Standardized Testing for College Admissions

Standardized Testing for College Admissions- Overview

Standardized admissions testing are exams used by colleges as just one part of a student’s application. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many colleges are recognizing that standardized tests are not the best barometer of student success and these colleges are now “test optional”, meaning they do not require test scores for admissions.
For the current seniors (Class of 2025), many colleges “test optional”. Some colleges, such as Brown, Harvard, CalTech, Dartmouth, University of Texas-Austin, and a few others have returned to requiring test scores be included for admissions. It seems many colleges will remain test optional for the Class of 2026, while others will return to requiring testing. Many colleges have not yet announced their testing policies moving forward for Class of 2026, and will do so throughout this year. This database shows current test optional and test free policies.
In the college admissions process, these are two main exams: the SAT and the ACT. Both SAT and the ACT are considered the same to colleges -- meaning both exams are considered equally by colleges in the admissions process. It is entirely up to student strength & preference which exam they focus on.
These exams are offered only on specific dates and are taken over the course of the 11th grade year. For students to give themselves the best opportunity to perform their best on the exams, it is recommended that students should plan to take the test of their choice (SAT or ACT) at least 2 times.
Again, these exams are not necessarily required for admissions, and students can make a plan to apply only to test optional colleges or other non-testing programs, if they do not want to take the exams. In the end, it is up to the student and family and depends on the student's future goals.

PSAT & PSAT/NMSQT

The PSAT 10 and the PSAT/NMSQT are standardized exam meant to give students an opportunity to practice and become familiar with the content and format of the SAT, one of the primary exams used for college admissions. (The "P" stands for “preliminary” SAT). These exams should be thought of primarily as a way for students to prepare for the SAT, which students take in 11th grade - usually in the spring semester - by experiencing the format, content, and style of the SAT exam.

When taken in the fall of 11th grade, students primarily take the PSAT/NMSQT to try to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship. Please read below for more on National Merit. Comprehensive information on the PSAT/NMSQT is in the student guide, with scholarship + merit program information detailed beginning on pg. 57.

What is the National Merit Scholarship Program?

Students who take the PSAT/NMSQT (only in the fall of 11th grade, not in 10th grade) are eligible for the National Merit Scholarship, an award that is given to the very, very top percent of PSAT/NMSQT performers.
Students in the very top percentage of PSAT/NMSQT are selected as “commended scholars”, of that pool about ⅓ are selected to continue on as “semi-finalists”. After additional steps, students may be considered a “finalist”. Of these “finalists” , a smaller group is selected as “winners” of the National Merit Scholarship.
The National Merit Scholarship award for students who are selected from the pool of finalists as “winners” are awarded a $2,500 scholarship. Some colleges or businesses might offer additional scholarships for students based on National Merit qualification. The National Merit Scholarship is not the primary source of scholarship or financial aid for college.
More on the PSAT/NMSQT here: https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/psat-nmsqt-student-guide.pdf

NEW! Digital SAT

The SAT is moving to a digital format, which applies for the Class of 2025 and onward.

Here are the real quick basics of the new digital exam:

The digital exam will be “adaptive” (responsive to questions)
The digital exam will be shorter
It will still be scored out of 1600 and test students on reading, writing, and math
ACT – the other possible exam - will stay the same, although there is also now a digital version available.

This helpful graphic, credit to Compass Education, shares more about how the new exam differs from the old. For those interested in getting into the details of the new exam, I recommend reading the entire detailed article from Compass, HERE.

Making a Testing Plan: SAT & ACT

The SAT and ACT are both accepted by all colleges, just some students are a better fit for some students. Think of it like Pepsi & Coke, just two versions of the same thing. Students should pick the exam that is the better fit for them, and focus on preparing and taking one exam throughout the testing process. We don’t necessarily recommend studying for both.

SAT v. ACT: The SAT & ACT have slightly different formats, content tested, and scoring. The SAT is now only digital, while the ACT continues to offer a paper format.

THIS ARTICLE PROVIDES AN IN-DEPTH OVERVIEW OF THE DIFFERENT BETWEEN THE TWO EXAMS… and here is a shorter recap:

Which one is best for me? In the end, you should focus on whichever of the two exams better suits your learning style and preferences. If you’re unsure, take a practice test or section of a practice test for both to compare!

