Where are your UNDER 1400 SAT kids going?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:Better to have a low test score than a GPA lower than 3.75UW. They say our kids shouldn't stress about grades -- then they make it ALL about grades. You can't have a bad day or a bad year because your 1500 SAT won't make up for those Bs even if was in AP classes.

This is why TO should go away. Someone who has a UW3.6 but took high rigor classes and gets a 1560 on SAT belongs in a elite college, someone who has a UW4.0 but took easier classes , or has grade inflation, and gets a 1290 does not.

Says who? We see your bias, but it doesn't make it so.

I think what a lot of people who cling to test scores as the end-all be-all don't want to admit is that they are malleable too. The difference between the 1300 kid and the 1500 kid is often $10,000 in test prep or a fake diagnosis that gives the latter extra time. I'm not saying test scores don't matter or shouldn't be part of a holistic review but as a parent (with two kids that score pretty well on these things) I would hate for the highest scorers to get in...but not as much as I hate the bumps to legacies and athletes.

Nah you can't test prep a 1300 into a 1500.

Sure you can, especially if the 1300 was early and truly cold.

dp.. that doesn't happen. If it did, it's an outlier. Most cannot go from 1300 to 1500 with prepping.

[Anonymous]

My dd is going to VT with a 28 ACT, definitely on the lower end for submitted test scores. 4.25 weighted gpa and lots of AP classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are the SATs the same as they were in the 90s? I can’t believe I got into an Ivy League school with less than a 1400 back in the day… (forgive the dumb question, my kids aren’t yet seniors so I haven’t gone through the insanity yet.)

My kid told me today's SAT is easier than years ago.

Having stated that, college admissions today is so much more competitive than the 90s, even early 2000s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter's sat's were just under 1200, gpa was i think 3.85 or so, extracurriculars were good, she applied and did second performance interviews for the department at most of these schools because she's a dance major. She got into almost all she applied to: American, JMU, George Mason, Radnor, VCU. A couple others I can't remember. She ended up choosing Towson and got 2 k in merit aid. She loves it there. She was swiftly rejected by Montclair State in nj in the dance department (though accepted to the school). They are one of the most competitive dance programs in part because all dance majors pay in state tuition even from other states. And it's just a well known program. I had hoped she would apply to small or medium liberal arts colleges on the east coast with better names and status. That's not where the best dance programs were. She knew that and did what she wanted. And it served her well, I'm proud she followed her own plan.

Congratulations.

Is she classical dance or commercial dance?

I'm not sure they make that distinction as a major (you also are not technically a dance major until sophomore year, a full year dancing with the department). Her classes include ballet, modern, etc. So I think more classically based, like her training before college? (Though she gave up Pointe, but they have that too) She does not want a performative career, she's on a teaching track and says the school has a solid record of placing grads in schools (private/ public). We shall see, her Dad and me try to plant seeds of her owning her own studio one day, but that's our dream not really hers. We want her to be able to financially have a decent job but those decisions are hers, just like her college choice was.

Towson is a really tough dance admit! Congrats.

My daughter is choosing between Dean and Radford for a dance major currently. We need Dean to show us more money, but it is her first choice. She is only planning a BA so that she can also take classes in exercise science (likely minor at Radford or an AA for a dual degree at Dean)

That sounds great, my daughter has a friend at Radford who loves it. (I accidentally said Radnor, sorry). We visited, my daughter got in there too. The dance department audition and whole vibe of that program was very good and she liked it there a lot. I think she chose Towson because it was closer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just have to take everything you read here with a grain of salt. That thread about where your kid is going has like 6 kids going to Stanford. Doubt it. We have a lot of teenagers here and a lot of people who just like to troll.

It's just weird all the kids seem to have SAT scores above 1500. It'd be nice to see where kids who are good students but not top go.

I think that’s because schools like George Mason, UMBC or local Jesuit colleges suit the needs of most kids with SATs in the 1100 to 1400 range very well and have plenty of capacity. As long as those kids are happy with the normal options and can pay for the options, they don’t have to think about this a lot.

The kids with scores under 1400 who have college application stress are probably fairly unusual kids who have test scores that fail to reflect their abilities, have an unusually high level of ambition, have Tiger parents, need a lot of merit aid or need something the regular college options don’t offer.

Meanwhile, for kids with scores over 1400 in places like Maryland and Virginia, most of the normal college options are now highly selective schools with capacity problems and complicated, unpredictable admissions processes. They need a lot more advice than the kids aiming for the less selective schools need.

