Perfect AP Test Score Sets Manalapan Senior Apart

MANALAPAN, NJ — Manalapan High School senior Jake Salzman already has a rare accomplishment to his credit.

He was one of only 369 students to earn every point possible on the Advanced Placement Computer Science A Exam this past spring, the Freehold Regional High School District announced.

And that is from among test-takers around the world.

"I knew he was smart, but this was unexpected," his father, Russ Salzman, said. The exact number of students who took the test was not immediately available from the College Board.

Salzman is a national sales manager and Jake's mother Merri is a kindergarten teacher, he said.

Their son is very much into computers, he said. He was on the Robotics Team at school and can build his own computers, his dad said.

He said Jake plans to major in physics and minor in computer science when he heads to college in the fall of 2023. He's applying to top schools, such as MIT and Carnegie-Mellon and Princeton universities, his father said.

"He knows what he wants to do. He's very insightful for a young age," the elder Salzman observed.

And he said Jake has been enrolled in several other Advanced Placement courses.

Trevor Packer, head of the Advanced Placement Program at the College Board, noted the difficulty of AP courses in general.

“AP courses and exams are college-level, requiring great focus and persistence among participating students,” he said in a statement on the regional school website.

“We applaud the educators who encourage students to challenge themselves, who motivate and encourage diverse students to achieve their academic potential,” Packer said.

Students who succeed in AP are not only more likely to succeed in college but have the chance to save a significant amount of time and money by earning college credit or placement, the College Board says.

Colleges and universities worldwide receive AP scores for college credit, advanced placement, and/or consideration in the admission process.

Some immediate goodwill for Jake came on Facebook with lots of notes of congratulations. And Jake and the family have been invited to meet town officials on Oct. 12, too.

"The support has been amazing," Russ Salzman said.