How should I study? You can study in whichever way works best for you, but you need a plan! At ICE, we typically offer a test prep course, which happens in the spring of 11th grade year.

In addition to our test prep class at ICE, students can study on their own with free resources such as Khan Academy, make a plan to meet with a friend, use an outside tutor, or take any of a wide array of SAT or ACT prep classes offered through Princeton Review, Kaplan, or other test prep companies. Some resources below:

SAT Overview / SAT Practice Questions
For the new digital SAT: Bluebook practice testing app & initial set of practice materials are available on Khan Academy.
SAT Full length practice exams (Khan Academy or Printable)
ACT Overview / ACT Practice Questions.
ACT Full length practice exams (2020-21 doc here, list here).

How much should I study? What’s a good “goal score” for me? Your goal score and amount of test prep required depends on the colleges in which you are interested and what YOU want to do.

After you have taken a practice test and established a baseline score, you should determine where your score falls in comparison to students accepted at and entering the colleges in which you are interested. To determine whether you are on track to meet an institution’s testing standards, you should look up what that school’s admitted students’ median scores are. The scores will often be presented as the median 50% (25th - 75th percentiles) for the SAT and ACT. Some examples: for Columbia University, the median 50% score spans 1510-1560 on a scale of 1600; SUNY Albany’s median range is 1000 - 1170. Median scores are often listed on the school’s website or for many school’s through this database. For SUNY, you can find score ranges here. The higher a student scores in relation to these percentages, the more likely test scores will strengthen their application.

Picking Test Dates: SAT and ACT exams are only offered a limited number of times each year. A vast major of students plan to take the SAT or the ACT for the first time in early spring of their 11th grade year. I’m going to call this a “regular” schedule. Some students choose to take the SAT or the ACT beginning December of their junior year, on what I’m calling an “early” schedule.

You may want to take the exam on the “early” schedule if you already feel very prepared for taking your standardized tests, and you want to get it over with and behind you!
You plan to be a recruited athlete, and you want to be able to share SAT or ACT scores with coaches early in the process.

SAT School Day: Again, the SAT & ACT School Day exam is a special administration of the exam that is offered for free during the school day at ICE in the spring for 11th graders. The exam date is not yet confirmed for the spring 2025, but it will likely be in mid-March.

For every other SAT or ACT exam date(s), students have to sign up for, pay for (or use fee waivers for students who qualify), and travel to other testing locations around the city on a Saturday to take.

SAT & ACT Test Dates

School Day SAT & ACT: ICE 11th Grade Students have the opportunity to take both the SAT and ACT at ICE during the School Day during the spring semester. The SAT School Day exam will likely be in March and the ACT School Day exam will likely be in April.

All additional test dates for the 2024-2025 School Year Are Below…

ACT Saturday Test Dates
Register at act.org

September 14, 2024
October 26, 2024
February 2025 - To be announced
April 2025 - To be announced
School Day ACT @ ICE - TBD in April
June 2025 - To be announced
July 2025 - To be announced (NOT offered in NYS)

SAT Saturday Test Dates
Register at collegeboard.org.

August 24, 2024
October 5, 2024
Nov 2, 2024
Dec 7, 2024
Mar 8, 2025 - Not recommend, too close to School Day Exam
School Day SAT @ ICE - TBD in March
May 3, 2025
June 7, 2025

Registering for the SAT & ACT: With the exception of the FREE SCHOOL DAY SAT and ACT hosted at ICE in the spring of 2024, students & parents must register for all other testing on their own at other testing sites around the city.

SAT Dates ; Register for the SAT + Helpful video for how to register.
ACT Dates; Register for the ACT + Helpful Video for how to register.

To Register for the SAT or ACT, you'll need...

Our School CEEB Code: 333672
About 30 minutes
A “Headshot” Photo (take against a plain wall)
Fee Waiver Code (if you qualify - more below)

**You do not need to complete everything requested of you during the registration process. You can often click “continue” at the bottom to skip questions that are not required.

**If you are registering for the ACT, they will ask if you want to register for the essay portion. Because the SAT recently discontinued the SAT, in almost all cases the recommendation is to NOT register for the ACT essay section. More here.

