<p>We are new to the process of applying to competitive private schools, and had high hopes of our son being accepted to one of the most competitive day schools in CT. He is an extremely strong student, a gifted athlete, interviews well, etc. (as with most who apply to this particular school). His ISEE results were extremely strong (2-8th stanines, 1-7th stanine) with the exception of RC, which is historically his strongest area academically (4th). Can anyone share advice on how to best underscore with admissions committee that this is an anamoly? They should see this based upon his transcript, but we are concerned this will automatically “edit” him from even being considered further if ISEE scores are used as the “first cut”. . . .
P.S. We are coming from a public school system, so do not have other historical standardized test scores to point to with the exception of DRA scores- would those carry any weight? He has traditionally been assessed at 2-3 years exceeding grade level expectation.</p>
<p>We are in the same boat (being new to this). From what I have learned the two 8’s and 7 are very, very competitive (congrat’s). The 4 is strange - so strange that I think the admissions committee will notice that it seems to be so out of place. It is my understanding that ISEE scores are not used as the ‘first cut’. Transcripts and teacher rec’s are most important, as is the interview. How many schools did you apply to?</p>
<p>You can’t. You can show he is strong in the area, with grades and other standardized test scores in that area, but the test scores count very heavily regardless of what these schools tell you. The composite score is part of the formula used to make the admissions decision, and the other things like transcrpts,rec, interview, school wish list–what that school wants, has to all add up to the admssions cut. </p>
<p>However, I personally know of two cases where kids with low (4-5 average) scores were accepted. Other parts of the picture made up for it, but the test score is not thrown out. Nor do most schools have an auto cut threshhold for a low test score, particularly in a subsection. But, it is going to hurt the applicant, make no mistake about it. It is included in the final talley.</p>
<p>Thank u to both- lack of transparency in this process (or perhaps lack of transparency and consistency) is most frustrating part. For better or for worse, we only applied to that one school, which we emphasized to their admin comm, b/c we are so convinced of strong matchup. Even current teacher expressed extreme surprise at RC score based upon experience with our son this year.
Bottom line which is out of our control will be strength of other candidates being compared to; assume if it comes down to that and others have higher ISEE’s (even if just slightly), that will be the deciding factor. . . .</p>
<p>I am trying to get a sense of what the ISEE scores looked like in the Connecticut/Westchester area. I am hearing that the scores were a bit on the surprisingly lower than expected side (my son included). Any input would be great, as we are sweating out the admissions process.</p>
<p>I only know from our own experience how the scores were (see original post), and have not heard from others, but also have been discreet about applying since competition is so stiff. Have you heard from other parents or some other source that scores were lower than anticipated?
More importantly, do you think schools understand the variation from test edition/dates to each other and take that into account?</p>
<p>In “Fairchester”, anything over a 7 is a good score. And yes, they are very score conscious. My one son does not test well, and we were assured by every single school that it was not an issue during admissions. Perfect grades, great recs–his school let me see them before submitting and he is a great student and kid, double sibling preference at one school and he was WLed at every single school. I asked why—test scores came up every single time at the end of the process. His brothers were trouble makers and their teachers did NOT offer to show me their recs, had B average grades, barely but the got 9s on the ISEES. In like flynn. Several admissions counselors at the acceptance reception when talking to me specifically mentioned the perfect test score of one of them. So you tell me if those test scores are important or not. And no, they do not care about variations and such and do not take them into account. They look at the numbers as is and assign the test scores a “grade” along with other criteria to see if its an admit or not. </p>
<p>I am pretty good friends now with some ad coms at these private school now that these admissions days are over for me, and one has told me they do draw a line below the bottom acceptable score, and unless there is exceptional reason, those below the line are not even considered. I even saw the list and the line drawn one year. Not saying they all do tiss, but some do. Yes, test scores are very important. Even a Rockefellow scion whose family donates millions to the schools was rejected and the main problem was his test score. Know him and his parents personally.</p>
<p>Thank you for your candor. As difficult as it is to read (and my heart was sinking with every sentence since one “4th stanine” is going to definitely be below that invisible line being drawn), I guess it is better to know now to manage both our and our son’s expectations. . . .</p>
<p>If it makes you feel better, it’s that one total score that is almost always the one that has the big impact, not the subsections.</p>
<p>This is new to me, so not sure how I would calculate that one total score. . . . Would it be an average of the four sections? Are some sections weighted more heavily than others (some have more questions. . . .). Thank you for your guidance- looking for any possible silver lining since the other scores were strong.</p>
<p>I have the same question. Is it the average of the stanines that is the magic number?</p>
<p>Same question, how is the ‘magic number’ figured?</p>
<p>I do not know how the “magic number” is calculated, but the schools’ “grade” the exam result. Some will come up with an academic index which is some mix of test score and grades, but yes, they do look for the total breakdowns. Same with colleges, when they break down a student to the bare numbers which they do to make that decision. I saw the line myself in one case, and it was a single number. Not to say exceptions below the line are not made, especially for those with legacy, developement, special situation considerations. But for the most part, yes, test scores are very important. I’ve been through this many, many times because I have a lot of kids and we moved while our kids were still in school and had to do the whole danged thing again.</p>
<p>Suburban Mom - From our ISEE score and in talking to other parents whose kid’s recently took the test and also from the posts on this site, it seems like the scores are lower than anticipated, but I am not sure if that is in fact the case. Would love to hear from other people with any knowledge about the scores.</p>
<p>Our experience was with the lower level ISEE- my son is applying for 6th grade next fall. . . . Not sure how much this helps if your child took a different level or was in a different grade pool.</p>
<p>Ours is applying to 9th grade. Good luck.</p>
<p>Do we know if Admissions looks at the average stanine score or the average percentage???</p>
<p>Thank you- good luck to your son as well!
I called ISEE to ask that exact questions (is there is “total” score, and if so, is it an average/average of what) and they of course told me there is no such thing.<br>
Would love to get some guidance from other parents on this question that have been through this process before OR from someone close to the admissions process who is familiar from that perspective. . . .</p>
<p>If all 4 scores are in the 7,8, and 9 range you’re a solid candidate. Scores aren’t everything, they want a well rounded class. But, typically the most competitive schools can succeed in getting the well rounded class that they want from the number of kids that have all 7,8, and 9s. Do some kids get into the most competitive schools with a few 9s and a few 6s? Of course. Keep in mind a 9 is 96-99%, an 8 is 89-95%, a 7 is 77-88%, a 6 is 60-76%, a 5 is 40-59%, a 4 is 23-39%. Thus how fair is it would it be for the competitive schools to accept a kid with a 4? That means somewhere between 61-77% of the kids taking this test did better than the kid who scored a 4. Just trying to keep things in perspective. Yes, kids with 4s get accepted into schools, but I’m not sure I would apply to the most competitive schools with a 4 in RC.</p>
<p>I think people are failing to see that some schools are also looking for athletes and will choose them based on their skill and how they will help their team. I spoke with an administrator friend and he says there are two different categories for admissions, that is athletic v. academic. I was also told by the coach of one of the top schools in Washington, DC that his admissions director told him that he could choose some athletes for his team this year. Hence…why worry about your scores…when all that matters in a child’s application, not just scores.</p>