I’m actually one of those parents who would never want my kid to spend a year prepping for the ACT or SAT - unless landing a full scholarship was the ONLY way to pay for college. A little prep, yes - as in taking a practice test - but not a whole lot beyond that. I still get upset that my son blew off prepping for the PSAT (or even going to bed at a decent hour) because his counselors told him it was just a “practice test” and never mentioned the NMSQT! He missed NMF by a point or two, and that fifth year of funding would have been really nice, not to mention a year of free housing.
If it took a lot of prepping to qualify, I would worry that my kid would struggle to keep up in class with those kids who aced those tests with little or no prep. If my son hadn’t been a good standardized test taker, I probably would have pushed him towards some decent private that offered a lot of merit and need-based aid.
I do get why families push the prep, however, now that I see how many were able to land full scholarships as a result!