COLLEGE ENTRANCE EXAMS

Community colleges do not generally require an admissions test but most in our area require a placement test before registration for the first quarter.   The most common test is the ASSET , measuring writing, reading, and math skills.   We can provide sample questions for interested students.   Students should contact the testing office of the community college to schedule a time well ahead of the first registration.   While an appointment is often needed, the test is free at most community colleges.   We recommend testing by May of the senior year.

   Four-year colleges almost always require a test as part of the application process.

   What tests are there?   There are two national college entrance tests:

a.     American College Test ( ACT )

b.    S cholastic Assessment Test   ( SAT Reasoning ) Additionally, some students may need or want to take SAT II : Subject Tests.

Which one or ones do I take?   The vast majority of colleges will accept either the ACT or SAT I.   The more selective the school the more likely it is to require the SAT I though at least half of the Ivy League now accepts the ACT, in some cases in place of both SAT I & II.   Read about these tests below to see which one(s) might be best for you.   Too many of our students think only of the SAT I and not also of the ACT.

When do I take them?   For students planning to attend a four-year college right out of high school, the spring of the junior year is the best time to take the ACT or SAT I.   June is the best time for a SAT II test if the subject will not be taken the next year.   If taking both SAT I and SAT II in the spring, we recommend scheduling SAT I in May and SAT II in June with the rationale that an additional month in class will be of more benefit on a SAT II test than on SAT I.   Any of the tests can be repeated in the senior year if desired.   For many students, it is quite acceptable to wait until the senior year to take a test.   We recommend all testing be completed by December of that school year.

When are they given?   The test dates are listed on another page.   There is an additional fee for late registration.   The dates refer to postmark dates.   Register well ahead to assure a spot at your first choice test center.

Can the tests be retaken? Yes.   Students should realize that test scores do not always go up the second time.   Each test becomes part of your testing record, so practice at home, not at the test.   Take each test seriously.   Colleges generally take the highest scores.   You may want to check to see if you need higher scores to get where you want to go before retaking or spending considerable money on a test prep course.

How do I sign up for the tests?   Registration materials are available in the WCHS office or online.   Registration forms are to be mailed by the student to the testing company.   Registration deadlines refer to postmark deadlines.   Save the registration bulletin.   It is a source of information for questions that may arise before or after the test.

What is my high school code #?

0503850     You will use this number frequently in the test registration and college application process.

How do my test scores get reported to colleges?   You have the test company send your scores directly to your colleges.   On the test registration forms you can request up to three (ACT) or four (SAT I) score reports to be sent directly to colleges or scholarship programs of your choice, if you wish.   These reports are included in the cost of the test if requested prior to the test.   Additional reports or reports requested later will be an additional cost.   Score reports list the complete testing history for students at that company.

Whatever standardized test(s) you take, remember that WCHS does not send scores to colleges; scores do not appear on your transcript.  You are responsible for seeing to it that the respective testing agency forwards your score(s), in a timely fashion, to the colleges to which you will be applying.

What is Score Choice?   This option applies to only SAT II: Subject Test scores.   Students choosing this option at registration time put their scores in a “box” which only they can see.   The intent is to give students control over which of their SAT II scores colleges receive.   Students can take more than three different SAT II tests and/or retake one or more tests and put them all in the box.   Colleges will not see the scores unless the student releases them from the box.   The student can release only those tests from the box they wish to.   Is there a downside?   YES!!   The student must remember it requires a two step process to get their scores to a college.   First, the student must submit a form to release the desired scores from the “box” and then ask the scores be sent to the desired colleges.   Using Score Choice in the senior year is a potential problem due to the time it takes to get these two steps completed.

Can I study for these tests?   There are two kinds of preparation for the tests.   Students should familiarize themselves with the test.   Know the kinds of questions that will be on the test, how the test is organized, how to record answers in the math section in which students generate their own answer (not multiple choice), how the test is scored (e.g. how is guessing handled).   Sample questions, test taking tips, and complete practice tests are available for each test, free, in the Student Service Center.

The second type of preparation is to actually study for the test.   Students can purchase paperback study guides or computer programs, sign up for a full test prep course, or a few hours of tutoring from a test prep company.   Full courses are expensive.   If money is an issue for you, we suggest you check to be sure you need higher test scores to get you where you want to go before you make this significant investment.

What part do tests play in the admissions?   It varies considerably, but test scores are generally less important than the public believes and are, in almost all cases, less important than the high school record of courses taken and grades earned.   The formula used by the 6 public four-year college/universities in our state places 75% of the weight on grades and 25% on test scores.   Most colleges do not have a specific ratio or formula.   The important admissions criteria at highly selective colleges are the strength of the academic program taken and grades earned.

Can I use a calculator on the math part of the tests?   Yes, for all three tests – SAT I & II and ACT.   Check the registration booklets for acceptable models.

Can there be special arrangements for physically or learning disabled students?   Yes, but the criteria has been tightened.   Students on an IEP and who receive some type of special help with tests at KSS may be able to receive similar help on the ACT or SAT.   Contact your counselor well ahead of the regular registration deadline if you feel this may apply to you.

