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Library Catalogue History & Social Science AP Macroeconomics
⁂   History & Social Science · AP Exam

Macroeconomics Study Library.

From GDP and the business cycle to monetary policy and international trade — expert-authored unit guides with AD-AS model analysis, Phillips Curve dynamics, loanable funds and money markets, and worked FRQ graph-drawing practice.

6 units standard track 130 minutes
Total Time 130 minutes
MCQ 60 multiple-choice questions
FRQ 3 free-response questions
Score Scale 1–5 67.3% scored 3+ (176,356 candidates)
Exam Structure

What the exam looks like.

Section Format Weight Time
Section I — Multiple Choice 60 MCQ · 4 answer choices · covers all 6 units · graphs and data stimuli included 66% 70 min
Section II — Free Response 3 FRQs: (1) long FRQ (10 pts, ~25 min) — typically requires multiple graphs; (2) short FRQ 1 (5 pts); (3) short FRQ 2 (5 pts) 33% 60 min
Curriculum

Study by unit.

1.
Basic Economic Concepts
Scarcity, opportunity cost, and trade-offs · Production Possibilities Curve (PPC): efficiency (points on PPC), inefficiency (inside PPC), unattainability (outside PPC), economic growth (outward shift) · Shape of PPC: straight-line (constant opportunity cost) vs. bowed-out (increasing opportunity cost) · Comparative advantage and gains from specialization and trade · Demand and supply fundamentals; market equilibrium · Absolute vs. comparative advantage in trade · Benefits of specialization and exchange
standard track
5–10% of exam
0 lessons ›
2.
Economic Indicators and the Business Cycle
Gross Domestic Product (GDP): expenditure approach ($C + I + G + NX$), income approach · Real GDP vs. nominal GDP; GDP deflator calculation: $\text{GDP Deflator} = \frac{\text{Nominal GDP}}{\text{Real GDP}} \times 100$ · Unemployment rate calculation: $u = \frac{\text{Unemployed}}{\text{Labor Force}} \times 100$ · Types of unemployment: frictional (between jobs), structural (skills mismatch), cyclical (recession-caused), seasonal · Natural rate of unemployment (NRU) and full employment (NRU ≠ 0%) · Consumer Price Index (CPI) and inflation rate calculation: $\pi = \frac{\text{CPI}_t - \text{CPI}_{t-1}}{\text{CPI}_{t-1}} \times 100$ · Business cycle: expansion, peak, contraction (recession), trough · Real vs. nominal interest rates: Fisher equation $r \approx i - \pi$
standard track
12–17% of exam
0 lessons ›
3.
National Income and Price Determination
Aggregate Demand (AD): components ($C + I + G + NX$) and shifters (wealth, expectations, interest rates, net exports) · Short-Run Aggregate Supply (SRAS): determinants (input prices, wages, productivity) and shifters · Long-Run Aggregate Supply (LRAS): vertical at full-employment output ($Y_{fe}$) · AD-AS model: short-run and long-run equilibrium; recessionary gap ($Y < Y_{fe}$) and inflationary gap ($Y > Y_{fe}$) · Multiplier effect: spending multiplier $= \frac{1}{1 - MPC} = \frac{1}{MPS}$ · Tax multiplier $= \frac{-MPC}{MPS}$ · Fiscal policy: expansionary (increase $G$, cut taxes) vs. contractionary · Automatic stabilizers: progressive taxes, transfer payments · Crowding out: government borrowing raises interest rates, reducing private investment
standard track
17–27% of exam
0 lessons ›
4.
Financial Sector
Money: functions (medium of exchange, store of value, unit of account), types (M1 = cash + demand deposits; M2 = M1 + savings + money market) · Money creation through fractional reserve banking · Money multiplier: $m = \frac{1}{\text{reserve requirement}}$ · Money market: money supply (vertical — set by Fed) and money demand (downward-sloping); nominal interest rate determination · Loanable funds market: real interest rate determination; saving supply (upward-sloping) and investment demand (downward-sloping) · Federal Reserve tools: open market operations (primary tool), discount rate, reserve requirement, interest on reserves · Expansionary monetary policy: buy bonds → bank reserves increase → money supply increases → interest rates fall → investment increases · Contractionary monetary policy: sell bonds → reverse chain
standard track
18–23% of exam
0 lessons ›
5.
Long-Run Consequences of Stabilization Policies
Short-run Phillips Curve (SRPC): inverse relationship between inflation and unemployment · Long-run Phillips Curve (LRPC): vertical at NAIRU (Non-Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment) · Adaptive expectations and SRPC shifts · Stagflation and supply-side shocks: SRPC shifts left (outward — more inflation at each unemployment rate) · Effects of fiscal and monetary policy on AD and the Phillips Curve · Quantity theory of money: $MV = PQ$ (where $M$ = money supply, $V$ = velocity, $P$ = price level, $Q$ = real output) · Long-run economic growth: capital accumulation, technological change, human capital, productivity · Supply-side policies: tax cuts to incentivize production, deregulation, investment in infrastructure and education
standard track
20–30% of exam
0 lessons ›
6.
Open Economy — International Trade and Finance
Balance of payments: current account (trade in goods/services, income, transfers) vs. capital/financial account (investment flows); balance of payments identity: current account + capital account = 0 · Foreign exchange (forex) markets: exchange rate determination, currency appreciation (value rises, exports more expensive, imports cheaper) and depreciation (reverse) · Currency changes and effects on net exports and aggregate demand · International capital flows and interest rate parity · Trade barriers: tariffs, quotas, and their effects on domestic producers, consumers, and deadweight loss · Free trade benefits: comparative advantage, lower consumer prices, increased efficiency · Fixed vs. floating exchange rate regimes
standard track
10–13% of exam
0 lessons ›
Worked Solutions

FRQ solution vault.

Browse the full FRQ Vault ›

Original, rubric-annotated worked solutions for AP free-response questions — each deep-linking the official College Board PDF. We index and annotate; we never reproduce question text.

Exam Strategy

How to score higher.

Strategy 1
Draw Graphs Correctly and Label Everything
Macroeconomics FRQs require accurately drawn and labeled graphs. Every axis must be labeled (Price Level / Real GDP for AD-AS; Nominal Interest Rate / Quantity of Money for money market; Real Interest Rate / Quantity of Loanable Funds). Draw shifts with arrows. Mark new equilibrium points. A graph that is correct but unlabeled earns partial credit at best.
Strategy 2
Follow the Ripple Effects
FRQ long questions often ask you to trace a policy through multiple markets. Practice 'ripple' chains: e.g., expansionary fiscal policy → AD shifts right → real GDP increases → money demand increases → nominal interest rate rises → investment falls (crowding out) → net exports change. Each step must follow from the prior.
Strategy 3
Distinguish Short Run from Long Run
The AD-AS model has different equilibria in the short run and long run. A recessionary gap corrects itself in the long run via falling wages (SRAS shifts right to Yfe). An inflationary gap corrects via rising wages (SRAS shifts left to Yfe). Distinguish which timeframe the question asks about.
Strategy 4
Phillips Curve and AD-AS Are Mirror Images
The short-run Phillips Curve (SRPC) is the inverse of the AD-AS model in inflation-unemployment space. An AD increase → inflation up, unemployment down → movement along SRPC. A supply shock → SRPC shifts. Practice drawing both models side-by-side for the same shock.
Our worked solutions and practice questions are original instructional content created by Tian2 AP. They are aligned to the concepts and skills described in College Board’s Course and Exam Description and are not reproductions of, or affiliated with, College Board’s official materials.