Spots Still Open in WPU's Nursing Program

William Paterson in New Jersey is extending their application program to their highly regarded nursing program for current high school seniors. WPU has just announced they have extended their deadline until July 1^st. So if there are any seniors who have still yet to decide on their future school and are interested in nursing, think about William Paterson as a possible landing spot! The criteria to possibly become an accepted student are as follows:

·         Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0

·         1050 SAT score (CR & Math) with at least a 500 CR score

·         2 Lab sciences with grades of B or better

If you are interested in this opportunity, please stop by your college counselor’s office for more information and don’t forget to visit the WPU website.

Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

Test-Optional Update

As Ithaca College has become one of the newest members of colleges and universities giving students the option of providing admissions with SAT/ACT scores, I thought this would be a good time to remind high school students and parents about test-optional schools. Colleges that are test-optional give students with low testing scores a better chance of getting into selective schools. If a student chooses to go the route of not sending in testing scores, admissions will focus more on the student’s high school cumulative GPA and strength of schedule in addition to the student’s personal profile (résumé, essay, extra-curriculars, etc.). The list of schools providing test-optional applications gets bigger and bigger each year, which subsequently helps more and more students get into colleges that they may have been denied from if they had to send in testing scores.

 Research continues to show that SATs and ACTs only have a small percentage of predictability for student success in higher education. More and more colleges have seen that there just is not enough consistent correlation between how a student performs on a 4-hour test and how that student will perform over 4 years at their institution. For many, this just is not enough to justify placing so much weight on the tests. From my experience, selective schools that are test-optional, benefit students with high GPAs, but SAT or ACT scores that are not reflective of their GPA. However, students that have low GPAs, going test-optional have not helped them as much to gain acceptance into certain colleges. To see an up-to-date list of test-optional schools, please click on this LINK.

-Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

Summer Checklist for Rising Seniors

Although the 2011-2012 school year has been long, leading students to be tired and looking forward to summer break…rising seniors will be in a very important time of their college search process. For rising seniors, summer is not a time to just sit on your couch, watching ESPN and forgetting everything from a few months ago, which includes information from junior group guidance! The free time students have in the summer is a great opportunity to prepare for the application process and to present yourself in the best way possible to prospective colleges and universities. I can promise you that the first semester of senior year will be a very busy one with coursework, sports, clubs, and the application process. Time will fly-by and it would benefit all students to get a majority of the college work done in advance. Take a moment to look over a few of the areas in which you can work on during the summer time to give you advantage once autumn arrives:

·         Prepare for Testing/Review Testing Requirements- Many students will be happy with their SAT/ACT test scores from junior year and will not take these tests in the fall. However, a good amount of students may still need to increase their scores. So use the summer time to enroll in SAT or ACT prep classes or study on your own. Also, if students plan on applying to highly competitive colleges, make sure you are on top of all testing requirements. If a school requires SAT subject tests, make sure you register for one of the testing dates in the fall.

·          Continue to Visit Campuses- Although it usually is more beneficial to visit colleges while they are in session, this cannot always be done during the school-year. It is much better to visit a college during the summer than to never see the school. A BIG factor to deciding on which college to attend should be the overall fit and gut feeling you get while on the school’s campus. Students can get a ton of information online about schools, but there is no substitute for visiting schools to gain that invaluable “feel” for the campus.

·         Build up Your Resume- High testing scores and a high cumulative GPA are great and will be very helpful when applying to schools. However, for many schools this will not be enough. Schools want students who are well-rounded and more than just academics. They want students that are involved in other activities, sports, clubs, jobs, or do something to set themselves apart. It will be important to manage your time and responsibility in college, and admissions counselors want to see that you already have experience with this. If you do not have much to show to colleges, use the summer as a time to get involved with other opportunities other than high school classes. Some summer opportunities you may want to think about are: jobs, summer enrichment programs, pre-college summer programs, volunteering, or even some type of research! There are a multitude of ways you can benefit yourself and society, which may also improve your chances of getting accepted into school.

