AP Microeconomics
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About the Course
Important: We're now offering free, live AP online classes and review lessons for AP Microeconomics to help you prepare for your exam even if your school is closed due to COVID-19. See the course schedule or browse the YouTube playlist. We'll also offer at-home testing for 2020 AP Exams. Note that any related adjustments to 2020 AP Exams, such as length or content covered, may not be reflected on all AP Students pages.
Study the principles of economics that apply to the behavior of individuals within an economic system. You’ll use graphs, charts, and data to analyze, describe, and explain economic concepts.
Skills You'll Learn
Define economic principles and models
Explain given economic outcomes
Determine outcomes of specific economic situations
Model economic situations using graphs or visual representations
Equivalency and Prerequisites
College Course Equivalent
A one-semester, introductory college course in microeconomics.
Recommended Prerequisites
None
Exam Dates
-
Wed, May 20, 2020,
4 PM ETAP Microeconomics Exam
May 20, 2020 is the updated date for the AP Microeconomics Exam.
About the Units
The course content outlined below is organized into commonly taught units of study that provide one possible sequence for the course. Your teacher may choose to organize the course content differently based on local priorities and preferences.
Course Content
Unit 1: Basic Economic Concepts
You’ll study the foundations of microeconomic thinking, including how to evaluate decisions based on constraints and trade-offs and make rational economic choices.
Topics may include:
- Scarcity
- Resource allocation and economic systems
- The Production Possibilities Curve
- Comparative advantage and gains from trade
- Cost-benefit analysis
- Marginal analysis and consumer choice
On The Exam
12%–15% of exam score
Unit 2: Supply and Demand
You’ll learn the basis for understanding how markets work with an introduction to the supply and demand model.
Topics may include:
- Demand
- Supply
- Elasticity
- Market equilibrium, disequilibrium, and changes in equilibrium
- The effects of government intervention in markets
- International trade and public policy
On The Exam
20%–25% of exam score
Unit 3: Production, Cost, and the Perfect Competition Model
You’ll explore the factors that drive the behavior of companies and learn about the perfect competition model.
Topics may include:
- The production function
- Short- and long-run production costs
- Types of profit
- Profit maximization
- Perfect competition
On The Exam
22%–25% of exam score
Unit 4: Imperfect Competition
You’ll learn how imperfectly competitive markets work and how game theory comes into play in economic models.
Topics may include:
- Monopoly
- Price discrimination
- Monopolistic competition
- Oligopoly and game theory
On The Exam
15%–22% of exam score
Unit 5: Factor Markets
You’ll learn how concepts such as supply and demand and marginal decision-making apply in the context of factor markets.
Topics may include:
- Introduction to factor markets
- Changes in factor demand and factor supply
- Profit-maximizing behavior in perfectly competitive factor markets
- Monopsonistic markets
On The Exam
10%–13% of exam score
Unit 6: Market Failure and the Role of Government
You’ll examine the conditions under which markets may fail and the effects of government intervention in markets.
Topics may include:
- Socially efficient and inefficient market outcomes
- Externalities
- Public and private goods
- The effects of government intervention in different market structures
- Income and wealth inequality
On The Exam
8%–13% of exam score
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See Where AP Can Take You
AP Microeconomics can lead to a wide range of careers and college majors
Career Areas
68
Majors
24