SAT Prep | Connecticut

I have not lost my mind.

Most Connecticut students who complain about having to take the SAT or ACT do not understand why national tests are great for increasing their chances of admission at competitive colleges.

Many students complain about "having to take the SAT". But, many of these same students are applying to what they call "good" colleges or what might be more properly classified as "selective" or "competitive" colleges. They do not understand that, by doing so, their world - their comparative environment - has greatly expanded.

The world of the typical high school student is primarily confined by the hallways of their high school. The students within the very small world of their high school are the only students that they have measured themselves against.

Most students have not competed in arenas against the national population. For that reason, they have not fully considered some facts that make the SAT/ACT a great asset for most students from this area of Connecticut.

By any national standard, Connecticut provides the best or near the best education for its students compared to other states. Even better, the high schools in our geographic area provide among the best education within Connecticut.

What do you think happens when our comparatively well educated students compete against students from across the nation?

I recently was in conversation with a nice young lady who attends an excellent local high school and takes challenging classes. Her 3.5 G.P.A is very good. But, she will apply to some very competitive colleges.
She bemoaned the need to take the SAT.

I asked her some questions.

Is it fair to have your 3.5 G.P.A. considered equivalent to students from other schools who earn the identical G.P.A.? She noted correctly that "it depends on the school".

She thought about some schools in the area that she believes to be less rigorous than hers. I could see her starting to think about the matter from a larger world perspective.

I then asked her to consider whether it was fair to have her grades considered equivalent to students who earn the same grades from schools in states that are usually at the bottom of the national educational rankings.

She began to understand.

I asked her: "how can we compare your abilities with those students?" She began to blurt out: "we can take an admissions test..." and then she started to laugh.

Like many students in Shoreline and Southeastern, CT, she has been comparing her SAT scores with her smart friends. Her SAT scores are very good compared to the national average and were in the range of schools that interested her. But, as would be predicted by the general argument, her smart Connecticut friends had crushed the national average.

Standardized testing is usually an effective weapon in the arsenal of students that we work with who are applying to competitive colleges. Every school in the nation has a valedictorian. Every school in the nation has a group of students in the top 10% or top 25% of its graduating class. But, students in our area attend high schools that are far superior to most high schools across the nation and, as such, their grades and class ranks suffer from comparative deflation.

When our students take national tests, they have an opportunity to demonstrate their strength in a broader comparative environment.

Testing is not fun. But, national standardized testing is your friend in the admissions process.

Here is another helpful article about how the SAT can help your student child

  -  Five Reasons to Take the SAT