What if I cannot afford a test?   Contact your counselor.   Being on free or reduced lunch would be an indicator that you might qualify for assistance.

What do I take to the test?   Admission ticket, picture I.D. (driver’s license is best), two sharpened #2 pencils, eraser, watch, and calculator.   It is wise to dress in layers because the temperature in the test center is unpredictable.   You might want a snack for the break but no food or drink is permitted in the testing room.   Check the list in the registration bulletin.

What about Advanced Placement Tests?   See description that follows.   Not used in admissions except possibly for student who took one in their junior year.

Description of each type of test follows:

SAT I: REASONING TEST
The SAT, a program of the College Board and administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), is the required or preferred entrance exam for most colleges and universities.  The SAT is a test designed to measure your writing, verbal and mathematical reasoning skills. Along with the other academic information you provide to the college, the test is designed to predict your readiness for college-level studies and to predict your academic performance in college.  The test is organized into three sections: 

Critical Reading Section :   The critical reading section, currently known as the verbal section, will include short reading passages along with the existing long reading passages. Analogies will be eliminated, but sentence-completion questions will remain.   It is a 70 min. (two 25-min. sections and one 20-min. section) test. It includes reading comprehension, sentence completions, and paragraph-length critical reading. Score:   200-880.

The Mathematics Section :   The new test will include expanded math topics, such as exponential growth, absolute value, and functional notation, and place greater emphasis on such other topics as linear functions, manipulations with exponents, and properties of tangent lines. Content will include number and operations; algebra and functions; geometry; statistics, probability, and data analysis.   It is a 70 min. two 25-min. sections and one 20 min. section) test.   Score: 200-800.

The Writing Section :   This is a 60 minute test.   It will include a 35-minute multiple-choice test, which will measure your ability to improve sentences and paragraphs and identify errors.   It will also have a 25 minute timed essay. You'll be asked to develop a point of a view on an issue, using reasoning and evidence, based on your own experiences, readings, or observations, to support your ideas.   Score:   200-800.

You are responsible for submitting your registration form on time and with the appropriate fees.  It is important that you register for each test you take from the College Board in the same way.  Always use the same first, middle and last names, birth date, social security number, etc., or your scores could be delayed or lost.  When registering, you need not complete the Student Descriptive Questionnaire, but about 90% of test-takers do.  The questionnaire asks for you to provide information about your background, your school courses, your grades, your activities, and your college plans.  The information is sent to the schools to which you are reporting your scores, along with your scores. 

When you register for the SAT, you may select up to four colleges, universities, scholarship programs, or other programs to which your scores will be sent.  If you want to send your scores to more than four recipients, you can do so in several ways by paying an additional fee.  Since you will probably take the SAT again in your senior year, it is not necessary to be final about your reporting plans when you register for the test in your junior year.  In fact, it is wise for some students not to have their first SAT scores sent to any college.  If you’re anxious to learn your score before you receive your score report, you can call ETS ten days after your test, pay a fee, and learn your score.  There is also an "urgent" reporting service available, and the phone number and additional information for this service is available in the registration booklet.  The school code, or CEEB code, for WCHS, is 053850. 

Remember that SAT score reports are cumulative-- each successive report includes all of your previous scores.  Taking the test twice or three times is the common practice; to take it more than three times is excessive and unnecessary.  While some colleges consider your highest total score as your best, most colleges will use your highest verbal and highest math score as a composite, even if they were earned at two different sittings.  Sometimes the military academies and a few other schools will take an average of your verbal and math scores; still other schools will use only your most recent scores. 

2003-2004 SAT Test Dates

SAT PREPARATION
As is the case with any test, especially with an important test such as the SAT, it is important that you prepare for the SAT before taking it.  Not to do so would be foolish.  The best type of preparation you can do for the SAT is to become familiar with the test.  The booklet you receive with your registration materials, Taking the SAT I: Reasoning Test , by the College Board, contains a great deal of information about the SAT.  It also contains a practice test.  Taking practice tests before you actually take the SAT is an excellent way to prepare for the exam. Books of practice tests are published and are available at most book stores. 

Preparation usually means something different to each person taking the SAT.  For a large number of the college-bound seniors in this area, preparation means taking a coaching course.  Study carefully the claims made by SAT coaching companies in their advertisements.  Remember that on average , all SAT scores increase on the second administration.  There are countless claims and countless reports regarding coaching and SAT preparation.  Before you decide on taking a course, ask some of these questions:  How much time do you have to devote to this course?  How much work will be required outside of class?  Are you disciplined enough to prepare for the exam on your own? 

However you decide to prepare, remember that what will be most important will be the time you devote to preparation and the attitude with which you approach the test.  Remember that there is no course nor any individual with a "secret" to success on the SAT.

PRELIMINARY SCHOLASTIC APTITUDE TEST
The purpose of taking the PSAT (Preliminary SAT) exam was for you to gain experience taking the type of standardized tests used in college admissions.  In addition, the score you received on the PSAT in your junior year is used to determine your eligibility for competition in the National Merit and other scholarship competitions.  The PSAT does not play a role in the college admissions process.

