Tag Archives: college admissions

The Flood Gates Are Opening and the SAT is Your Life Raft: How the Overturning of Affirmative Action Can Hurt College Applicants

The potential overturning of affirmative action by the Supreme Court could have significant implications for college admissions, particularly for students in the Monmouth County area of New Jersey. Affirmative action policies were designed to promote diversity and provide equal opportunities for underrepresented groups, in areas including education and employment. If the Supreme Court overturns affirmative action, it could result in fewer opportunities for these groups, making it more difficult for them to gain admission to colleges and universities.

This blow to diversity is a deficit to the global education of all college students and to society at large as higher education leaves more underrepresented communities behind. And it doesn’t mean there will be a host of newly available seats for middle class white applicants. Many universities themselves will aggressively fight the overturning of affirmative action by transferring their policies to socio-economic factors; this backlash could result in even fewer seats for the middle class white students who will need increasingly competitive SAT scores and grades.

A main criticism of affirmative action has been that it can lead to the use of quotas, which limit the number of students from certain racial or ethnic groups that can be admitted to a college or university. This has historically had negative consequences for Asian American students, who are often held to higher standards in the college admissions process. In fact, some studies have found that Asian American applicants need to score higher on standardized tests and have higher grades than other groups to be admitted to selective colleges and universities. In contrast, the overturning of affirmative action create opportunity for Asian American students. Without affirmative action policies in place, Asian American students may have a better chance of gaining admission based on their academic qualifications.

So, when affirmative action is overturned here’s how things will look:

Progressive universities will create a backlash and actually expand old affirmative action policies under the new label of socio-economic leveling. With the limits of racial quotas removed, above-average qualified Asian American students will flood the freshman classes of selective colleges. And the past three years of Test-Optional torpor will hit the proverbial fan for middle-class white students who have been all too happy to lap up the fantasy that they don’t need to take the SAT/ACT anymore to get into college.

There is hope. Color blind admissions will rely more on standardized test scores and grades. So middle class white students with both average and above average grades must get back to test prep and focus on maximizing their SAT and ACT scores to stay relevant, or be left behind by the current of the post-affirmative action college admission process.

SAT prep in the Age of “Test Optional”

Students had to sacrifice a lot during Covid. Colleges were aware of this and, in response, many adopted “test optional” policies, allowing students to apply without submitting test scores. So should today’s college applicants bother taking the SAT and should they bother to prep for the test? The answer is yes. SAT prep with a small and experienced tutoring staff is still important in today’s climate of “test optional” college admissions for several reasons crucial to students.

Firstly, while some colleges and universities have adopted test-optional policies, many still require standardized test scores as part of the application process. This is particularly true for selective institutions, which often use test scores to assess a student’s academic abilities and potential for success in college. Therefore, students who choose not to take the SAT or ACT may be limiting their options for college admission.

Even for colleges and universities that have adopted test-optional policies, submitting strong test scores can still be beneficial.

Many schools use test scores as a factor in awarding merit-based scholarships, and a high SAT score can also help to offset weaker grades or other areas of a student’s application.

SAT prep with a small and experienced tutoring staff can provide students with valuable skills and knowledge that will benefit them regardless of whether they ultimately choose to take the SAT. Standardized tests like the SAT require critical thinking, problem-solving, and time management skills, which are important for success in college and beyond. By working with a tutor who is experienced in SAT prep, students can develop and hone these skills, improving their academic performance in general.

SAT prep with a small and experienced tutoring staff can also provide students with personalized attention and support. Unlike large test prep companies, which may rely on one-size-fits-all approaches to teaching, small tutoring services can tailor their instruction to meet the unique needs of each student. This can be particularly helpful for students with learning differences or other challenges that may make standardized testing more difficult.

In conclusion, while some colleges and universities have adopted test-optional policies, SAT prep is still important in today’s climate of college admissions. By preparing for the SAT, students can increase their options for college admission, improve their chances of receiving merit-based scholarships, develop valuable skills and knowledge, and receive personalized attention and support.

COVID-19 and the SAT: Will the Fallout Sideline the Class of 2021? Part 3 of 3

COVID-19 college admissions standardized testing SAT ACT — Covid-19 and standardized testing: Third Scenario

The impact of Covid-19 is of course, devastating for the College Board and ACT Inc.. Once we get used to something, we are likely to stick with it, and both testing bureaus could find their positions precarious for future admission cycles. In an effort to avoid this, the testing bureaus may be driven to a third scenario, in which they hustle to roll out the tech to administer these exams to individual students at home online. We have seen this technology on many platforms currently used in online college and graduate level courses, where testing is performed in a room at home, but with a WebCam monitoring for a remote proctor and strict time constraints for completion all of which ensure the test taker is not collaborating with anyone else or using outside materials. It may be hard to imagine the manpower required to administer the SAT to thousands of students all in separate locations, but the alternative for the College Board could be the untimely death of the SAT, and they are certain to go down swinging.

So what should you take away from all this if you have a high school junior? The college admission process is sound, fair, and pre-dates the SAT by two-hundred years. American colleges are no strangers to surviving crisis: Yale University, for example, closed its campus for two whole years during the American Revolution (yep, that’s how long they’ve been around). Colleges will not persecute our kids for the Covid-19 damage done to admission test scheduling. They are on the forefront of efforts to preserve normalcy during social distancing, delivering admission decisions last week as usual and brainstorming creative ways to celebrate the achievements of seniors in lieu of traditional commencement ceremonies. This season’s college admission process will be different from the norm, but no more difficult. The hardest part will probably be getting your refund for your cancelled SAT.

Marlee Napurano, BA Yale University, is Co-founder of WaveLength tutoring and test prep, a test preparation and college consulting company in its 19th year serving Monmouth and Ocean counties.

Fresh, effective teaching is the only way to truly help students through the stress of the college application process. Take control of your SAT prep, ACT prep, SSAT prep, high school admissions tests, or entrance exams in New Jersey and beyond with our seasoned, personal guidance.