I'll bite. Tell us what "local jesuit college" allows for under 1500. Citation, please.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: I had hoped she would apply to small or medium liberal arts colleges on the east coast with better names and status. That's not where the best dance programs were.

Hmm, I was thinking Shenandoah (ShenCo) but they wouldn't fit better name/status school - but a really good dance program on a liberal arts school campus. My daughter didn't wind up applying because she was too intimidated - she's not pre-pro or anything and hasn't been doing 20 hours/week of dance. She enjoys dance, but just isn't at the level so many other dancers applying to those programs are. She was so happy to get offered a spot ANYWHERE. She had several non-audition schools she was looking at, including Lindenwood in MO, Alma in MI, Meredith in NC and ODU in state for us.

Good for her. When I said smaller liberal arts colleges I just really meant all of my own unrealistic projections of where I wish I went thirty years ago!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You just have to take everything you read here with a grain of salt. That thread about where your kid is going has like 6 kids going to Stanford. Doubt it. We have a lot of teenagers here and a lot of people who just like to troll.

It's just weird all the kids seem to have SAT scores above 1500. It'd be nice to see where kids who are good students but not top go.

I think that’s because schools like George Mason, UMBC or local Jesuit colleges suit the needs of most kids with SATs in the 1100 to 1400 range very well and have plenty of capacity. As long as those kids are happy with the normal options and can pay for the options, they don’t have to think about this a lot.

The kids with scores under 1400 who have college application stress are probably fairly unusual kids who have test scores that fail to reflect their abilities, have an unusually high level of ambition, have Tiger parents, need a lot of merit aid or need something the regular college options don’t offer.

Meanwhile, for kids with scores over 1400 in places like Maryland and Virginia, most of the normal college options are now highly selective schools with capacity problems and complicated, unpredictable admissions processes. They need a lot more advice than the kids aiming for the less selective schools need.

I'll bite. Tell us what "local jesuit college" allows for under 1500. Citation, please.

I'm guessing Loyola

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter's sat's were just under 1200, gpa was i think 3.85 or so, extracurriculars were good, she applied and did second performance interviews for the department at most of these schools because she's a dance major. She got into almost all she applied to: American, JMU, George Mason, Radnor, VCU. A couple others I can't remember. She ended up choosing Towson and got 2 k in merit aid. She loves it there. She was swiftly rejected by Montclair State in nj in the dance department (though accepted to the school). They are one of the most competitive dance programs in part because all dance majors pay in state tuition even from other states. And it's just a well known program. I had hoped she would apply to small or medium liberal arts colleges on the east coast with better names and status. That's not where the best dance programs were. She knew that and did what she wanted. And it served her well, I'm proud she followed her own plan.

Congratulations.

Is she classical dance or commercial dance?

I'm not sure they make that distinction as a major (you also are not technically a dance major until sophomore year, a full year dancing with the department). Her classes include ballet, modern, etc. So I think more classically based, like her training before college? (Though she gave up Pointe, but they have that too) She does not want a performative career, she's on a teaching track and says the school has a solid record of placing grads in schools (private/ public). We shall see, her Dad and me try to plant seeds of her owning her own studio one day, but that's our dream not really hers. We want her to be able to financially have a decent job but those decisions are hers, just like her college choice was.

Towson is a really tough dance admit! Congrats.

My daughter is choosing between Dean and Radford for a dance major currently. We need Dean to show us more money, but it is her first choice. She is only planning a BA so that she can also take classes in exercise science (likely minor at Radford or an AA for a dual degree at Dean)

That sounds great, my daughter has a friend at Radford who loves it. (I accidentally said Radnor, sorry). We visited, my daughter got in there too. The dance department audition and whole vibe of that program was very good and she liked it there a lot. I think she chose Towson because it was closer.

I kept wanting UMBC or Goucher to be a good fit as we live in NoVA, so Radford is 3.5 hours away vs. 60-90 minutes. They didn't offer what she was looking for, though (no exercise science department/degree).

Radford has a new building with gorgeous studios that will be used starting in the Fall. I think that swayed my daughter back in their direction, as she told me point blank in the early fall she wasn't applying there ;P

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are the SATs the same as they were in the 90s? I can’t believe I got into an Ivy League school with less than a 1400 back in the day… (forgive the dumb question, my kids aren’t yet seniors so I haven’t gone through the insanity yet.)