AMERICAN COLLEGE TESTING ASSESSMENT
The ACT, administered by the American College Testing Program, is an alternative college admission test more commonly used in the Mid-west, parts of the South and the West, but with increased frequency on the East coast.  The ACT is a four-part exam that includes four multiple-choice tests.  The sections on the test measure your knowledge in English, mathematics, reading, and science reasoning.  The total testing time is three hours, and scores are reported on a range of 1 to 36.  Because the ACT is curriculum-based (unlike the SAT), some students tend to score a little higher on it.   There is an optional writing test.  One recent, unscientific study found that about one third of test-takers scored relatively higher on the SAT scale, one third higher on the ACT scale, and for one-third, the scores were roughly the same.  More and more juniors are taking both the ACT and the SAT in the spring to determine which might be better to retake.

The 2003-2004 ACT Test Dates

                        
SAT II: SUBJECT TESTS
The Subject Tests are administered by the College Board and are usually given on the same days as the SAT I.  The tests are designed to measure your knowledge or skill in a particular subject area and to apply that knowledge or skill.  The tests are curriculum-based, and being such, it is much easier to study for them than it is for the SAT.  Many of the more selective colleges require their applicants to take one, two, or even three Subject Tests.  Some even specify the tests you must take. 

Tests are offered in:  Literature, Mathematics Levels I-C and II-C, Biology (General), Biology E/M, Chemistry, Physics, American History and Social Studies, World History, French Reading, French Listening, Spanish Reading, Spanish Listening, German Reading, German Listening, Modern Hebrew, Italian, Latin, Chinese Listening, Japanese Listening, Korean Listening, and English Proficiency.  All of the tests except Writing take one hour and consist only of multiple-choice questions.  The Writing Test also takes one hour but includes a twenty-minute essay with the forty minutes of questions. 

You must check the Subject Test requirements for each of the colleges to which you are applying.  Registration for the Subject Tests is the same as that for the SAT.  You may take up to three tests at one administration.  Remember that you can study for the Subject Tests, and it is generally better to take them as soon after the respective courses as possible. 

The Writing Test will be found to be quite difficult for those who are not at ease with writing well under pressure on a given topic.  The Chemistry and Physics tests are usually better taken at the same time as the respective course.  The language tests should be considered by students who have studied at least three years of that language.  You should obviously take the Mathematics test for which you are best prepared.  Good study books for all of the tests are available in bookstores, and preparation courses are available for the Writing and Mathematics tests.

Scores for the Subject Tests are similar to those on the Verbal and Mathematics sections of the SAT, on a scale of 200 to 800.  Some colleges use the scores as a part of the admission criteria, others claim they use them more for placement purposes for students who have been accepted.  The tests you decide to take, when you take them, and the scores you receive can be very important factors in the admission formulas of the schools which require them. 

When registering for the Subject Tests, you have the option of withholding your scores.  By doing so, you are keeping any college from ever seeing the score until you give permission for that score to be released to your SAT score record.  Withheld scores will not appear on the cumulative SAT/Subject Test score reports which your colleges will receive.  When, and if, you decide to release certain Subject Test scores, they will then become a part of your cumulative test record.  It is very important to remember that you must allow five to six weeks between the time you release scores and the time they are received by colleges.  Be careful!   The score withholding process is described in detail in the registration booklet.  It is nice option to consider, especially when taking the Subject Tests before senior year.

ADVANCED PLACEMENT EXAMS
The A.P. Exams are administered by the College Board and are designed to be taken upon the completion of an A.P. course.  Depending on the score you receive on the exam (a scale of 1 to 5), and the schools to which you are accepted, you may be able to obtain college credit or advanced standing as a result of your taking an A.P. Exam.  Because most students do not take A.P. Exams until the end of the senior year, they are not typically considered in the college admission process.  However, if you have done well on an exam taken before senior year, send a copy of your score report to the colleges to which you are applying.

UNTIMED AND EXTENDED TIME STANDARDIZED TESTS
Each of the standardized tests described in this section can be taken with extended time by students with documented learning disabilities or other handicaps. The guidelines for documentation are very specific, and it is the student's responsibility to provide that documentation.  Registration deadlines for these tests are usually six weeks before the testing dates, and documentation must be received before the registration can take place.  Most tests can be administered only within certain "windows" of time, or on certain days.

A FINAL WORD ON TESTING
How important are your test scores?  That depends on where you are applying.  College guidebooks and admission materials often indicate an average score for students.  Keep in mind that this is an average , not a minimum.  More schools have moved to the reporting of their scores as ranges for the middle 50% of their students.  This information is usually more helpful and a lot less intimidating.  If your test scores are within the college's range, their relative importance, when compared to other parts of your application, decreases. 

College admission officers are fully aware that some students do not "test well."  Slow reading speed, unfamiliarity with the test format, or simple fear may cause a student to perform poorly on standardized tests.  For these reasons, test scores are usually reviewed in the context of all other parts of the student's application.  As one admission officer said, "We are much more interested in what the student has done in three and a half years than we are in what he has done in three and a half hours on a Saturday morning."