STANDARDIZED TESTING Megan Colt, Collegiate Coordinator PSAT Megan Colt, Collegiate Coordinator PSAT Breakfast Break1. 1.21.14fast 1..14
TOPICS Time Line Junior Year Senior Year Test Prep SAT vs. ACT Subject Tests How colleges use the scores
JUNIOR YEAR - FALL Take the PSAT (October Fee $14. Taken during school) Great opportunity to practice! May qualify for National Merit Scholarship Program National Merit for PA was a score of 217
JUNIOR YEAR WINTER/SPRING Take either the SAT or ACT in December, January, February, or March Take the other standardized test in March, April, May, or June Take the SAT Subject Tests if required in May or June
Test Prep FREE Naviance PrepMe! Work at your own pace PSU Beaver at Chartiers Valley High School (6 Thursdays 5:30 8:30 PM) $ Private Tutors (email Ms. Colt for recommendations) $ Huntington, CCAC, Mt. Lebanon Academy, Kaplan, Chyten $ What Works Recreational reading Being engaged in the Test Prep classes Familiarizing yourself with the test format Test prep should not come at the expense of school work
SAT Subject Tests: Literature, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Math Level I and II, US History, World History, French, Spanish, German, Latin, and Italian SAT Subject Tests Required or strongly recommended for Highly Selective Colleges (Example: Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins, Boston College, Harvard, UCLA, Yale, Georgetown, Princeton, Dartmouth, Barnard, Cornell, NYU) Recommended you take junior year in June Take subject test after you ve completed class One hour long (you may take up to three in one sitting) If required, colleges usually ask for two subject tests
SENIOR YEAR - FALL Retake the test you performed better on (either the SAT or ACT) in September, October, or November Do not take a test more than three times (typically a student will plateau)
Test Optional Colleges not requiring the SAT or ACT test scores Other requirements may exist (example, must have a 3.5 GPA, graded writing sample required, interview required) www.fairtest.org Sample of some Test Optional Colleges: Washington & Jefferson College, Gettysburg College, Franklin & Marshall, Chatham College, Loyola of Maryland, American University, George Mason University, Wittenberg University, Dickinson College, Connecticut College, Providence College, Roger Williams University
SAT vs. ACT All colleges accept either test They are regarded as equally valid 1/3 perform better on SAT, 1/3 perform better on ACT, 1/3 perform the same SAT 3 Sections Critical Reading Math, up to Geometry & Algebra II Writing ¼ of a point for each wrong answer ACT 5 Sections Reading English Writing (optional) Math, up to trigonometry Science (Interpretation) No penalty for wrong answers
HOW COLLEGES LOOK AT THE SCORES Superscore Colleges will mix/match your test scores to make the highest score possible. Not all colleges superscore, but use the highest score from a sitting. Score Choice Option to choose which test scores to send to colleges Students can choose scores from a test date, not individual sub-scores. For the SAT subject tests, students can choose individual subject scores. Colleges can choose, however, to require all scores from an applicant. Students are required to comply with each college s policy.
Scores, Scores, Scores Test scores are reported on your CV high school transcript (unless you request to have scores removed to Ms. Colt). It takes at least a month for the scores to be reported on your transcript. Some colleges require your test scores MUST come directly from the testing center (Example: Penn State, U of Pittsburgh) Fee waivers are available to students on free/reduced lunch
Test Scores in the Admissions Process Colleges do not choose students by the numbers only 2011 Report from NACAC: Percentage of college attributing levels of importance in the admissions decision: Factor Considerable Moderate Limited No SAT/ACT 59.2 29.6 6.9 4.2 (source: www.nacac.org)