It really is dependent on state. FL you can earn high school credits before 8th grade but AP just counts as honors until 9th grade although you can take the test and get college credit. Which is totally stupid in my opinion....get a 5 and only get honors credit because you are an 8th grader and the kid sitting next to you is a tenth grader and gets AP credit on transcript but gets a 2 and no college credit. From what I understand although I could be wrong, college board set this rule.