You Took the PSAT. Now What?
November 17th, 2015The SAT is undergoing a makeover and the revised exam will be offered as of March 2016. There are many positive changes with the new test but there are also some complications to go along with it. This year’s juniors are in the toughest spot, needing to make the decision of taking the old SAT by January, waiting for the new exam this March, or placing most of their focus on the ACT. In the article posted below Adam Ingersoll, whose Compass Education Group has a long and successful track record with test preparation, has some suggestions for juniors this year. While I agree with most of what Adam has written, there is one point on which we differ. I feel that this year’s juniors who do well on the PSAT, which was revised accordingly, should feel comfortable taking the new SAT this March.
That said, for many of this year’s juniors the ACT will indeed be the better test to take. We’re tailoring our advice individually, as always, and in most cases will want to review December’s PSAT report before offering a clear recommendation.
Article Published June 2, 2015
Written by: Charlotte Alter
In February 2013, not many 8th graders would have been paying attention to the initial College Board announcements about overhauls of the PSAT and SAT. Those 8th graders are now juniors, and the College Board certainly earned their attention this month with the debut of the new PSAT. These lucky (?) students had the honor (?) of being the first cohort to experience the test’s extensive redesign.
Reactions were mixed, ranging from abject horror to “I guess it wasn’t that bad” to “What I expected.” Unprepped students were caught off guard by a 60-minute reading comprehension section (more than twice its previous length) and by a math section on which calculator use was disallowed.
Read more at Compass Education Group >>George Washington University applicants no longer need to take admissions tests
August 13th, 2015George Washington University is one of the latest private schools to be added to the test-optional category, and we at Shrop Ed applaud them! Why are schools using this approach to the admissions process? The University of Rochester gave this answer when they changed their policy in 2012: “Many prospective students ‘test well’ on general standardized exams, and bring that ability to campus, while some are best at mastering specific material in subjects that interest them most, and bring that diligence and focus.” You can find the full list of test-optional schools at this website: www.fairtest.org
Article published July 27, 2015
Written by: Nick Anderson
George Washington University dropped its testing requirement for most freshman admissions Monday, becoming one of the largest and most prominent schools to declare that its applicants don’t have to take the SAT or ACT.
Read more at The Washington Post >>
