If you are looking for the best AP® Human Geography review guide for the 2024 AP® exams, you’ve come to the right place. This post will cover the exam format, the best practice resources to review, and some AP® Human Geography study tips.
Without further ado, let’s get started!
What We Review
What’s the Format of the 2024 AP® Human Geography Exam?
The AP® Human Geography exam includes two sections: multiple choice and free response. There are 60 MCQs and 3 FRQs.
| Section | Questions | Time | % of Exam Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section 1: Multiple Choice (MCQs) | 60 MCQs | 1 hour | 50% |
| Section 2: Free Response (FRQs) | 3 FRQs | 1 hour 15 minutes | 50% |
What Units Are on the 2024 AP® Human Geography Exam?
The AP® Human Geography curriculum includes 7 different units. All 7 units will be tested on the 2024 AP® Human Geography exam.
Use the following list to make sure you are prepared for any topic that may show up on your exam!
Unit 1: Thinking Geographically
- interpret and analyze different types of geographic data
- explain how geographic data is used for decision-making
- explain how geographic patterns and concepts affect social relationships
- define scales of analysis used by geographers: global, regional, national, and local
Unit 2: Population and Migration Patterns and Processes
- learn about the factors that influence population distribution and density, and explain how population distribution and density affect society and the environment
- understand and explain the different methods that geographers use to measure population density
- understand how populations are composed, and how geographers study population composition
- explain the factors and theories of population growth and decline, including population and immigration policies
- explain the changing role of women, and how it influences different societies
- explain the causes and impacts of aging populations
- describe types of migration, including reasons why people migrate and the effects that migrations have at scale
Unit 3: Cultural Patterns and Processes
- define culture and describe the characteristics of cultural landscapes, including how land and resource use reflect cultural beliefs and identities
- explain patterns and landscapes of language, religion, ethnicity, and gender
- define the types of diffusion; explain how universalizing religions become diffused; and describe how diffusion results in changing cultural landscapes
- explain how historical processes impact contemporary culture
Unit 4: Political Patterns and Processes
- read world political maps and define and identify different types of political entities
- explain the factors that shape contemporary political geography
- define and describe political power; territoriality; and types of political boundaries
- explain the nature and function of international and internal boundaries
- define federal and unitary states, and explain how they affect spatial organization
- explain the factors that lead to the devolution of states or challenge state sovereignty
- define centripetal and centrifugal forces and how they apply at the state scale
Unit 5: Agriculture and Rural Land-Use Patterns and Processes
- explain how geography and economics affect agricultural practices
- identify different rural settlement patterns
- identify domestication centers for plants and animals, and explain how different plants and animals diffused globally
- explain the consequences of the second agricultural revolution and the Green Revolution
- describe the von Thünen model
- explain the interdependent regions of agricultural consumption and production
- explain the societal and environmental consequences of agricultural practices, and explain challenges and debates around the changing nature of contemporary and food-production practices
- explain geographic variations in female roles in food production and consumption
Unit 6: Cities and Urban Land-Use Patterns and Processes
- explain the processes that initiate and drive urbanization and suburbanization
- explain how cities embody processes of globalization
- explain the internal structure of cities using various models and theories
- identify different urban design initiatives and practices
- describe the effectiveness of different attempts to address urban sustainability challenges
Unit 7: Industrial and Economic Development Patterns and Processes
- explain how the Industrial Revolution facilitated the growth and diffusion of industrialization
- describe social and economic measures of development
- explain how and to what extent changes in economic development have contributed to gender parity
- explain different theories of economic and social development
- explain how sustainability principles relate to and impact industrialization and spatial development
Test Your Understanding: AP® Human Geography Multiple Choice Practice Questions
Use the following links to Albert’s AP® Human Geography course to see if you truly understand each of the units:
- Unit 1: Thinking Geographically
- Unit 2: Population and Migration Patterns and Processes
- Unit 3: Cultural Patterns and Processes
- Unit 4: Political Patterns and Processes
- Unit 5: Agriculture and Rural Land-Use Patterns and Processes
- Unit 6: Cities and Urban Land-Use Patterns and Processes
- Unit 7: Industrial and Economic Development Patterns and Processes
2024 AP® Human Geography Exam FRQ Practice
In addition to the 60 multiple-choice questions, the AP® Human Geography exam also consists of three Free Response questions, which make up 50% of a student’s score.