Fee Waivers: Students who qualify for free & reduced lunch receive fee waivers for FREE SAT & ACT testing. Please email Molly or Wali or pick up in the Future Pathways (Room 522B) if you think you qualify. In order to receive a fee waiver, you must have a lunch form filed each year: https://www.myschoolapps.com/Home/PickDistrict

With a fee waiver, you can take the SAT 2 times for free (in addition to the School Day SAT) or the ACT 2 times for free.

Testing Accommodations for Students

As for students who qualify for testing accommodations, there must be a request for accommodations submitted to either the SAT or ACT, depending on which exam they plan to take. To submit the request for accommodations, your family must sign a consent to release information form, which you can access by using either of the following links, depending on which exam your student is preparing to take in the spring. Once signed and completed, the form should be returned to Wali in the College & Career Office, at which point he'll go forth with submitting the request (wali@iceeducate.org).

It's important to note that submitting accommodations for the ACT requires more extensive documentation and often takes longer to get approved, sometimes several months. Additionally, ACT requests aren't approved with the same success rate as SAT requests, so if your student is preparing for this exam and qualifies for accommodations, you should submit the consent form as soon as possible.

Contrarily, the SAT usually accepts requests as long as adequate documentation is on file at the school, which we'll have if your student qualifies for accommodations. Either way, we recommend submitting the consent form(s) before December, so there is ample time for the requests to be submitted, reviewed, and ultimately approved.
Consent Forms: SAT Consent for Accommodations Request //ACT Consent to Release Information to ACT

Test Optional & Test Blind Policies

Test Optional: This means that these colleges do not require standardized test scores when they review applicants; students will have the option to decide if they want to submit their scores for consideration. If scores are submitted, the college will consider; if they are not considered, they will focus on other components of the application, especially the academic transcript, as well as extracurriculars and recommendation letters.

The pandemic has drastically increased the number of test optional colleges. For the Class of 2024, almost all private colleges as well as our state public college system (SUNY) were test optional. Some colleges have announced plans to continue being test optional for several years, but many are only test optional for the current senior class. A full list of test optional colleges here.

Some colleges may require additional supporting materials if you choose to apply test optional. For example, a college may require an additional piece of writing only for students who select that they intend to apply TO.

Test Blind Policies: The truly equitable move from colleges is to take on a “test blind” policy, meaning that -- even if submitted -- they will not review test scores. This is different from the “test optional” policy discussed above, in which colleges will review students’ test scores if submitted. However, unfortunately, most colleges will likely not adopt this policy. A few colleges have opted for “test blind” policies, such as the UC system and Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Test Optional - Send or Not to Send? When you’ve finalized your college list, you’ll need to make a decision for each college (if the college is “test optional”) if you want to send your SAT or ACT scores or not. A general rule of thumb is that your SAT or ACT scores should be at least within the median 50% range for the college if you plan to send your scores. Again, this data can typically be found on the college’s website or through this database. Highly detailed data can be found by finding the colleges Common Data set information (Google: Common Data Set + College Name).

Don’t forget… Check Specific Major or Program Requirements! Some colleges may have specific testing requirements or higher score ranges for selective programs, such as engineering, nursing, business, etc.
Still not sure? Have a conversation with Molly about any schools you're not sure about.

Scoring & Sending SAT or ACT Scores

How to Send Scores to Colleges: Once you begin to apply to college, it is the student’s responsibility to send their SAT or ACT scores to colleges. The College Office does not send SAT or ACT scores. Colleges accept scores in several ways, and it is the student’s responsibility to identify the method by which they will plan to send their scores, if they intend t o include them in their application. Scores often take 1-2 weeks to process, so make sure you send your scores before the application deadlines!

Official Score Send through College Board (SAT) or ACT.org (ACT). For each college you apply to, you need to pay (or free with a fee waiver) to send your official SAT or ACT scores. These official score sends can be done through the College Board website or the ACT website.
Self-Reporting (on the Common App, application portal, or other method). Self-reporting means that instead of sending your official SAT or ACT score report to a college, you instead can “self report” (on the application or elsewhere) your SAT or ACT scores. The college will only request official scores if you are admitted. It is important to identify how the college wants the self-report scores provided. The (growing) list of colleges that will accept self-reported scores is here (far right).

