How do AP exams get scored again?

I've taken a few AP exams before, but I've never really understood how they're scored. Like, what makes an essay a 5 or a 3? Can someone give me a quick rundown on what's behind the scoring process?

Happy to clarify the AP scoring process! Each AP exam typically has a multiple-choice section and a free-response section. The College Board scores them on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest. For the multiple-choice section, the number of questions you answer correctly determines your raw score — there's no penalty for incorrect answers. The free-response section is a bit more subjective, as it's graded by college and high school educators during the annual AP Reading. Each free-response question has a rubric with specific criteria that the readers use to determine the quality of the work. For example, an essay that demonstrates a thorough understanding of the topic, strong evidence, and excellent articulation of concepts could score a 5. The scores from both sections are combined to produce a composite score, which is then translated into the final 1-5 AP score using a statistical process called equating. This process adjusts for differences in difficulty among versions of the tests. Keep in mind that each AP subject has its own scoring rubric and process, but this is the general approach!