mokusatsu

Check to see if the colleges he is considering have any required (or suggested) high school classes that he still needs to take.

PennMom2012

Hi, Perrazziman,

Looks like you got some great advice. I will just pass on info I heard at Penn since you mentioned Penn as some place your S might apply. For the engineering school, they really like to see a Physics subject test. Maybe your S could study from a review book and with his Physics course work, do really well in the exam. They also indicated at a session we attended that they like to see kids take 5 courses in their senior year. I think looking for a Physics subject test and 5 courses in senior year will be common for engineering at "lottery" schools.

The other thing I've learned which has already been mentioned, is the Math II should be taken after precalc. It is not calculus based and he'll be further removed from the concepts if he waits until next year.

Awesome PSAT scores!! Good Luck with everything!

Ronaldofan94

I would also like to add from personal experience that Math Level II is best taken right after completing pre-calculus. The test itself is not too hard - it even has the most generous curve out of the subject tests if I remember correctly - and a 700+ should be easily doable with a sufficient knowledge of college algebra (algebra II) and trigonometry alone.

perazziman

It is very kind of you to share. Thank you.

perazziman

Hi guys, this is a quick update,

We are in Spain, where son is enjoying his time with the family/ grandma and polishing up his Spanish. He took the Math II in June as everyone suggested and scored 750. (I am very happy, since math is his achilles heel. Remember, his lowest subscore on the PSAT, was a 69, in math. )

He took a practice SAT test last week, without prep for a baseline score. He did quite well, scoring 800s on all subsections, with time and answers to spare. So, it seems like he should be in good shape for the Oct SAT.

Unfortunately he only took one SAT subject test (Math II), since he had a fever and a cough and could not prep for the rest of the subjects. Now, he still needs to take at least one more subject test. He is taking AP Physics in senior year and wants to take the SAT Physics subject test in Nov. Any advice, if this is a good idea and if a semester of AP Physics will be sufficent prep. for this test?

entomom

Great news, way to go perazzison!

Neither of my kids took the Physics subject test, they are both pretty good in math but don't love it (D2 is so happy to be done with math forever) and liked physics the least of the sciences. In general, I don't recommend taking a Subject test for a course one hasn't finished the corresponding AP class. I'm not saying he absolutely should not take it, but that if he chooses to do so, he needs to put adequate work into prepping for it because it's not a given that he will be prepared with half a year of AP Physics. What about taking the Subject test for one of the APs he took last year (AP prep is plenty for the Subject test which is less rigorous)?

If I recall, your S is interested in engineering and so is likely strong in math and physics. And I'm wondering, doesn't he have to take specific Subject tests for some of the engineering programs he is going to apply to? Is that why he's looking at the Physics Subject test?

If he decides to take the Physics Subject test, he MUST look at the CB website to find out what areas are covered and look at practice questions. And, he SHOULD get a prep book, sorry I can't recommend one, you might want to do a Search on the Subject test forum here on CC.

perazziman

entomom, thanks again. You are right, Penn and CMU Engineering recommend Math II and Physics subject tests. Also, we were thinking, since he will not be able to provide AP scores for these two subjects (Pre Calculus and Physics), it might be a good idea to provide them standardized SAT subject tests in these.

By the way, my son took Honors Physics in junior year and absolutely loved it. He finished with a 97% in the course and is looking forward to AP Physics in senior year. He also likes math but has had to work hard thru high school to get better at it. So I am thinking he will do okay in Physics

itsv

Perazziman-if you son took Honors Physics he could take the physics subject test now and not wait until later. He could possibly do well on it since has had instruction on the subject. Also you might want to post on the Subject Test forum on cc rather than the Hispanic forum. Most postings on the Hispanic forum dealing with issues affecting Hispanic high school students and college admissions.

perazziman

Thanks itsv, I will check on the subject test forum too. I was under the impression he may need some background in calculus based physics for the subject test. I like to post here since the posters on this thread can see the bigger picture/ have more experience with guiding hispanic kids applying to elite schools ( such as MIT, Penn, CMU in the case of my son) than posters on other forums.

entomom

See the entire section on Getting Ready for the Test, and especially Topics on the Test:

SAT Physics Subject Test - Physics Questions & Tests

And starting on pg 32 here:

http://sat.collegeboard.org/SAT/publ...subj-tests.pdf

sbjdorlo

Hi Perazziman,

Congratulations on the great Math II score! And congratulations on getting to travel to Spain!

