questioning and Argumentation | 30–35% |

### Grade distribution

The grade distributions for the Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism scores since 2010 were:
| Score | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| 5 | 32.0% | 32.0% | 35.1% | 31.7% | 33.5% | 31.4% | 34.6% | 31.9% | 37.4% | 34.6% | 40.4% | 32.6% | 31.5% | 33.6% | 27% |
| 4 | 25.2% | 24.5% | 24.0% | 24.1% | 25.1% | 24.5% | 22.7% | 25.2% | 22.5% | 22.6% | 22.4% | 23.1% | 23.6% | 23.5% | 23% |
| 3 | 13.1% | 14.1% | 13.9% | 13.7% | 12.2% | 12.5% | 13.2% | 14.3% | 13.5% | 13.9% | 11.6% | 13.8% | 14.3% | 13.1% | 17% |
| 2 | 17.4% | 17.7% | 16.5% | 19.0% | 17.6% | 19.7% | 17.9% | 16.9% | 16.3% | 17.8% | 16.2% | 18.0% | 18.1% | 17.9% | 20% |
| 1 | 12.3% | 11.7% | 10.5% | 11.6% | 11.6% | 11.9% | 11.6% | 11.7% | 10.3% | 11.1% | 9.5% | 12.5% | 12.5% | 11.9% | 13% |
| % of Scores 3 or Higher | 70.3% | 70.6% | 73.0% | 69.5% | 70.8% | 68.4% | 70.5% | 71.4% | 73.4% | 71.1% | 74.4% | 69.5% | 69.4% | 70.2% | 67% |
| Mean | 3.47 | 3.47 | 3.57 | 3.46 | 3.51 | 3.44 | 3.51 | 3.49 | 3.60 | 3.52 | 3.68 | 3.45 | 3.44 | 3.49 | 3.31 |
| Standard Deviation | 1.41 | 1.39 | 1.38 | 1.40 | 1.40 | 1.41 | 1.41 | 1.39 | 1.39 | 1.40 | 1.38 | 1.42 | 1.41 | 1.41 | 1.39 |
| Number of Students | 14,191 | 15,185 | 17,380 | 19,380 | 20,765 | 22,789 | 23,347 | 24,249 | 25,074 | 25,342 | 23,655 | 20,471 | 19,978 | 24,179 | - |