Acceptance rate at most Ivies was in the 40% range in late ‘80s/early ‘90s. It’s a different world.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: I had hoped she would apply to small or medium liberal arts colleges on the east coast with better names and status. That's not where the best dance programs were.

Hmm, I was thinking Shenandoah (ShenCo) but they wouldn't fit better name/status school - but a really good dance program on a liberal arts school campus. My daughter didn't wind up applying because she was too intimidated - she's not pre-pro or anything and hasn't been doing 20 hours/week of dance. She enjoys dance, but just isn't at the level so many other dancers applying to those programs are. She was so happy to get offered a spot ANYWHERE. She had several non-audition schools she was looking at, including Lindenwood in MO, Alma in MI, Meredith in NC and ODU in state for us.

Good for her. When I said smaller liberal arts colleges I just really meant all of my own unrealistic projections of where I wish I went thirty years ago!

I have enjoyed visiting campuses with my daughter through this process, with a whole different view than I had (also 30 years ago). I have wound up questioning my list from 30 years ago, too - it seems so random now. I probably would have picked my alma mater or something very similar, but the rest of my list didn't make much sense. For example, I really wanted to continue with marching band, and very few schools I applied to actually had one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are the SATs the same as they were in the 90s? I can’t believe I got into an Ivy League school with less than a 1400 back in the day… (forgive the dumb question, my kids aren’t yet seniors so I haven’t gone through the insanity yet.)

Acceptance rate at most Ivies was in the 40% range in late ‘80s/early ‘90s. It’s a different world.

Yep - but even back then people with lower stats were getting in. I got into W&M with a 1320 in 1990 (which in today's standard is considered over 1400), but my roommate at W&M only had a 910. I was a bit astonished because at my northern VA public school, no one under 1300 was getting accepted to W&M at the time. State schools are required to take kids form all over (and many areas of VA will have kids with stats lower than the major metropolitan areas).

[Anonymous]

DS with high GPA applied TO for Fall 2024. He's on the spectrum and has deep knowledge and excellent analytical skills when it comes to international politics, languages and the unique issues facing countries and their populations. He interviews shockingly well with adults - the more cerebral and academic, the more he shines. He's been awarded a number of merit scholarships and spots in honors programs. He's not strong in standardized testing for the typical ASD reasons. Ironically if he'd been required to submit a test score, he'd likely end up in a more standard program that would not be a good fit for an ASD kid like him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD had a 1300. She is a senior at UMD. It was a reach when she applied and I know it’s harder now so perhaps not relevant. But she applied to I think 10 schools and was accepted to all including a lot of small private schools with merit aid, plus Miami of Ohio. So under 1400 isn’t the end of the world. Her brother struggles with paralyzing anxiety on standardized tests and I expect him to top out at 1200 though his goal is 1300. He is considering the non- flagship UNC campuses, Miami of Ohio, Towson, JMU and WVU so far. He is hoping to go TO where possible.

This was basically our DC. ~1300 one-and-done/zero-prep, 4.0UW/4.5W with dozens of DE credits. Enrolling at WVU with $$ merit and is super excited.

Congrats! Curious if they applied elsewhere an got in? Great GPA and showed rigor with DE(but no AP's-maybe none offered). Most definitely could have gone TO, did they?

Only one AP (Euro - Score: 5, as a sophomore)....because the DE program consumes their Junior and Senior year and they had two electives they loved and provided tremendous leadership opportunities. No regrets. Will graduate from CC before HS.

Applied and accepted to all four places: JMU, Longwood, Miami (Ohio), and WVU -- with significant merit everywhere but JMU. Could've gone TO but chose to submit to all, mostly for merit/scholarship (and direct-admittance, where applicable) opportunities.

AWESOME!! Thank you for this helpful response.

[Anonymous]

My kid got a 1350 and was accepted everywhere she applied (3 out of state, 4 in state). She'll be at VT in the fall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are the SATs the same as they were in the 90s? I can’t believe I got into an Ivy League school with less than a 1400 back in the day… (forgive the dumb question, my kids aren’t yet seniors so I haven’t gone through the insanity yet.)

They are not the same...today's scores are higher for two reasons. First, the test was "recentered" in the mid 90s...depending on what you got, you might add 60-80 points to get the equivalent in today's scores. Second, there was no "super scoring" in the 90s and kids did not take the test 3-4 times.