<p>My DD is a high school freshman. She has dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia. I think (with practice) that she’ll be able to do well enough on the SAT to get into good colleges (NYS has a lot of them), but I don’t know if she’ll be ready for the test by the fall of her senior year. If she takes a gap year, can she take the SAT then or does it have to be taken while she’s in high school? When a college says it considers SAT scores to award merit aid, how old are the scores they’re talking about? Are freshmen grants only available to kids who apply right out of high school (or the year after) or can students take a couple years off and still get them (as long as they haven’t taken classes elsewhere)?</p>
<p>We’re a middle class family who earns just under $60k/year for a family of 4, has retirement accounts and a (paid for) primary residence, but not much in savings because I quit working to home school. The EFC for my son is $4200, but I don’t know if qualifying for Pell makes us a “needy” family or not. I think our income/assets are so close to the cut off for federal aid that we’ll exceed it by the time DD goes to school. I intend to go back to work when she graduates, but even if I don’t get a job in my industry (broadcasting) right away, almost anything I make will certainly throw us over the edge. On the plus side, most of it can be used to fund college because we don’t have any other debt. I don’t know if we’ll get a financial break for having 2 kids in school, but I’m not counting on it. My DS isn’t sure of his plans yet, so they may or may not be in college at the same time.</p>
<p>My DS is a high school senior and has an offer (with good merit aid) at a LAC my family knows fairly well, but he’ll be taking a gap year so he can intern and figure out what career he really wants (CS, engineering, broadcasting, animation…) so he can graduate in a reasonable amount of time and with as little debt as possible. Before my son started applying to schools I’d been assuming the children would attend our local SUNY because I thought that would be the place they could graduate with the least debt, but after going through the application process I’ve learned that the cost of going away to school may not be that much different than staying home. Depending on their majors, the local schools might not even be an academic fit for them, so I think I need to reassess and find ways to keep their options open. </p>
<p>Your daughter is a freshman now. She really wouldn’t be taking her first SAT until her junior year, and during a spring administration. She should, however, take the PSAT fall of her junior year.</p>
<p>You have a number of options…and time on your side and hers.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>There are a number of test optional schools. Look at those. </p></li>
<li><p>Get the book “Real SATs”… I think that’s the name…when your daughter finishes her sophomore year…actually in her case, maybe later. Have her do these practice tests. But really, timing will be important. You want to be sure that she has taken the courses that would best prepare her to do well on the SAT (which is changing…again). If you are homeschooling, look at the courses typically taken through up junior year in your schools. That is what she needs.</p></li>
<li><p>There are lots of roads to college. Some kids find they can learn how to do college by attending a community college, and then transferring to a four year school to complete their degree. When they do this, their courses and grades at the CC are considered first and foremost. </p></li>
<li><p>Consider looking at the ACT. Some kids do better on that assessment than the SAT. </p></li>
<li><p>To answer your question…I believe most colleges will look at SAT scores that are five years old…or less.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>@austinmshauri, My DD has all the same issues as yours, but we are just finishing her sophomore year. I had her take the PSAT last fall just to get an idea of how she would score. Suffice it to say, it wasn’t good. I have also had her take an ACT practice test–again, not so great, but definitely better than the PSAT. So we are scrapping the SAT route and focusing on ACT prep all this summer. Hopefully she will be ready in the fall (junior year) for the real thing. If not, we’ll see what happens the next spring.</p>
<p>@thumper1, Thank you so much for your detailed and thoughtful response. Your advice/suggestions are very helpful and reassuring. </p>
<p>We began our process thinking about test-optional schools. While I am not ruling them out, the reality is that this will probably not be an option for us ultimately for financial reasons. We have a large family, low EFC, and will already have another child in college when this DD enters. I don’t know much about the financial aid at specific test-optional schools, but I know that very few colleges of any sort actually meet full need. The reality is that this DD will more than likely be going to community college; however, we are considering a gap year as well. My understanding is that a student taking a gap year can continue to take standardized testing and may apply as a freshman as long as they do not take any college classes during that gap year. </p>
<p>Best of luck to you and your DD, @austinmshauri.</p>
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<p>It’s what’s often referred to here as the Blue Book:</p>
<p><a href=“SAT Study Guide – SAT Suite | College Board”>The SAT – SAT Suite | College Board;
<p>It can be purchased online through the CB (there is also an online prep course available), or used, in a library, or through another vender. But remember, this book is useful because the tests are actual past SAT tests, for strategies for taking the SAT, there are other books available, please see sticky threads on the SAT Prep forum for information about current sources.</p>
<p>Since you are home schooled, I would think you would have the flexibility to add a year to high school. Instead of calling this year her freshman year start her freshman year on her transcript next year. This would give her more time to learn the material and prepare. If you out source some of the courses then the transcript would probably have to show five years, Since you are in NY, their rules for home schooling might not allow this but it might be worth checking out. </p>
<p>keep in mind that the SAT is being redesigned and there will be a new test in sping 2016</p>
<p><a href=“Home – SAT Suite of Assessments | College Board”>https://www.collegeboard.org/delivering-opportunity/sat/redesign</a></p>
<p>Austin</p>
<p>there is also more than one route that wil take you from point A to point B. Be open to your D startng at the SUNY community colleges (where she will not have to take the SAT), as all of them have articulation agreements to 4 year SUNy schools.</p>
<p><a href=“https://www.suny.edu/student/downloads/Pdf/Admissions_qf_cc.pdf”>https://www.suny.edu/student/downloads/Pdf/Admissions_qf_cc.pdf</a></p>
<p>Do you have any idea as to what she wants to study?</p>
<p>My advice would be to
- look at the SUNY program search</p>
