Research on the Efficacy and Validity of Test Prep

The National Association for College Admissions Counseling recently released some research regarding SAT test prep. The results are spun in many different ways by different publications. Many agree that the most comprehensive write-up about the research findings can be found here

One colleague, Shuan McElroy (counselor at the Shanghai American School), summoned up the results very well in a post on the NACAC e-list.

Technically a 30 points increase is NOT statiscally significant, even if it feels that way. You see, any standardized test has a Standard Error of difference:

Standard Error of the Difference (SED): The SED is a tool for assessing how much two test scores must differ before they indicate ability differences. To be confident that two scores indicate a true difference in ability, the scores must differ by at least the SED times 1.5. For example, SAT verbal and math scores must differ by 60 points (40 ׳ 1.5) in order to indicate true differences of ability.

30 points versus 60 points. Hmmmm. Yet an astounding "20% to 40% of officials at 130 colleges that consider the SAT in admissions said a 20-point math increase or a 10-point reading increase would "significantly improve a student's chances of admissions" if all other factors in a student's application were the same." Given that the author's study concludes:

* All students should practice for tests, but potential benefits must be balanced against the costs, including time and money.

* Students should be counseled to use less costly forms of test prep, such as books or the Internet, and be "wary of coaching rip-offs."

* If time and money are no object, commercial or private coaching may be worth the cost but "this will primarily be true for students with above-average admission test scores in the first place."

College of Charleston (CofC)

College of Charleston appeals to many of our students. It has a very distinct feel due to its unique location in downtown Charleston. One of the campus "greens" is a park in the middle of the city. A new science building is near complete and it is said to have received some funding from NASA. The business center is very impressive thanks to a local businessman who has pledged 2 million dollars per year for the next thirty years. The marine biology program is noteworthy considering their close proximity to the ocean.

New Album 5/11/09 9:32 AM

College Presidents Write College Essays

Check out the article here. The essays are linked in the article.

Presentation at College Board Forum (Feb 2009)

I was lucky enough to present on Web 2.0 tools and their impact in College Admissions/Recruiting/Counseling this past February. Our presentation was one of three featured on the College Board Forum website prior to the start of the conference. Here is a link to the blogspot page we set up from the presentation. It contains most of the links/tools we covered in the presentation.

Free Range Children

Link to the Chicago Tribune Article found here

Article mentions the success of a St. Luke's senior, Greg Magill

New York Times article found here

Is there a correlation/connection between this article and the previous one found in the Washington Post?

Interesting article on the Admissions Gap (Those who can pay vs. those who cannot)

Washington Post article found here.

Two Articles relating to College Admission

Both are interesting reads. The first one is about Skidmore College, my former institution, and a candid look behind their admissions decisions. The second is an op. ed. piece by a the Director of Admission at Pitzer College, a classmate of mine at Skidmore.

"The Silver Lining of the Recession"

Article in the Washington Post can be found here

Senior Slump

With spring in the air, it's only natural for students to let down a bit in their studies. It's also decision time for my counter parts on the other side of the desk, admissions counselors. While admission committees are busy making decisions, they are also checking grades of the students admitted through early decision. At my former institution, we would check for drops in performance for our accepted class and there were three levels of response from us (or three levels of "nots"). There was the "Naughty letter," the "Naughty, Naughty letter" and the "Not coming letter," or the relinquishment of your acceptance letters. Many schools are infamous for doing this (probably the UC system in California is most known for this- quite ironic given what happened at UCSD this week). So why rescind admissions decisions? At the end of the day, the most important statistic that colleges and universities are trying protect and improve is retention and graduation rate, or simply the percentage of students returning the next year or graduating in 4 years. A student enrolling with a declining academic performance is (theoretically) not as well prepared to do well in college (at least not as well as someone who is performing well through graduation). The St. Luke's School College Counseling experience should not be about getting in to college, but more importantly, to prepare for college. So with decision letters out, please continue to excel in your classes and activities.

"The Beauty of America"

Sure, there are a number of things that makes the United States an incredible place to live. Ironically, I failed to recognize one of the amazing things about our country. Give Mr. Izzo, seventh grade English teacher credit. We were talking the other day, specifically about my radio show on Tuesday, and he brought up the notion that one of America's strengths is the fact that we have thousands of these amazing academic campuses spread across the country.
Food for thought

NY Times Q and A with Four Admission Deans

Article found here.

PSAT and PACT scores; What does it all mean?

The sophomores and juniors at SLS have recently received their PSAT and PACT scores. We know the score report can be somewhat confusing so please feel free to call Mr. Smitobol at 801 4959 with help interpreting your score report. We also have a list of test prep companies/people available in this area.

This link explains the key differences between the PSAT and SAT exam.

Sophomore Advising (November-December)

I have started to meet with sophomores in my office. I have met with approximately half of the class and look forward to meeting the rest of the class as soon as possible. Please advise any sophomores to come to my office (321) during their free period for an individual or group meeting. The meeting serves as an informal way for the college counseling office to get to know this class at an important time in their high school career. The meetings are very relaxed and students do not need to bring anything.

Summer Programs

Summer Enrichment programs are a great way to develop a student's voice. These programs can be instrumental in helping students discover their passions, develop their independence or learn valuable skills. For sophomores or juniors, check the campuses of potential colleges and universities. Many have summer "pre-college" enrichment programs. While these programs do not make it easier to gain admission when you apply as a senior, these programs are still a valuable insight into what college life can be like and gain transferable college credits, too!

Here are some valuable online resources to help connect you to a variety of programs:

http://www.petersons.com/summerop/code/ssector.asp?sponsor=1&path=hs.fas.summer
Seems to be a more complete program listing (at least for summer pre-college programs)

http://www.enrichmentalley.com/
Not a complete list, but a good starting point for summer pgms and gap year options.

http://www.rusticpathways.com/
offers travel abroad programs. I don't have any first hand information about these programs, but I have interviewed many students who have had good experiences with this company.

http://www.afs.org/afs_or/home
Another program that many students I interviewed participated in.

Please let me know if you have a specific type of program you are interested in. I have a very long list but I worry that listing all of them here may make it tough to know where to start. Please let me know if you have a program to recommend.

College Fairs

College Fairs are an underused resource for SLS students. One great tip for navigating a college fair successfully is to have name labels printed out in advance! This way you don't have to spend time filling in an inquiry card at every table you visit, leaving you more time to speak with the college representative. Please come see us in College Counseling if you have any question about name labels. Here is what to include:
Name, email address (make sure you have an appropriate email handle), mailing address, complete Name of school, year of graduation.

CNN article, "Don't use SATs to rank college quality"

Article found here

www.collegeboard.com

www.collegeboard.com is perhaps the most popular of the online college resources. One feature I like is the "find similar" schools (when you search for schools). Users are able to create profiles on this site and save searches and college lists.

Number2.com-> free online test prep

www.number2.com offers free online test prep for a variety of standardized tests! Check out this great resource that some of our students are already using.

Ithaca (A college you should get to know)

Ithaca College is a school that many SLS students overlook. This is a terrific place for a variety of students. The music facilities are top notch as is the school of business and management. The exercise physiology program is also noteworthy. The town of Ithaca itself is a great place to attend college, filled with great places to eat and other college students.

just outside the impressive "ticker room" in the business center
one of the student dining options at Ithaca
a beautiful view (my camera did not do it justice) from Ithaca

one of the many performance spaces. Ithaca has a top notch music program

a portion of the Ithaca tour