Each FRQ is comprised of a series of seven questions relating to a topic. Each question should be answered in a few sentences and is worth 1 point.
According to the College Board: “Each free-response question presents students with an authentic geographic situation or scenario and assesses students’ ability to describe, explain, and apply geographic concepts, processes, or models, as they analyze geographic patterns, relationships, and outcomes in applied contexts.”
The first FRQ does not include any stimuli. The second will include one stimulus, while the third will include two.
Want to practice? Check out the following free-response questions from past exams.
No Stimulus Questions
The first FRQ on the exam will contain no stimulus.
Example: 2021 Question 1 (Set 1)
Scoring: 2021 Question 1 (Set 1) Scoring Sheet
One-Stimulus Questions
The second FRQ on the exam will contain one stimulus. This might be an image, graph, chart, table, map, or another type of stimulus.
Example: 2021 Question 2 (Set 2)
Scoring: 2021 Question 2 (Set 2) Scoring Sheet
Two-Stimulus Questions
The third FRQ on the exam will contain two stimuli. These might be images, graphs, charts, tables, maps, or another type of stimulus..
Example: 2021 Question 3 (Set 1)
Scoring: 2021 Question 3 (Set 1) Scoring Sheet
More Practice FRQs for AP® Human Geography
For more examples of previous FRQs, check out the College Board archive for AP® Human Geography.
Get FRQs with included sample responses with a license to Albert’s AP® Human Geography.
5 AP® Human Geography Tips and Tricks to Study and Prepare
- Flashcards are your friend! There are a LOT of terms and concepts in this course, and the last thing you want is to be scrambling to remember the difference between ethnic and universalizing religions when you’ve only an hour to answer 60 multiple-choice questions.
- Speaking of scrambling — you don’t have a ton of time. Practice writing timed essays, because you will only have 75 minutes to write three detailed essays.
- Brush up on your understanding of charts, graphs, maps, tables, and even satellite images — you’ll need to understand how visual stimuli convey information if you want to do well on this exam. AP® Human Geography is becoming increasingly stimulus-based, and many multiple-choice questions will contain a stimulus.
- Get interactive! With so many terms, vocabulary, and different models to remember, you’ll want to really cement that knowledge in there. Doing a project, building a diorama, interacting with others, and getting hands-on can really help you remember the tough and specific concepts that make up this exam.
- Take advantage of all the resources available to you — from online review sessions to office hours with your teachers to Albert practice questions. You’ve got this!
Additional AP® Human Geography Review Resources
If you’re looking for AP® Human Geography class notes that will help you while you’re taking practice questions, we’ve got you covered.
We’ve linked to a few sites that feature course notes or review videos you can use to refresh your memory of key topics. The best way to use these resources is to go through a Unit and then check for understanding on Albert. Then, use past FRQs to practice your free-response answers.
The AP® Human Geography Motherload of Important Notes: Funny title aside, this forty-four page PDF includes review on key issues asked throughout the course. There are also helpful visualizations of certain concepts in mind maps if you find those helpful.
Andrew Patterson’s Geography Channel: This is the YouTube channel of a former AP® Human Geography teacher who released over fifty video reviews of important concepts covered on the exam.
Mrs. Kelley’s AP® HUG Site: This is a teacher’s homepage for their HUG course. It includes tips for preparing for the exam, downloadable Powerpoint notes, as well as links to Quizlet vocabulary cards.
Summary: The Best AP® Human Geography Review Guide
We’ve covered a ton in this review guide for the 2024 AP® Human Geography exam. Here are some of the key takeaways:
- The AP® HUG exam includes MCQs and FRQs
- Review the hand-picked FRQs to help you score points — remember that FRQs are 50% of the exam!
- Use flashcards every day to freshen up your understanding of terms and concepts, such as the difference between ethnic and universalizing religions.
- Don’t underestimate graphical analysis! You should understand visual stimuli convey information. Many students lose points here.
We hope you’ve found this AP® Human Geography review guide useful.
