BTDT Test Optional...

[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.

Incorrect. For 2022, Tulane’s 50% was 1410-1500. It is right on their admission website under “Class of 2026” profile. I would not submit a 1400. I know this because we were just looking at the stats. My kid has a 32 and the 50% ACT range at Tulane is 31-34, so he is submitting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I don't know what to tell you. Your DH is just wrong. Colleges truly DGAF about scores they don't see--and thus need not report. Tulane, especially, doesn't want to see scores that will drag down its average. Don't report a 1400; reporting would hurt his chances.

[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.

Incorrect. For 2022, Tulane’s 50% was 1410-1500. It is right on their admission website under “Class of 2026” profile. I would not submit a 1400. I know this because we were just looking at the stats. My kid has a 32 and the 50% ACT range at Tulane is 31-34, so he is submitting.

Honestly, I wouldn't submit a 32 if the range is 31-34. It's probably below the median and thus will hurt, not help.

[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.

Mentioned above, but your stats are wrong. Tulane’s middle 50% last year was 1410-1500. Don’t send a 1400!

[Anonymous]

Irl

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I don't know what to tell you. Your DH is just wrong. Colleges truly DGAF about scores they don't see--and thus need not report. Tulane, especially, doesn't want to see scores that will drag down its average. Don't report a 1400; reporting would hurt his chances.

I think you are just wrong, and not reporting will hurt his chances. If the score was truly aberrant, like a 1200, don’t submit. Of course, neither of us actually knows because schools have released so little data about their test optional acceptances.

As other had pointed out, apply ed. That is almost a requirement for getting accepted at Tulane.

[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.

Incorrect. For 2022, Tulane’s 50% was 1410-1500. It is right on their admission website under “Class of 2026” profile. I would not submit a 1400. I know this because we were just looking at the stats. My kid has a 32 and the 50% ACT range at Tulane is 31-34, so he is submitting.

Honestly, I wouldn't submit a 32 if the range is 31-34. It's probably below the median and thus will hurt, not help.

Our private counselor advised submitting because the sub scores are 34, 33, 33 and a lone 29 in math dragging it down. But I guess we will reconsider. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

My DD's college counselor told her not to submit scores for schools where her SAT is below the 75%. Sadly, she's only submitting it for one school. GPA is high, so hoping for the best.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I'm the PP. I would not claim that the schools my kids are attending or looking at attending are "top schools." They are, however, the right schools for my kids and part of what makes them the right schools for my kids is that they have a longstanding admissions philosophy that test scores are not an important part of assessing if a potential student is the right fit for their campus. So if you are looking for a school where test optional is the choice you are making because you genuinely feel that testing doesn't best represent who your child is, then a school that shares that view is a school you should consider your child applying to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Incorrect. For 2022, Tulane’s 50% was 1410-1500. It is right on their admission website under “Class of 2026” profile. I would not submit a 1400. I know this because we were just looking at the stats. My kid has a 32 and the 50% ACT range at Tulane is 31-34, so he is submitting.

Honestly, I wouldn't submit a 32 if the range is 31-34. It's probably below the median and thus will hurt, not help.

Our private counselor advised submitting because the sub scores are 34, 33, 33 and a lone 29 in math dragging it down. But I guess we will reconsider. Thanks!

I would submit. Chances are the median is actually closer to 31 than 34 with more scores clustered around the lower scores. Even if not, being within the range is very solid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Incorrect. For 2022, Tulane’s 50% was 1410-1500. It is right on their admission website under “Class of 2026” profile. I would not submit a 1400. I know this because we were just looking at the stats. My kid has a 32 and the 50% ACT range at Tulane is 31-34, so he is submitting.

Honestly, I wouldn't submit a 32 if the range is 31-34. It's probably below the median and thus will hurt, not help.

Our private counselor advised submitting because the sub scores are 34, 33, 33 and a lone 29 in math dragging it down. But I guess we will reconsider. Thanks!

I would submit. Chances are the median is actually closer to 31 than 34 with more scores clustered around the lower scores. Even if not, being within the range is very solid.

That is what we were thinking too. Plus, my DC is a legacy at Tulane.

[Anonymous]

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.

This statement makes me think you're either willfully ignorant or don't have a junior deciding whether/how much to prep or a senior currently applying to college. As PPs noted, the decision is school and score dependent, especially given the rapid increase in the scores submitted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I'm the PP. I would not claim that the schools my kids are attending or looking at attending are "top schools." They are, however, the right schools for my kids and part of what makes them the right schools for my kids is that they have a longstanding admissions philosophy that test scores are not an important part of assessing if a potential student is the right fit for their campus. So if you are looking for a school where test optional is the choice you are making because you genuinely feel that testing doesn't best represent who your child is, then a school that shares that view is a school you should consider your child applying to.

Pp here and an absolutely agree. But presenting these results without clarifying what tier the schools are isn’t necessarily helpful to a broader audience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

This statement makes me think you're either willfully ignorant or don't have a junior deciding whether/how much to prep or a senior currently applying to college. As PPs noted, the decision is school and score dependent, especially given the rapid increase in the scores submitted.

I do have a senior applying this year, trying to save some of you all from jumping off a cliff.

There is a lot of willful blindness to logic here. Before pushing your kid into the test optional category, it makes sense to consider whether test optional is going to help them. Look at the test optional admit rate and look at the increase in first gen/ urm admissions in the same time period. In many cases, at top schools, it is a disadvantage for kids to be test optional if they are NOT so hooked and therefore a mistake to push them into test optional category if their test scores are very close to the median. If their test scores are very low but gpa is high, obviously test optional is often the only time a kid may have a chance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I'm the PP. I would not claim that the schools my kids are attending or looking at attending are "top schools." They are, however, the right schools for my kids and part of what makes them the right schools for my kids is that they have a longstanding admissions philosophy that test scores are not an important part of assessing if a potential student is the right fit for their campus. So if you are looking for a school where test optional is the choice you are making because you genuinely feel that testing doesn't best represent who your child is, then a school that shares that view is a school you should consider your child applying to.

This is perhaps the wisest statement I've read on DCUM in a long time. And it gives me hope that there are schools that will be a right fit for one of children, who is bright, capable, mature and interested in many things but...cannot do well on these tests, and furthermore, the stress of knowing that, will create inordinate amounts of stress. May I ask this PP to share if they happen to know of a list of TO colleges pre-COVID? I know there were some (starting with Bowdoin in 69), but it's hard to find a list on Google, because the term "test optional" is so widely searched now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I don't know what to tell you. Your DH is just wrong. Colleges truly DGAF about scores they don't see--and thus need not report. Tulane, especially, doesn't want to see scores that will drag down its average. Don't report a 1400; reporting would hurt his chances.

I think you are just wrong, and not reporting will hurt his chances. If the score was truly aberrant, like a 1200, don’t submit. Of course, neither of us actually knows because schools have released so little data about their test optional acceptances.

Okay. You do you. Good luck.