Hard to say, because you have no idea what my background on this subject is.

Alum interviewers talk to applicants and then prepare a report that they send to the college admissions office. That is the extent of their input into the admissions process. The admissions office then can use that input as they see fit. The alum interviewer is not making admissions decisions. The school hopes that the alum interviewer will act as an ambassador for the school, answering questions the student might have and giving the student some insight into the school and what it is like to be a student there.

Anonymous wrote:

The post does not say that all programs are alike in FCPS. It says that admissions officers are familiar with the programs. That means they understand the differences in the programs. Lots of alums do interviews for their schools, but that doesn't mean they necessarily know every single thing that goes on in the admissions office.

I would bet these longstanding regional interviewers know a hell of a lot more about the process than you. High school students looking to highly selective colleges would probably put their faith with the former than the latter. This is rational don't you think?

The post does not say that all programs are alike in FCPS. It says that admissions officers are familiar with the programs. That means they understand the differences in the programs. Lots of alums do interviews for their schools, but that doesn't mean they necessarily know every single thing that goes on in the admissions office.

Have you had a child go through the college application process yet? If you had, you would realize that admissions officers spend a lot of time learning about the many high schools in their assigned region. FCPS schools are very well known and top schools are familiar with the various programs offered here.
Call the admissions office of a school that interests you and ask your questions. They understand challenge and know how to see it in a transcript.

Have you had a child go through the college application process yet? If you had, you would realize that admissions officers spend a lot of time learning about the many high schools in their assigned region. FCPS schools are very well known and top schools are familiar with the various programs offered here.
Call the admissions office of a school that interests you and ask your questions. They understand challenge and know how to see it in a transcript.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, the ACT is a test of high school subject matter. There is less need for prep courses for it because it does not use the tricky questions that the SAT uses.

And in terms of grades, we are discussing FCPS schools here, which do not give out grades like candy. Admissions officers know the reputation of the schools here and know that when the guidance counselor has checked the "most rigorous coursework" box, a high standard has been required for the grades on the transcript.

Is there a difference between the rigor at TJ, an AP class, an IB class, an honors class or a regular class in FCPS?

What is the difference in rigor?

Do you think college admission's officers at UVA and Harvard can tell the difference?

Which programs do the admission officers want to see the high grades? Which students (by program) may have the competitive advantage?

Have you had a child go through the college application process yet? If you had, you would realize that admissions officers spend a lot of time learning about the many high schools in their assigned region. FCPS schools are very well known and top schools are familiar with the various programs offered here.
Call the admissions office of a school that interests you and ask your questions. They understand challenge and know how to see it in a transcript.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The bottom line is that the scores of these AAP identification tests are affected when kids have been practicing with materials that replicate past tests. Some people know this and have decided to make some money off this fact. The more they can convince young parents that:
a: a child's intelligence is dependent on how many of this business's worksheets the child does and,
b: that there is no good education available in FCPS except in AAP and,
c: the best way to get a child into AAP is to use our services/products,
the more money they will make.

They do not want the school to know that kids have been prepped, because they know that the scores would then be taken less seriously. It would certainly be bad for business for the schools to know which second graders have been doing practice questions from old tests at camps or classes or clubs or just at home with a parent. Even the idea that teachers might be asking kids at school if they have seen questions like these before could be bad for business. Parents may hesitate to buy into test prep programs or materials if they hear that the schools might not use test results from kids who say they have seen questions like this before.

Most of these businesses sell other types of tutoring and test prep so they will not lose their shirts if FCPS were to stop using these tests or drop the AAP.
But it would eat into their profits to a certain extent.

It's funny that, in a thread about identification tests for a program for elementary and middle school students, there have been multiple posts about tests taken by high school students. FCPS has had to change the identification tests because of one kind of prepping that is inappropriate for that particular test, which has a different function than the SATs/ACTs.
But still, post after post filled with bromides about the wonders of preparation appears, seemingly in hopes that parents will conflate SAT/ACT preparation with prepping for these first and second grade tests. As though to say, "If it is good for the SATs/ACTs, than it must be good for these tests, too!"