How Much Do SAT II's Help?

[onthefly]

<p>If I am on the bubble for acceptance, can SAT II’s make a significant difference?</p>

[collegebound41]

<p>no, they marginally help or prove academic achievement. Theres more room for rejection and red flags though.</p>

[hmom5]

<p>Sure, they’ll help considerably at state schools with a formulaic approach and other schools looking for a reason to accept. At ivies and peers everyone has high SATIIs and there’s really no such thing as being “on the bubble.”</p>

[onthefly]

<p>I’m not applying at ivies and peers, but I did not take a rigorous courseload and I was wondering if SAT II’s could help prove that I could handle harder classes?</p>

[onthefly]

<p>bump please</p>

[entomom]

<p>I think SAT IIs and AP tests help to give adcoms an idea of how rigorous you courses were. While many HSs teach similar classes, course content and grading can vary greatly between HSs and teachers. Standardized tests help to show what you learned for a specific subject compared to kids across the nation.</p>

<p>Here’s something interesting from H & the UCs:</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=524170[/url]”>http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=524170&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>

The best predictor of college success is not the SAT, but rather tests that examine knowledge of a standardized curriculum, such as SAT subject tests, said Fitzsimmons, who over the past year led a commission of leading admissions officials that is recommending that colleges rely less on the SAT.</p>

<p>Fitzsimmons said that in the future Harvard may give students the option of taking five or more SAT Subject Tests in lieu of the SAT Reasoning Test or its frequent alternative, the ACT.

</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=522693[/url]”>http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=522693&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>

As a faculty panel at the University of California considers dropping SAT II subject tests from its admissions requirements, Harvard stands behind its decision not to do so.</p>

<p>Harvard currently requires applicants to submit scores from three SAT II tests—which examine mastery of specific subjects rather than general reasoning—in addition to either the SAT I or the ACT tests.</p>

<p>Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons ’67 said that Harvard’s own internal studies have proven the efficacy of SAT II scores in predicting academic success at Harvard.</p>

<p>“The SAT IIs have been better predictors than either high school grades or the SAT *,” he said.</p>

<p>However, the University of California panel’s proposal stated that the SAT II “contributes very little to UC’s ability to predict which applicants will perform well initially at UC.”

</p>

<p>So, to some degree, it looks like it depends on the college.</p>