Which Scores Get Sent? Do I need to send ALL my scores? Most colleges participate in score choice” or allow students to only send test dates that reflect their highest scores. This article does a good job summarizing this policy & lists the notable colleges that require all scores be sent. You can find a list of colleges that allow score choice here.

SAT Official Score Sends. For all colleges that participate in “score choice”, you will be able to only send the testing dates with your highest test scores. When you go to send your official scores, you will have the option to select which test dates you’d like sent. More on SAT score choice here.
ACT Official Score Sends. ACT permits students to send either a “superscore report” or a “single test date score report”. If you are sending a single test event then the recipient you chose will only get the scores from that test. By sending a superscore, the college or agency will receive all the scores from every test event represented in the superscore. An incredibly detailed review of these policies here.

Superscoring & Other College Scoring Policies: Superscoring is the process by which colleges consider your highest section scores across all the dates you took the SAT or ACT. Rather than confining your scores to one particular date, these schools will take your highest section scores, forming the highest possible composite score. Some colleges have different superscore policies for SAT & ACT. College superscore policies here.

SAT Superscoring: For the SAT, the superscore is made up of a student’s highest Reading & Writing Section (EBRW) and Math (M) scores.

ACT Superscoring & Score Choice: For the ACT, the superscore is the average of the 4 main section scores. Again, incredible detail about new ACT superscore reports here.

Changing Policies: One of the most important things to understand both standardized testing policies, both at an overall level and an institutional level (different colleges) are constantly changing-- even before the pandemic! This means it is important for students and families to research on their own and check college websites to see updates in policies.

Other SAT/ACT Prep Resources

Revolution Prep - Revolution Prep SAT or ACT

Description: This is the company that we offer our ICE SAT or ACT prep through. Students and families can also register for group tutoring through Revolution Prep outside of ICE. Cost: from $499 for small group (8 students) tutoring

Khan Academy - Khan Academy SAT

Description: Free SAT prep online for students. Includes practice tests and targeted questions based on student performance. Digital SAT practice is also available on the Bluebook practice testing app.

Cost: Free!

Let’s Get Ready - Let's Get Ready
Description: Near-peer led prep for SAT exam, offered in addition to personalized goal-setting and introduction to the college admissions and financial aid process. Applicants accepted on a rolling basis.

Cost: Free!

Baruch STEP - Baruch SAT/ACT Prep

Description: Courses in SAT/ACT prep are offered through the college’s STEP program. Applicants must meet STEP eligibility requirements. Priority deadline for spring 2024 is December 1.

Cost: Free!

Fordham STEP - Fordham STEP Kaplan SAT Course

Description: Courses in SAT Prep hosted by Kaplan for students enrolled in Fordham STEP. Applicants must meet STEP eligibility requirements. Students must apply and enroll in Fordham’s STEP program.

Cost: Free!

Columbia SPREP - Columbia SPREP

Description: A course offered during the summer or winter to prepare students for taking the SAT. Applicants must meet STEP eligibility requirements and enroll in SPREP’s program.

Cost: Free!

Applerouth - Applerouth SAT & ACT Prep

Description: Private NYC-based tutoring company, offers small groups, individual tutoring, or online self-prep offered for both SAT and ACT Prep.

Cost: from $599 (for small group) or $199 for online, self-paced

Kaplan - Kaplan SAT & Kaplan ACT prep

Description: Multiple options ranging from a Live Online 18 hour course, to a shorter boot camp, Unlimited Prep, or individual tutoring for the ACT. These options come with live online courses going over test questions along with providing practice questions and strategies.

Cost: from $549

Princeton Review - Princeton Review SAT & ACT Prep

Description: Either option comes with practice questions, strategies, and the option for online courses.

Cost: from $649

Bell Curves - Bell Curves SAT Prep

Description: Tutoring and courses are offered for SAT prep to help students analyze problems. Provides test questions and strategies.

Cost: Tutoring begins at $80

Wyzant - www.wyzant.com
Online database of services that handles the vetting of the tutors, lets you find someone in your area, read reviews, and, most conveniently for an ongoing arrangement, deals with payment for you. It's very easy to just put in a subject and a zip code and browse.

Cost: Varies