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AP® Business with Personal Finance

This Advanced Placement Business with Personal Finance course is equivalent to a first semester, introductory business college-level course. The rigor of this course is consistent with colleges and universities and will prepare students for the Advanced Placement exam in May. Upon successful completion of the exam, students may receive college credit and will be well-prepared for the advanced coursework.

Additional details about this course from the College Board can be found here: About AP Business with Personal Finance, and below:

“AP Business with Personal Finance is part of the AP Career Kickstart™ group of courses, which are designed to accelerate high school students on their paths to in-demand careers. Along with the potential to earn college credit, students with qualifying scores on the exam will earn the AP Business with Personal Finance Credential.

Students explore the business disciplines of entrepreneurship, marketing, finance, accounting, and management through real-world business applications, case studies, and project based learning. In addition, students learn and apply all the National Standards for Personal Financial Education created by the Council for Economic Education and the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy.?

In this course, students will explore five units that reflect key business disciplines:

Unit 1: Businesses, Competition, and New Ideas

Unit 2: Marketing

Unit 3, Part 1: Personal Saving and Borrowing

Unit 3, Part 2: Business Finance and Accounting

Unit 4: Management and Strategy

Unit 5: Personal Goals, Budgeting, and Investing

Throughout the course, students will apply their learning of business concepts to an entrepreneurial project, the Business Canvas Project, which is a modified Business Model Canvas1. The project will provide students with the opportunity to engage in work-based learning experiences, performing tasks a business founder performs such as product development, customer research, marketing, and the preparation of financial documents.

The course will culminate with a Financial Advisor Project, in which students will provide financial recommendations to a fictional household based on a financial profile. The recommendation will help the fictional household develop strategies to manage its budget and meet financial goals related to post-secondary education, home-buying, and retirement. ” (College Board, About AP Business with Personal Finance).

Students will be expected to enroll in AP Classroom through their VHS Learning AP course and will be guided to complete review work in AP Classroom throughout the year. AP Classroom resources include AP Daily Videos and unit-based Personal Progress Checks, which include AP-style multiple choice and free response questions.

Students enrolled in VHS Learning Advanced Placement courses with a passing grade are expected to take the AP Exam. Students register for AP exams through their local school or testing site as “Exam Only” students. AP exam scores will be reported to VHS Learning through AP Classroom; exam results will not affect the student’s VHS Learning grade or future enrollment in VHS Learning courses.

This AP course has a required summer assignment. The summer assignment is a review of prerequisite content and critical concepts students must be comfortable with before beginning the course. Students are expected to complete their summer assignment before the course begins and submit their work by the end of Week 1. Students who register on or after September 1 will receive an extension to complete the summer assignment by the end of Week 3.

In this AP-level course, students are expected to invest approximately 10 hours per week on their coursework.

Acknowledgements

  • There are no specific course prerequisites for AP Business with Personal Finance. Students should be able to read a college-level textbook and to express themselves clearly in writing.
  • This course has an Additional Course Fee of $80.
  • The required summer assignment for AP Business Principles with Personal Finance can be found in our AP Summer Work Directory.

Course Objectives

Course Essential Questions:

  • How do individuals and businesses apply core concepts and principles to make strategic decisions that solve complex problems and achieve their goals?
  • How do the entrepreneurial process and effective marketing lead to a successful business that satisfies a gap in the market?
  • How do leaders and families use accounting and finance data to make effective long-term decisions for organizations and households?
  • How do managers and individuals strategically address internal capacities and external environmental factors to shape the viability of businesses and households?

Course Learning Objectives:

  • Explain how fundamental business and personal finance principles shape specific goals and actions.
  • Develop a validated product or service idea by identifying market opportunities and testing business hypotheses.
  • Evaluate potential courses of action using systematic criteria and strategic frameworks.
  • Produce authentic business and financial communications tailored to reach and persuade specific audiences.
  • Analyze the financial health and performance of organizations and households.
  • Assess how internal capabilities, competition, and external PESTEL factors impact viability.
  • Construct comprehensive personal financial plans integrating budgeting, debt, risk, and investing.

Additional Requirements

This AP course has a required summer assignment. The summer assignment is a review of prerequisite content and critical concepts students must be comfortable with before beginning the course. Students are expected to complete their summer assignment before the course begins and submit their work by the end of Week 1. Students who register on or after September 1 will receive an extension to complete the summer assignment by the end of Week 3.