In December of 2009, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels announced that the latest state revenue forecasts predict that the state of Indiana will spend $1.8 billion more than it receives in tax revenue collections through July 2011. Therefore, Governor Daniels announced that he will cut at least $300 million from K-12 education spending in the next year, and another $150 million in funding for state colleges and universities. In this current economic environment both students and school administrators alike are feeling the need for education to become more efficient and effective. Programs such as the International Baccalaureate program, the Advanced Placement program, and dual credit courses, which can streamline and improve the transition between high school and college, have thus become increasingly appealing. This Education Policy Brief will examine, in particular, the incentive programs for the most popular and widespread of the accelerated education programs, the Advanced Placement (AP) program. After a brief historical overview of the AP program and a discussion of its merits, the brief will look into the various types of incentive programs found in the U.S. today, highlighting, in particular, several prominent or notable incentive programs. The Policy Brief will also examine some of the scholarly research that has been conducted regarding the effectiveness of the various incentive programs. Finally, conclusions and recommendations will be made to improve AP incentive programs. (Contains 4 figures, 3 tables and 7 online resources.)