McNeil High School recognizes sophomore Jeremy Moon’s accomplishment of receiving a perfect score on the AP Computer Science Principles exam. Only 335 test takers worldwide obtained a perfect score, making the accomplishment rare. 

The AP Computer Science Principles test assesses students’ understanding of computer practices and skills. For the 2021 exam, 13% of students worldwide scored five, the highest score one can receive. Moon, a freshman at the time, belongs to the 0.33% minority that answered all test questions correctly. 

“Jeremy Moon’s performance on the AP Computer Science Principles Exam in May 2021 was so superior, that it falls into a rather select category,” Head of the Advanced Placement Program Trevor Packer said. “This outstanding accomplishment is likely a direct reflection of the top-quality education being offered at McNeil High School. We applaud Jeremy’s hard work and the AP teacher responsible for engaging students and enabling them to excel in a college-level course.”

Moon wasn’t expecting to obtain a perfect score on the test, considering he only started studying when the exam date was approaching. 

“I really started studying two weeks before the exam,” Moon said. “I took a lot of practice tests and I studied with the ‘Baron’s’ review book. I also watched all of the AP Daily videos. It feels good to get the score back because I put in a lot of work.”

Moon’s former AP Computer Science Principles teacher, Mark Emry, is very proud of the student’s accomplishment and believes his hard work in the classroom allowed him to obtain the perfect score. 

“Jeremy was consistent and his work was exceptional,” Emry said. “His combination of aptitude and a fantastic work ethic helped him achieve this outstanding accomplishment. I think two behaviors that stood out were the fact that Jeremy asked questions whenever he needed to, and advocated for his own learning.” 

Some of the resources offered by AP College Board and class activities helped Moon when studying. He encouraged those who are enrolled in the course to take advantage of them. 

“Mr. Emry went over reviews during class and that helped me because whenever I didn’t want to study, I could just go to class and we had a whole period dedicated to studying,” Moon said. “The AP Daily and review videos also really helped because you get [College Board’s] perspective on how they make the questions, and you understand how to answer them.”