·         Think about Your Future- This can be a very scary thought for high school students. I often will get blank stares or confused looks when I ask my students to think about a career they could see themselves in, or where they see themselves in six years. Although this may be hard, it is important! Start researching jobs online, talking to friends and family, or try some old fashioned personal reflection and introspection. Whatever works best for you, just do something and think about what you could see yourself doing for a career and which college majors may be a good fit for you.

·         Work on Your Essay- The college essay is an integral piece to the college application process. This is not something students want to leave to the last minute to complete. Students should take time to reflect, compose, and review their college essay. This is a great opportunity for students to show who they truly are and why they belong in a school’s community. The essay often will be the deciding factor for a student being accepted or denied. Although college applications cannot be completed yet, the CommonApplication can be viewed online, by clicking on the link. Students can review the essay topics for next year and start working on them. Please, do not rush the essay, and use your free time in the summer to make the essay as good as it can be!

Joseph D. Korfmacher, MA

Juniors-Make sure you register for SAT/ACT

This is just a quick reminder that the May 5^th SAT registration deadline is quickly approaching. The regular deadline is Friday, April 6^th. All juniors should take at least one SAT or ACT before the summer break, however it is strongly recommended to take two of these tests before the start of senior year. Also, students who are planning on applying to more selective colleges and universities should look into SAT Subject tests. There are a multitude of tests to take, but they are not all offered each testing date. The SAT subject tests offered for the upcoming May date are: Spanish, French, Math 1, Math 2, U.S. History, Physics, Chemistry, Biology E/M, and Literature. For the June SAT date all of these subjects will be offered in addition to Modern Hebrew, Latin, German, and World History.

It is very important that students do not wait until their senior year to take either the SAT or ACT for the first time. Although this can be done, senior year can be extremely busy and preparing and sitting for the standardized tests is not something you want to just try to “fit in” during your senior year. Also many early action/early decision/priority deadlines are in November and early December of senior year. This will not give students planning on applying early, enough time to receive SAT scores. So do yourself a favor and if you have not done so already, go online and register for the SAT and/or ACT. If you believe you may qualify for a fee waiver, please do not hesitate to contact your school counselor.

To register for the SAT, please click here.

To register for the ACT, please click here.

-Mr. Joseph Korfmacher, MA

SAT/ACT Reminders

This is a reminder to all that there are just three more sittings for the SATs and only two more for the ACTs for this academic year. For juniors it is extremely important to take at least one of these standardized admissions tests before the summer break. However, it is recommended to take the tests twice if you can. There are many reasons for this including ‘score choice’. For both the SAT and ACT the student can decide which test date(s) to send to the colleges. So if a student doesn’t do well on one sitting, the schools never need to hear about it. Also, for the SAT, most colleges will superscore the overall score for the three sections (Math, Critical Reading, and Writing). So if you do better on the math section for the March test and better on the critical reading section for the May test, go ahead and send both test dates, and the colleges will combine the highest scores.

Additionally, just like most other things in life, the more you do it, the better the results. Often, students will perform better the second or third time they take the SAT or ACT. You do not want to be in the position where you have to rely on one test! A final reason it is important to take these tests more than once before summer break is because many students are involved in test preparation right now. You are learning tricks and strategies to the tests, so why not take back-to-back tests when the information is fresh in your minds? If you study and prep for the May test, and then wait until the October test during your senior year, you may be at a disadvantage, since it is likely all of that information you learned in the spring has gone out the window! Please contact your counselor with any questions on preparing for the SAT/ACT or registering for these tests.

As a reminder the next three SAT dates are: March 10^th, May 5^th, and June 2^nd.

As a reminder the next two ACT dates are:   April 14^th and June 9^th.

