Admissions Academy Blog

College Board’s Score Choice Draws Support and Criticism

•  Posted by Sarah Ziegler on January 7th, 2009 in Admissions, Articles of Interest
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Beginning in March for the Class of 2010, the College Board will offer Score Choice for students taking the SAT Reasoning and SAT Subject Tests. Rather than be required to report all test scores to colleges, students will now be given the option to pick and choose among their test results. The College Board has claimed that Score Choice was implemented because of student demand and that it will reduce student stress and anxiety surrounding the SAT, but ironically, the College Board abolished its previous score choice program in 2002 because of claims that it encouraged “gaming” the college admissions system. Many college counselors and admissions officers now fear that Score Choice will encourage students to take the test more times, and overemphasize testing more in their college preparation, rather than less.

The New York Times reported on the issue and the growing camps in favor of (including Harvard and the University of Chicago) and opposed to (including Stanford and Pomona) Score Choice. Read detailed responses from deans at Stanford and Harvard.

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To Thine Own Self Be True

•  Posted by Kathy Chi on December 30th, 2008 in Admissions, Articles of Interest
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Advice on the college bound process abounds, from parents and friends, to teachers and counselors. Yet how much guidance is too much? When does the application process stop representing the student and start becoming a mere representation of that student?

Indeed, colleges have become increasingly sensitive to “packaging”, as they seek to distinguish genuine applicants from those who are overly–and at times, artificially–polished. In many ways, it is an understandable trend. As admissions grows increasingly competitive, there is real anxiety over what it takes to be a strong contender. However, despite how it might seem, the answer is not in racing to take more AP’s, participating in prestigious extracurricular activities, or trying to mimic successful writing.

Rather, the key is to focus on the real individual, pursuing academic subjects that are truly appealing, devoting time to actual interests, and crafting essays that come from the heart. At the end of the day, when colleges talk about searching for “passion”, what they really mean is the obvious demonstration of students’ natural and honest selves.

Does steadfastness and sincerity mean that those applicants will ultimately be accepted? It is impossible to know, as admissions is not such an exact or predictable science. But the chances of standing out from the crowd are greater for those who are unafraid of letting their inner uniqueness shine.

For more insight into the kinds of authenticity that colleges seek, the Wall Street Journal provides advice from actual admissions officers.

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Maintaining a Healthy Perspective

•  Posted by Sarah Ziegler on December 15th, 2008 in Admissions, Articles of Interest
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Many students who have applied Early Decision or Early Action to colleges will be receiving (or have just received) their first piece of college news. For some students, this is a time of celebration, some a time of uncertainty, and some, a time of disappointment. As the decisions come in, it’s important for students and parents to keep in mind that a denial of admission isn’t a personal rejection; it doesn’t mean that a student did something wrong, nor that his/her efforts to succeed both academically and personally aren’t good enough. The truth of the matter is that in selective college admissions, especially at schools admitting less than 25% of their overall applicant pool, there are just too many qualified applicants.

The Wall Street Journal recently published six stories of college acceptances from the class of 2008, which share important lessons students learned in maintaining a healthy perspective when it comes to the college process.

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