College Board’s Career Readiness Plan: AP Business

Abdulatif Balogun, Whitney Young Magnet High School, Junior, Fall 2025

Last year, during the 2024-2025 school year, the CollegeBoard announced a new initiative called AP Career Kickstart, in partnership with the US Chamber of Commerce. The program would add career-related courses, like AP Business with Personal Finance and AP Cybersecurity, to the AP Course Catalog to prepare students for the workforce. Its goal is to equip students with in-demand, employment skills, particularly soft skills, which are skills that allow a person to be able to work and interact with their co-workers.  According to a historical report conducted by Charles Riborg Mann and published by the Carnegie Foundation, Harvard University, and the Stanford Research Center, “85% of job success comes from having well-developed soft and people skills, and that only 15% of job success comes from technical skills and knowledge” (Mann, 1918).

Unfortunately, while these skills are important, AP Business with Personal Finance was created in response to statistics showcasing that today’s high school graduates are ill-equipped for the workforce. According to the 2025 New Hire Readiness Report (a study by the CollegeBoard & the U.S. Chamber of Commerce), “84% of hiring managers say high school grads are not ready for work” (Cates, 2025). CollegeBoard is hoping that classes like AP Business with Personal Finance will fill the gap and better prepare students for future jobs.

Kenneth Jamison, a Whitney Young business teacher, believes in the effectiveness of AP Business with Personal Finance in improving the career and college readiness of high school students, “Understanding how to manage money, how businesses operate, and how to make long-term financial decisions…sharpens their problem-solving skills and helps them build discipline.” Additionally, Kenneth Jamison said, “Considering how fast the world is moving, students need the skills taught in AP Business earlier and not later.”

Talin Bisla, Whitney Young Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) Chapter President, believes that AP Business was a beneficial addition to the AP Course Catalog, “Understanding business at a more personal, detailed level is important for everybody, regardless of career interest.” AP Business with Personal Finance is set to be introduced to high school students nationwide during the 2026-2027 school year.