Just so I understand--your son wants to major in engineering even though math can be a challenge for him, is that a correct understanding? He seems to be able to buckle down and do well in it, though. Does he really enjoy math and physics? My understanding is that engineering will be deep in both (though I guess it will depend on what type of engineering). Just something for him to keep in mind.

Now, having said that, if he is planning on doing engineering, most schools do prefer/require Math II and another science, so physics would be a good choice.

My son took the Physics SAT II in 8th grade after taking a yearlong AP level course at a local private university. They used the Giancoli textbook for the class. My son didn't study and did get an 800. I attribute that to the thoroughness of the class and the textbook. My kid is definitely a math/physics kid.

If your son gets a head start, he could buy the Giancoli text and a physics SAT study guide and study the topics that would be covered second semester. He may want to watch some Khan Academy videos or maybe some MIT Open Courseware lectures.

He may find that he is able to do quite well even without having completed an AP course.

Though my son's prof said having calculus was helpful (my son was taking it at the same time as the class), it didn't seem necessary, so I think your son would be fine to take the test without calculus.

perazziman

sbjdorlo, I know it sounds confusing. Let me see if I can explain it:

Son has always liked science and mathematics since elementary and middle school. However, he was attending public elementary and middle schools in poor hispanic neighborhoods with weak math programs. Since, he was earning A grades we thought he was doing fine. To give you some idea of how weak, in the last three years (2,700 students) there has not been a single graduate from his and other feeder schools to earn NMSF.

Fortunately for our son, after finishing middle school, he began attending a mainstream public high school in a more affluent community, in a different district. This is a school where they got four kids into Stanford, two at Harvard, MIT, Princeton each. In addition to kids at Yale, CalTech and several to other Ivies. It is at this high school that son realized his math skills were not as strong when he started earning Cs in math. He has been working much harder to catch up. For example, 62 in PSAT math in sop year. 69 in PSAT Junior year. Now 750 in Math II as a rising senior. So, in a sense he has been playing catch up throughout high school. So, now the question is, has he reached a level in science and math where he should persue engineering or not?

PennMom2012

Perrazziman,

My son was in similar circumstance needing to take the Physics subject test and having only completed an honors physics class and currently in AP Physics and Calc as a senior this past November. He reviewed the on line physics practice on college board and took the test and we all crossed our fingers. He was able to get a 700 and we were very happy with that. If we had been a little better prepared, I would have gotten a prep book for this. I've heard they're good.

If your son wants to do engineering, he should definitely do it! Sounds like he's pretty well caught up to me. Many years ago, my sister and I went to a high school in a very modest neighborhood. We had the great fortune to get into Penn, but were quite nervous being behind the other kids in advantages in high school. My sister had only taken algebra 2 before taking calculus there and still got As, so did I after only precalc. Best of Luck to you!

sbjdorlo

perazziman,

That makes sense! How wonderful that your son was able to move to a challenging school and actually get to learn the "good stuff". :-) Yes, it sounds like he's doing very well and is right on target.

Our local high school has never had a NM winner as far as I know. We are also in a low income area, high minority area. The local high school was actually so bad in recent years that the govt. almost took it over. They turned it around and made it into a complex of 4 schools within a school. Even so, we homeschooled from the get go as my son would never have survived at that school.

Let us know how it goes with the physics test.

perazziman

^He is very fortunate, indeed. Even if he does not make it to a top school, at least, now he will have the academic tools to be successful in college. Although, the circumstances that brought him here were kind of bitter sweet - wife lost her job in the heart of the 09 recession making it necessary to move close to her new job/ my stepmom passed away leaving some money, making it possible to move to this community. I remind my son all the time about the kids who had approximately the same potential as him in his previous schools, but will not end up in top schools or succeed in college because they did not know about the competition. Thanks for advice on Khan Academy. He says has been using Khan Acad. for math and will use to prepare for Physics.


PennMom, thanks for the info and encouraging remarks.

entomom, thanks for the links.