By Gen and Kelly Tanabe, founders of SuperCollege.com
and authors of Get Into Any College and 1001
Ways to Pay For College.
How this hype surrounding these tests has come to be, we
do not know. But it sure is enough to scare any college bound
senior. So, before you fall into this state of mind we call
SAT Tunnel Vision, let us try to clear up some of the misunderstandings.
Myth #1
Standardized tests make or break your chances of admission.
Absolutely not true! While it is true that standardized
tests are important in the admissions process, they are certainly
not the only determinant of your admission into college. A
friend of ours who scored 1560 on the SAT was passed over
by Harvard, while another friend who barely broke 1100 was
accepted.
The reality is that admissions officers are interested in
more than just the numbers. When they evaluate students' applications,
they take into consideration all of the components including
the application, evaluation letters, essay, academic record,
awards, work experience, leadership and extracurricular activities,
and (in borderline cases) the interview.
To think that test scores top all of these factors is simply
wrong. In fact, between: a) your grades and the types of classes
you took; and b) your SAT scores, the former is much more
useful in predicting how successful you will be in college.
Admissions officers know from experience that it is safer
to accept an academically motivated but low testing student
than the opposite.
Myth #2
You have to score over 1350 to get into Harvard or any other
elite school.
As mentioned above, test scores will not doom you
to rejection. Thus, when you are looking at the profiles of
colleges in the guidebooks, don't get worked up because your
scores are lower than a certain median or percentile.
Many guidebooks provide a median score for each school, which
indicates the score at which half the students scored better
and half scored worse. Some schools list ranges between which
most of their students who are admitted scored. These numbers
can give you a good target to aim for, but keep in mind that
every year thousands of students with good high school records
but lower than average test scores are admitted to top schools.
If your scores are lower than the scores in the guidebooks,
remember that admissions officers realize that even well-qualified
and motivated students do not always perform well on standardized
tests. A student with a high GPA but an average SAT score
is just as competitive (if not more so) than someone with
an average GPA but high SAT score. Plus, there are many other
factors that admissions officers evaluate when making their
decisions. Academic performance, teacher evaluations and the
essay can be much more important than any single test score.
In short: the scores count, but they are not the most important
factor in admissions decisions. Don't take yourself out of
the running if don't get a "high" score. Of course, try your
best since it certainly won't hurt your chances to get the
best score possible.
Myth #3
There is nothing you can do to prepare for these tests.
All tests would be easier if we didn't have to study
for them. Unfortunately, the standardized tests for college
admissions are not these kinds of tests. To perform well,
you must practice and study. Fortunately, there are several
ways to study the material you will be tested on as well as
to improve your test-taking skills.
However you choose to study for these tests, do not spend
so much time that your grades or participation in extracurricular
activities suffers. If you devote so much time to studying
at the expense of your grades and activities, you will greatly
hurt your chances of getting accepted. Be careful how much
time you devote to test preparation.
We hope we have dispelled some of the myths that surround
these tests. Don't ever let your scores prevent you from applying
to a specific college. These tests do count but not to the
degree that most students and parents assume. No score guarantees
either acceptance or rejection.
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