*Please be advised that although the regular registration deadline has passed for the March 10^th SAT, there is still time to register under the late registration. The deadline for this late registration is February 24^th and there is an additional fee for this on top of the SAT fee.*

A Senior's Tips for Juniors in the College Application Process

Connor O'Brien is a Prep senior who has been through the college application process, and is waiting to make his decision on which college he will attend next fall. Since he has experienced everything first-handed so recently, he is in a great position to give juniors tips on what to do and what not to do. Please enjoy Connor's post below:

My College Experience/Tips

            Juniors: Don’t let the entire college process intimidate you.  It is not as challenging as it may seem.  However, there are some steps to take that will assure that you have a stress-free experience while choosing your college.

            My first tip of advice is to be proactive with your schools.  What does this mean?  Take the necessary steps that will help you jump off of your application.  One way to do this involves the standardized tests.  Yes, we can all agree that SATs and ACTs are extremely tedious and annoying, but they are important part of the application.  Personally, I took the SATs, SAT Subject Tests, and ACT at least one time to keep my options open.  Leave no stones unturned; you don’t want to leave yourself wondering “What if I did anything else?” 

            Also, what I found extremely useful was to stay in touch with your admissions counselor.  Interview, e-mail, or speak with any representative that you come in contact with.  You want to emphasize your desire to attend a school, because an applicant’s level of interest is extremely important to some school.

            In addition, I suggest that you begin the process early.  Begin looking at colleges as soon as possible to get a feel for what your safety, target, and reach schools will be.  This will allow you to begin filling out applications early, which I strongly recommend.  Finish all of your applications and supplements before the beginning of school, so that you will be able to have your essays proofread in plenty of time before the deadlines.  Also, get teacher recommendations as quick as you can.  They will stack up with other recommendations to write, so make sure that they get to yours first.

            All in all, the college process is an exciting, yet challenging process.  You’ll enjoy looking at colleges and eventually making your decision.  Good luck!

SAT OR ACT: CHOOSING BETWEEN THE TWO TESTS

 So, it is early January and it is about that time for juniors to start planning their schedule to register for the standardized admissions test for college. Although there are many schools that are test-optional (meaning they do not require SAT or ACT scores for students to apply—please  click on the link to see a list of these schools), the majority of colleges do need to see a score report from one of these tests. Later in the year, we will be discussing the reasons these tests exists, and the pros and cons, but for now, we think it is helpful to give a few more helpful tips about each test, so you can decide which will be the best representation of you when it is time to apply to college!

As you will see the main differences between the two tests deal with format, timing, and scoring.

SAT  (http://sat.collegeboard.org/home)

Length: Standard time of 3 hours and 45 minutes, consisting of 10 sections.

Format: The test is broken up into 3 math sections, 3 critical reading sections, and 3 writing sections. The tenth section is experimental, will not be scored, and will be either on math, critical reading, or writing. Although this section is experimental and will not be scored, students are unaware of which section is the experimental one. All sections are comprised of multiple choice questions, however, the writing section also includes an ESSAY and the math section also includes student response questions.

Scoring: Each section is scored out of 800 points; therefore the highest possible score one can receive on the SAT is a 2400. The essay portion is scored 2-12 and is included in the overall writing score.

Guessing Penalty: There is a guessing penalty on the SAT, which means if you get a multiple choice question wrong; you will be deducted ¼ of a point. You will lose zero points for leaving a question blank. However, student response questions on the SATs should all be attempted, because you will lose points for either getting it wrong or leaving it blank.

Reporting Scores: Because of score choice, you can choose which test dates you report to colleges. You cannot choose an individual section to send (i.e. June math section), but if you send multiple tests dates, most colleges will super score the results, giving you the highest score possible for your report.

 ACT (http://www.actstudent.org/)

Length: Standard time of 3 hours and 25 minutes, consisting of 4 sections with an optional writing section (30 minutes long).

Format: The four sections are English, Math, Reading, and Science Reasoning. There is only one section for each subject area, so the sections are longer with fewer breaks than the SAT. The writing section is optional on the ACT, but some schools do require this part, when submitting the ACT scores.

