Weekly Wisdom

Synopsis:
ACT/SAT Diagnostic Evaluation. Articles about the “IM” effect and new rankings of colleges. Declaring a major. Rolling admissions. The University of Virginia.

Introduction:

This week we will talk some more about the ACT as an alternative to the SAT. We have been fielding a lot of questions from nervous juniors and junior parents about the NEW SAT, and think that it’s high time people were better informed about the alternative. We will also discuss declaring majors, take a look at a couple of articles about this choice, and take a look at the University of Virginia.

Weekly Wisdom

Most California students and their parents automatically focus on the SAT, because traditionally the SAT was required to apply to colleges in the Northeast and on both coasts, while the ACT was required in the Midwest. Today, however, virtually all US colleges accept both. The ACT and SAT are significantly different tests that, in many ways, measure different skills. Some students will perform significantly better on one than the other. Knowing which test you're better-suited for can give you a strategic advantage.
How do the tests differ?
The ACT is a more straightforward test, intended to test the knowledge acquired in high school. The SAT is much more a test of test-taking skills, employing tricky and confusing questions.

The ACT has more time pressure than the SAT.

Reporting of the ACT is completely voluntary. For example, a student could take the ACT five times and choose to report just the third score to a school. The College Board will report all of a student's SAT scores to the schools chosen by the student.

The ACT math section includes some trigonometry. The SAT has never included trigonometry, although the New SAT (beginning in March 2004) may include some basic trigonometry.

The ACT includes a "Science Reasoning" section that tests the student's ability to reason scientifically from charts and data.

The SAT tests vocabulary more than the ACT does.

The ACT is entirely multiple choice; the SAT includes some fill-in questions in the math section.

The SAT has a guessing penalty; the ACT does not.

If you want help deciding between the SAT and the ACT, The Prep School can help. Call us to arrange for your SAT-ACT Evaluation/Diagnostic. The cost is $30, which will be applied against the cost of any tutoring you choose to get from us. We will test your performance on the two tests, evaluate the results, and send you our expert recommendation as to which test(s) you should take.

Upcoming Deadlines

October 23rd - ACT

October 29th – last day to register for Dec 4th SAT & SAT II

November 5th - last day to register for December 11th ACT

November 6th - SAT I & SAT II

November 10th - last day for late registration for Dec 4th SAT & SAT II

Articles in the News

The first article is about what we call the "IM" effect on kids’ writing. It is an interesting, though somewhat scary article for parents to read

CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE

Our second article is an interesting one about a new college ranking system submitted to the National Bureau of Economic Research. This system ranks colleges by the decisions of admitted students. Although most schools near the top stayed near the top, it’s interesting to read about the level of dominance of schools like Harvard, and the relative haze of schools after the top 10.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE

CLICK HERE TO SEE A PDF OF THE RANKINGS THEMSELVES

Ask The Experts

asktheexperts@thepreptalk.com

"Why do I have to declare a major on my college application?"

A: Some college applications have a space for your intended major. What's that all about? After all, most colleges don't require students to declare a major until the end of sophomore year. What should an applicant do? Should she pick a major that's less selective, in hopes it will boost her chances of admission? Or should he check "Undecided" so he won't be pigeonholed?

For prospective freshmen, the intended major is mainly an issue when the school has several colleges within it. For example, UC Berkeley says that the colleges within the school "vary significantly in their level of selectivity." And at UC Davis, "the choice of major may affect the chances of a student being admitted," with considerations including "space limitations in the respective field of study and whether the student meets
certain minimum GPA and test score criteria for highly selective majors."

At UCLA, "intended major does not affect the admissions review process or decision," but "does directly affect the review process for freshman applicants to the School of Engineering, where some majors are more selective than others," while at Santa Cruz, the intended major "is not considered in the admissions process."

In short, the intended major probably only makes a difference if you're applying to a selective sub-college - you should be sure to check with the schools you're applying to before you fill in that blank. Don't get too tricky - if you say you want to major in philosophy you might have a hard time transferring to engineering after you get in.

Application & Essay Tips

Schools with “rolling admissions” policies have just that: rolling admissions! They get the application, and start making a decision. Guess what? That means as more and more applicants are accepted, fewer and fewer spots are available and, yes, they will start to get a little more picky. So, if a rolling admissions school is for you (major schools that have rolling admissions include University of Indiana, Wisconsin, and Colorado), apply early!.

Featured College

The University of Virginia

Founded by Thomas Jefferson, the University of Virginia (UVA) is considered
to be perhaps the best public university in the country. Over 12,000
undergraduates are divided among six schools.
UVA students live in Charlottesville on what has been called “the most beautiful
campus of any American college”. Fraternities and sororities are a big part
of campus social life, and students also go into Charlottesville or
Washington, D.C. for entertainment. First-years live on campus, while
upperclassmen can move off-campus or live on-campus in residential colleges or
special houses such as the French, Spanish, or Russian Houses, where
students with common interests can live together.
Academic requirements differ according to school and major, with those at Engineering and Commerce widely regarded as the hardest and most competitive. Grading is tough but fair, and students generally enjoy the challenging academics.
One of the most interesting things about UVA is its Honor System, which forbids lying, cheating, or stealing. The system is administered entirely by students and is credited with improving the sense of community, as well as providing students with benefits like taking unproctored exams in their own rooms.
If attending a top college with a beautiful campus and strong tradition appeals to you, consider the University of Virginia.

Vocab of The Week

Aspiration (n): An earnest wish for that which is above one's present
reach.
His greatest aspiration was to be one of Jennifer Lopez's backup dancers, if only he could first learn to dance.

Dearth (n): Scarcity, as of something customary, essential, or desirable.
He was hungry, so he stopped at Starbucks, but unfortunately he found a dearth of scones.

Enumerate (v): To name one by one.
In awarding the medals, it took President Bush several minutes to enumerate all of the Backstreet Boys.

Fealty (n): Loyalty.
Ashley tried to get Rachel to love Nick, but Rachel had pledged fealty to Chris.

Laudable (adj): Praiseworthy.
Some criticized her outfit, but others found her wearing of underwear to be laudable.