<p>see if her program is given at both the community and the 4 year schools</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.suny.edu/attend/find-a-suny-program/undergraduate/”>http://www.suny.edu/attend/find-a-suny-program/undergraduate/</a></p>
<p>look to see what kind of supports are given through the office of disability services at the schools that she is interested in attending.</p>
<p>Look at the articulation agreements for the community colleges that you are interested in</p>
<p>Make sure that you met with the transition coordinator once she turns 15, because they must begin a transition plan for her</p>
<p>Make sure that the transition coordinator takes/registers her with Acess- VR (as there is also funding through them to help defray the cost of tuition/room board/books)</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.acces.nysed.gov/vr/current_provider_information/vocational_rehabilitation/policies_procedures/0405_college_and_university_training/policy.htm”>http://www.acces.nysed.gov/vr/current_provider_information/vocational_rehabilitation/policies_procedures/0405_college_and_university_training/policy.htm</a></p>
<p>@Thumper1, Thanks for the excellent suggestions. For some reason, I was thinking the SAT was sophomore year. Maybe students in our district are starting practice tests early. The changes to the SAT concern me. I’ll find the book you mentioned and make practice part of our regular school day. NYS has lots of requirements for home schooled students so we’re already doing 4 years of math, science (with labs), English, foreign language, history, etc. My daughter’s doing algebra now, but understanding courses enough to complete an untimed quiz and handling a strictly timed hours long exam are different. If she “only” had dyslexia, or “only” dyscalculia, it might be different. That exam hits every single one of her weaknesses in one fell swoop, though, so I am not a fan. </p>
<p>I’m not averse to cc; I actually like them. A wise mentor I once had encouraged cc for technical degrees because students at the cc were working with equipment right away; those at the 4 year schools he knew of had 2 years of theory first. I wouldn’t object if either of my kids wanted to go to a cc, but if it costs less to go directly to a 4 year college, that’s the route I’d rather take. If testing becomes an issue, my DD COULD get a cc degree then transfer to a SUNY (if a student has a NYS cc degree, the SUNYs consider only the collegiate record for transfer, NOT the high school transcript or SAT scores), but we’d have to figure out something that could work with whatever B.S. degree she’s interested in pursuing. One of her cousins (also dyslexic…) graduated from a test optional school in the NE and is doing his grad work at BU, so test optional schools are a real possibility too. </p>
<p>@Belle315: I thought the ACT was supposed to be worse for dyslexics. If it’s more straight forward, I think it would be preferable to the SAT. I’ll definitely find a practice book for that too. Are you having your DD retested so you can apply for extra time? I’m doing my best to teach my DD to automaticity, but this is a high pressure exam with so much at stake, I think it would be unfair not to try to level the playing field for her.</p>
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<p>Does her cousin also have dysgraphia, and dyscalculia? If no, you cannot adequately predict the same outcome for your daughter</p>
<p>@entomom: OH, the Blue Book! We own that. I just picked up the SAT Math Bible too. My son used the BB and the CB subscription to prepare, but I think knowing how to pick apart the questions is almost more important than the actual math facts, so the Math Bible should help her too.</p>
<p>@noname87, It’s a good thought to use the flexibility to our advantage. I have a friend who added a year for her son, but she had to “fail” him to do it. I think high school is like cc in that you have to report all the years you completed; you can’t repeat 9th grade and claim your kid did only 4 years of high school. I don’t think failing a grade in high school will go over well on a college app. It’s an excellent point, though, to think about how we can be more flexible. Maybe there are some courses I could combine to buy time during the school year to work on other necessary skills. I’ll have to look into that.</p>
<p>I think your daughter has a good chance of qualifying for accommodations on the SAT or ACT. You might ask the local High School if there is someone who could help you with that application. </p>
<p>@Sybbie719: As of last year, the Culinary was high on her list. Lol. This year it’s music. What it will be in a couple more years, I can’t even imagine. At least with DS, I always knew it would involve digital media. I’m not sure exactly what direction it will take him yet, but he had enough of a defined interest that he could pick out schools to make a well rounded college list. My DD is a whole other cup of tea. Thank you for the links. I’ll study them. </p>
<p>I have to find a center to have her retested so she can qualify for accommodations and other programs. We originally had her tested Upstate (the REAL Upstate, not what City people define as Upstate) :), but that center closed. The CB (and colleges, too, I suppose) require a 2nd test within a certain time frame (I think it’s no more than 3 years) before starting at a SUNY school, so my challenge now is to find someone in NYS who can do the test without charging a small fortune. Naturally, insurance doesn’t cover this kind of thing…</p>
<p>@austinmshauri, Yes, I’m at the point where I believe DD needs to be retested for testing accommodation. I also homeschool, and I have fought the whole accommodation thing for so long. I wanted to do all I could to prepare her for the “real world”. Your daughter sounds so much like mine, who’s also saying she wants to go to Culinary school…for right now.</p>
<p>I had not heard that the ACT was worse for dyslexics. I do know that the strict time constraints are a big problem for DD on the ACT. However, she seemed to handle the content of the ACT questions better than that of the PSAT. I have no idea why. I was just grateful there was enough of a difference to feel there was a ray of hope that she might get a high enough score to be accepted at one of our state schools. They ironic thing is, DD has worked SO hard to develop good critical thinking, organizational, and study skills that she is a good student. I believe she could handle college coursework as long as she is willing to put in the hard work. But as you said, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia are like a perfect storm for standardized testing.</p>
<p>Word on the streets is that the new SAT will be more like the ACT.</p>
<p>Can both the SAT and ACT be taken after a student graduates from high school? Will colleges accept those scores?</p>
<p>Yes, if student is taking a gap year and will be re-applying to college. However, they are not eligible for fee waivers and you would have to check about the testing accommodations once they finish high school</p>
<p>Thanks, Sybbie719.</p>