Scoring: Each section is scored on a scale of 1-36 (36 is the best score one can receive). Overall, there is one ACT composite score, which is an average of all four sections.

Guessing Penalty: There is no guessing penalty on the ACT meaning you lose the same amount for an incorrect answer and a question left blank.

Reporting Scores: You have the option of sending or not sending any of the test date scores to colleges. However, because of the scoring methods, you cannot combine or super score ACT scores from multiple test dates.

 Quick differences between the SAT and ACT

Science section: SAT- NO / ACT-YES

Trigonometry in math section: SAT- NO / ACT-YES

Multiple choice: SAT-mixture / ACT-ALL

Guessing penalty: SAT- YES / ACT- NO

It is also important to know that although both tests will focus on what you have picked up in high school, the ACT is more knowledge-based. Therefore, one easy way to decide which test is best for you is to look at your GPA and PSAT scores. For those who have a high GPA and low PSAT scores, the ACT may be the way to go for you. Regardless of GPA, for those who did well on the PSAT, then you might as well keep going with what worked for you!

So, in the end, how will you choose which test to take? Well luckily you don’t have to choose, because you can take both as often as needed! My advice is always to take the SAT at least once in junior year, and see how you do. If you do not feel comfortable and your scores are low, then look into the ACT option. Although the two tests are similar in some ways, as you have read there are many differences and students may perform better on one than the other. All schools will take both tests with equal validity, so find the one that best suits you and show yourself off to the colleges of your choosing!

SAT/ACT ALERTS

Whether you are a senior trying to take a final stab at one of the standardized college admission tests to boost your scores, or a junior just starting the testing process, here are a few fast facts about the upcoming tests:

SAT and SAT II (www.collegeboard.org) All tests are offered at Saint Peter’s Prep.

SAT Fee: $49.00

SAT II Fees: Basic registration fee = $22/ Charge per test = $11/ Charge for Language with listening test = $22

Next Test Date: January, 28, 2012

Sign-Up Deadline: December 30, 2011

Late Deadline (additional fee applies): January 13, 2012  

SAT Subject Tests offered in January: Spanish (non-listening), French (non-listening), Math Level 1 and 2, U.S. History, Physics, Chemistry, Biology (E & M), and Literature.

Following this test, there will be an SAT on March 10^th (registration deadline-February 10^th). The final two SAT’s of the season will be held May 5^th, and June 2^nd.

The majority of colleges and universities do not require SAT subject tests (also called SAT II). However, many competitive schools do require anywhere from one to three subject tests. Therefore, for juniors who are planning to apply to more selective schools, we recommend that you map out a schedule of subject tests that will be most beneficial to your personal college application process. (Please feel free to meet with your Guidance Counselor.) Certain SAT subject tests are not offered on every SAT, so please visit the College Board site to view the schedule of subject tests. 

*Please be advised that the March SAT date will not offer any subject tests, so please plan accordingly.

ACT (http://www.actstudent.org/) Tests are not offered at Saint Peter’s Prep.

Fee: Without writing section = $34.00/ With writing section = $49.50 (writing cost is refundable)

Next Test Date: February 11^th, 2012

Sign-up Deadline: January 13^th, 2012

Late Deadline (additional fee applies): January 14^th-20^th, 2012

Following this test, there will be only two more tests for this season on April 14^th and June 9^th.

The optional writing section on the ACT is a 30-minute essay test that measures your writing skills. Some schools require that the applicant include this when taking the ACT, so make sure to look into that before registering for the ACT. There is a tool on the ACT website that will search for the colleges that require the writing section of the ACT, which can be found here: http://www.actstudent.org/writing/index.html .

We hope this information has been helpful, and please check in next week as Prep’s College Knowledge will go into detail about the differences of the ACT and SAT. All colleges and universities now accept either the ACT or the SAT, and often students will perform better on one test than the other. We will take a deeper look into these two college admissions tests, to help you decide which one is the best fit for you!