College Prep Boot Camp

The requirement for including standardized tests in college applications was removed out of necessity for the class of 2021 and 2022. Covid shutdown most ACT and SAT testing sites for almost a full year. Not all students were able to test even if they wanted to.

As ACT and SAT testing centers reopened, some colleges reinstated the requirement either immediately or over the next few years.

Other colleges decided to get rid of the standardized test completely (UC schools).

Most other colleges are test optional temporarily as they see how it affects incoming classes. It will take 3-4 years until they have enough data to see how removing the test requirements affects GPAs, student success, and graduation rates.

Test optional policies have increased the number of students applying to a college by up to 50% but schools are still accepting the same number of students. If you were 1 in 10,000 applicants, now you are 1, in 15,000 applicants for the same school.

It used to be that colleges would have a clear cutoff number. Any student scoring below this number was removed from consideration. This may eliminate up to 80% of applicants from the pool. If a student met the testing requirements, they faced much less competition in the traditional system.

By not excluding students simply for low test scores, colleges are taking a more holistic approach to admissions. They are considering students who may not have met the testing requirements.

This is ideal if a student has something that really stands out: if they have remarkable talents or achievements elsewhere.

This new policy also allows colleges to increase the diversification of their campuses. They can admit students from neighborhoods, schools, and ethnicities that wouldn't have even applied before. The most asked question of students applying for the 2022 school year, for example, was how do you contribute to a diverse campus.

If you are a student who can do well on the test and achieve a score that is in the 25th percentile or higher of what a college traditionally looked for, then yes. The more competitive the college, the higher you want to place as a percentile.

In this range, the test only adds to your application package. Especially when fewer students are including test scores, it gives you one more way to stand out.

Not submitting test scores, especially to competitive colleges, does raise some question as to why it was not included. You may be telling a college that you could not score well by excluding it.

If standardized testing does not reflect a true measure of your academic abilities, and you have other ways of showing this on your application, then leave it out.

With less students submitting test scores, scoring well bolsters your application now more than ever.

Scoring well on the test is a strong sign to you and your college that you will be successful in the work that expected of you.

For most students, absolutely!

The benefits of an ACT/SAT are so much more than just a score.

The ACT/SAT tests your endurance, persistence, attention to detail, focus, and creative problem solving. Going through the process will refresh every math concept you've learned since 5th grade. You will see how different maths come together and how to apply them to complex scenarios. You will challenge yourself to read a plethora of texts: increasing your overall knowledge of world events, politics, science, psychology, and humanities. The reading tests also improve your ability to search for and find information in a research setting. English grammar is refreshed in a way that is more applicable to writing than the formality of learning it in middle school. Where many high school teachers do not correct errors in punctuation or grammar, you will finally know when to use a comma and what a colon or dash can add to your sentence structure.

Outside of English, Math, Reading, and Science, preparing for the exam also hones your study skills. Work is done for understanding and improvement, not just completion as is typical in many high school classes. Since there are no grades in test prep, students develop intrinsic motivation to become better learners even when an instant reward isn't present.

All of these skills truly relate to success during college years. Whether or not you decide to submit your final score to a college, the journey is worth it!

Colleges have already seen an increase in dropout and transfer rates from students who have been admitted into colleges that were not the right academic fit.

Refer to the previous question on 'should I study'. Putting in the effort required to prepare for an ACT/SAT is an indicator of your willingness/ability to prepare for college-level classes. It can show you where your weakness are and give you the chance to improve study habits before college starts. You can experiment with different techniques and develop your own best methods in learning.

Some students do struggle with pressure and anxiety on assessment tests, noting that the score does not reflect their true academic abilities. To these students I would say, rather than focus on your test day score, analyze your homework scores and your process. Use those aspects to gauge your readiness for college level classes.