BTDT Test Optional...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're white, at least reasonably well off, and from an area like the DMV, no, do not submit scores below a school's median to anywhere that does not somehow "strongly encourage" their submission. If you don't meet one or more of those criteria, submitting above the 25th percentile is fine. That's the clearest and best advice you're going to get; if you don't follow it, that's on you.

So the median is the range from 25-75th percent. Do you take the middle of that as the floor or the 25%?

[Anonymous]

OP, what schools is your kid applying to. I think if you share that, you may get more specific information out of folks. I have thoughts (and a freshman in college from this area), but it really depends on what schools your kid is applying to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're white, at least reasonably well off, and from an area like the DMV, no, do not submit scores below a school's median to anywhere that does not somehow "strongly encourage" their submission. If you don't meet one or more of those criteria, submitting above the 25th percentile is fine. That's the clearest and best advice you're going to get; if you don't follow it, that's on you.

If you’re white or Asian, student is going to do well test optional at the top schools unless they have something else exceptional on their resume.

If urm or first gen, likely to do well with test optional.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you're white, at least reasonably well off, and from an area like the DMV, no, do not submit scores below a school's median to anywhere that does not somehow "strongly encourage" their submission. If you don't meet one or more of those criteria, submitting above the 25th percentile is fine. That's the clearest and best advice you're going to get; if you don't follow it, that's on you.

If you’re white or Asian, student is going to do well test optional at the top schools unless they have something else exceptional on their resume.

If urm or first gen, likely to do well with test optional.

Sorry, meant to say of white or Asian, student is NOT going to do well TO unless. . .

[Anonymous]

If you’re white or Asian, student is going to do well test optional at the top schools unless they have something else exceptional on their resume. If urm or first gen, likely to do well with test optional.

Do you have any stats or even one quote from an AO to support this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, what schools is your kid applying to. I think if you share that, you may get more specific information out of folks. I have thoughts (and a freshman in college from this area), but it really depends on what schools your kid is applying to.

Tulane - last year they admitted 45% of their class TO. Their middle 50 range is 1380-1490, middle 50% 1435. DC has a 1400.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a college sophomore and a HS senior and no test scores were/are involved with their admission processes. My college student got in to their first choice ED and so far my senior has two EA acceptances in hand. The advice we got was that the schools that were either test optional or actively discouraging test scores for a few years pre-Covid were the best choices for kids applying test optional. So far that has served my kids well.

This is ,earning less without identifying colleges , gpas, and other factors, as well as your demographics.

Schools that have already sent out notifications for this year tend to be those that aren’t particularly selective and not the schools people are referring to wje. Sweating this out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, what schools is your kid applying to. I think if you share that, you may get more specific information out of folks. I have thoughts (and a freshman in college from this area), but it really depends on what schools your kid is applying to.

Tulane - last year they admitted 45% of their class TO. Their middle 50 range is 1380-1490, middle 50% 1435. DC has a 1400.

I’d submit, that’s close enough to in range and a solid score.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you're white, at least reasonably well off, and from an area like the DMV, no, do not submit scores below a school's median to anywhere that does not somehow "strongly encourage" their submission. If you don't meet one or more of those criteria, submitting above the 25th percentile is fine. That's the clearest and best advice you're going to get; if you don't follow it, that's on you.

So the median is the range from 25-75th percent. Do you take the middle of that as the floor or the 25%?

The middle (unless you can find the actual 50th percentile figure).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, what schools is your kid applying to. I think if you share that, you may get more specific information out of folks. I have thoughts (and a freshman in college from this area), but it really depends on what schools your kid is applying to.

Tulane - last year they admitted 45% of their class TO. Their middle 50 range is 1380-1490, middle 50% 1435. DC has a 1400.

I’d submit, that’s close enough to in range and a solid score.

Bad advice. A score below the median is an impediment to taking a student the school might otherwise want. A 1400 is a good score but it would hurt the student's chances here, so they should keep it to themselves at this school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, what schools is your kid applying to. I think if you share that, you may get more specific information out of folks. I have thoughts (and a freshman in college from this area), but it really depends on what schools your kid is applying to.

Tulane - last year they admitted 45% of their class TO. Their middle 50 range is 1380-1490, middle 50% 1435. DC has a 1400.

I’d submit, that’s close enough to in range and a solid score.

Bad advice. A score below the median is an impediment to taking a student the school might otherwise want. A 1400 is a good score but it would hurt the student's chances here, so they should keep it to themselves at this school.

This is what's driving us nuts and what we keep coming back to is - this score is only 35 points below their "middle", but if DC doesn't submit, would the assumption be the score is sub-1380. DH says absolutely and I'm not sure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

If you’re white or Asian, student is going to do well test optional at the top schools unless they have something else exceptional on their resume. If urm or first gen, likely to do well with test optional.

Do you have any stats or even one quote from an AO to support this?

Of course not. 🙂

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, what schools is your kid applying to. I think if you share that, you may get more specific information out of folks. I have thoughts (and a freshman in college from this area), but it really depends on what schools your kid is applying to.

Tulane - last year they admitted 45% of their class TO. Their middle 50 range is 1380-1490, middle 50% 1435. DC has a 1400.

I’d submit, that’s close enough to in range and a solid score.

Bad advice. A score below the median is an impediment to taking a student the school might otherwise want. A 1400 is a good score but it would hurt the student's chances here, so they should keep it to themselves at this school.

If your kid wants to go to Tulane apply ED, then you won't be handwringing over TO. I probably wouldn't submit that score, but I would want to know uw GPA, where they went to school (public or private), and what kind of ECs they have to definitely say no.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

If you’re white or Asian, student is going to do well test optional at the top schools unless they have something else exceptional on their resume. If urm or first gen, likely to do well with test optional.

Do you have any stats or even one quote from an AO to support this?

Look at the increase in URM and first gen admissions in the past two years of test optional and do the math. No school is going to say this out loud, it’s how they are going to get around the imminent end of AA. They are not going to invite the next series of law suits.

And this is what we were told by two different sets of counselors, one school, one private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

If you’re white or Asian, student is going to do well test optional at the top schools unless they have something else exceptional on their resume. If urm or first gen, likely to do well with test optional.

Do you have any stats or even one quote from an AO to support this?

Of course not. 🙂

Look at increase in urm and first gen admissions under test optional. You think not correlated? Don’t be stupid.

For a group that likes to claim that early decision rates needs to be reconsidered for legacy and athletic admits, kind of funny that there is unwillingness to admit that test optional admit rates inflated by hooked students as well.