SATs Not for Everyone, But Reality for Most
www.npr.org - The
College Admissions Game
21 February 2007
by Thomas Pierce
The debate about the utility and predictive abilities of standardized tests is not new. The College Board — which is responsible for creating and administering the test — notes that the SAT is an important tool for colleges as they wade through thousands of applications and try to account for varying degrees of grade inflation. 'Yardstick' is a term routinely used in the test's defense, though the College Board has shied away from that word in recent years. ...
...But 16,000 or more applications is the reality for many larger universities. Without the SATs as a guide, admissions officers could get buried in the avalanche of applications.
"It's just this blizzard of paper," says Ned Johnson. He runs Prep Matters, a Washington, D.C.-based firm that trains students in the art of standardized testing.
Johnson thinks it's feasible for some schools to put together an exemplary student body without standardized test scores. But he points out that as more students apply to more schools, having a score to put with a GPA can help busy admissions counselors make the most of their time. That's one reason why the majority of colleges and universities will continue to stick with standardized tests for the foreseeable future. ...
...In recent years, the ACT — an alternative to the SAT — has become more popular and widely accepted as a college entry exam. Some students who perform poorly on the SAT find success on the ACT. Johnson says that nearly half of the students that come to Prep Matters now take the ACT, at least just to see how they do.
"It's a more straight-forward test," he says, "and some people think, maybe, that there's not as much trickery."
The ACT isn't as long as the SAT and includes fewer sections, so it's potentially less stressful for some students. A few years back, college admissions offices started taking the ACT more seriously as a substitute for the SAT. ...
21 February 2007
by Thomas Pierce
The debate about the utility and predictive abilities of standardized tests is not new. The College Board — which is responsible for creating and administering the test — notes that the SAT is an important tool for colleges as they wade through thousands of applications and try to account for varying degrees of grade inflation. 'Yardstick' is a term routinely used in the test's defense, though the College Board has shied away from that word in recent years. ...
...But 16,000 or more applications is the reality for many larger universities. Without the SATs as a guide, admissions officers could get buried in the avalanche of applications.
"It's just this blizzard of paper," says Ned Johnson. He runs Prep Matters, a Washington, D.C.-based firm that trains students in the art of standardized testing.
Johnson thinks it's feasible for some schools to put together an exemplary student body without standardized test scores. But he points out that as more students apply to more schools, having a score to put with a GPA can help busy admissions counselors make the most of their time. That's one reason why the majority of colleges and universities will continue to stick with standardized tests for the foreseeable future. ...
...In recent years, the ACT — an alternative to the SAT — has become more popular and widely accepted as a college entry exam. Some students who perform poorly on the SAT find success on the ACT. Johnson says that nearly half of the students that come to Prep Matters now take the ACT, at least just to see how they do.
"It's a more straight-forward test," he says, "and some people think, maybe, that there's not as much trickery."
The ACT isn't as long as the SAT and includes fewer sections, so it's potentially less stressful for some students. A few years back, college admissions offices started taking the ACT more seriously as a substitute for the SAT. ...
back to PrepMatters In The News