No ACT section retesting this Fall 
It’s in a press release on the ACT site
Thanks so much for this. I find it a bit of a relief actually.
But if they are going TO then they don’t need to give more time to take standardized tests. I understand one or the other (eliminate SCEA or go TO), but not both.
Why not give more time to take tests? It’s still an advantage to have a strong score at a TO school.
The antibody test was fairly painless this morning. Blood draw. Folks have to wait in their car until it is their turn. This particular test is supposedly 98% accurate. The nurses told us that 30% of asymptomatic people who decide to get COVID-19 tests while they are there (we were just there for antibody tests) end up being positive for COVID-19. This is in a northeastern state and a rural area. This testing (free for everyone) just started a couple weeks ago.
But students already have the time. They can wait and try to take the test, and then choose to apply RD. If TO really means a student won’t be disadvantaged by not having test scores, then there is no reason to eliminate SCEA.
(D21 had no plan to apply SCEA to Princeton, I am just curious as to the logic behind this decision).
Hello All, I am new to this thread as a matter of fact I am new to CC. My D has an almost finalized list of colleges that she wants to attend. She started working on her essay. She has a 3.94 UW GPA and her class rank is in the top 3.8%. She has taken 8 APs so far and about 7 dual credit and College only credit courses, rest honors except for her orchestra class. She was on the varsity golf team since freshman year, District 1st team and all district academic teams both years, went to regional tournaments, regional second team both times. Plays violin in the orchestra, president of orchestra council, NHS member, Mu Alpha Theta, etc. She represented her school at the HOBY seminar last year, and couple of other such opportunities in the past 2-3 years. She is working on a scientific literature review paper under the guidance of a professor in the local med school, hoping to be published around September. She volunteers quite a bit. She took the ACT in Feb and she is not happy with the 33 she scored. She is registered for the July ACT test and the August SAT subject tests. I am not sure what to expect, this whole process is new to me. I really feel lost and this whole thing is so confusing. I do not want to push her, but not sure if what she has done so far and what she is doing is enough to get her into her choice of schools.
Hi @TXStuMom Your daughter sounds great! I don’t know what to tell you (others will have input, hopefully). I’ve just been catching up on this reading and the whole scenario is mind boggling to me! This coming year’s class will be guinea pigs. I have no idea how colleges will choose a class. I’m wondering if the essay will become a much bigger part of the decision. Fine for one of mine, not so great for the other.
@homerdog UCF has fantastic dorms, no hall baths, and lots of private rooms. D18 saw those and fell in love. Really set her up for disappointment at every other school. They are cheap as well. We have really had to impress upon D21 she will not have that great of a room!
With the way Fall is looking, having a nice dorm is a real perk.
@havenoidea, Thank you. The frustrating thing is that the admission officers (AO) seem to be clueless. Again, to be fair, I don’t think any of the universities really have a pandemic plan. When my daughter asked the AO of one of the universities on her list about the TO policy, this is the reply she received to her email- “We have never been test optional before (and likely won’t be again after this year), so it’s hard to speak definitively without any experience on it…”. I think they are as lost as we are.
@Rue4 – Tks for posting. S will be disappointed as he liked the option of taking just a section or two in Sept. Oh well. It’s 2020 so we shouldn’t be surprised!
@Rue4 @AlmostThere2018 I understand the rationale, but D is disappointed as well. She took the ACT in Feb to get a baseline without prep. Felt good about the composite but wanted to improve a lopsided Math score. We didn’t sign her up for July because we were waiting for the section retests. Sigh.
@Rue4 , @AlmostThere2018, @kbbm24 D bummed here as well. Though composite is good enough, she really wanted to bring the science up closer to the rest. And, she doesn’t want to retake the whole thing because she doesn’t want to study everything again, or study just science and end up with lower scores on the rest, which she said would look bad. So her testing’s done. It is what it is. And we have no way of knowing what weight scores will have now anyway. Crazy times.
@TXStuMom one podcast mentioned school that have been TO before this year and schools have trained their AO to review applications without test scores. They thought it takes more time to review an application without test scores. If a school is just planning on going TO for this year, the AO may not be trained to read the application without tests and may be an advantage for applicants with test scores. I do not remember which podcast I heard it on.
Gotta brag on my S right now – he’s sitting on the screened porch doing a Zoom book club discussion with some friends of Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates! This is their second book club ‘meeting’ this summer, and, of course, a timely pick.
@TXStuMom Welcome!
I would take a good hard look at the schools your kid is interested in to see if they are even accepting SAT subject tests, much less recommending them. The list of schools that required them had already shrunk to a handful before COVID, and with so many competitive schools going TO, I doubt that subject tests will be a game changer. There may be better ways for your child to spend her time. A 33 ACT is likely to clear the threshold for consideration just about anywhere and may be more valuable now than before as so many students may not have tests at all. So if that ends up being as good as it gets, that’s pretty good. Honestly, she sounds great! Sounds like she has all the qualities to get a serious look wherever she applies and all she needs to focus on now is her essays.
Assuming you’re in TX, she’d be auto-admit for UT Austin based on rank and that’s a great option to have in your pocket. If that doesn’t appeal as an admissions safety, try to find some viable matches for her because those top schools are reaches for everybody, no matter how impressive they are. Is she likely to qualify for National Merit?
@havenoidea Isn’t your daughter already sitting on a 33 or 34 composite? The science section is the least important of the four, tends to have a crushing curve, and AOs know this. She should be good to go unless there’s an auto merit threshold that she needs to clear somewhere.
(Deleted) I Found what I was looking for…
@AlmostThere2018 I love the Zoom book club idea and especially their book pick. No wonder you’re proud!
I put this somewhere else and only got 1 response, but this is probably the group my question is aimed at. Anyone have feelings good or bad about College Kickstart? It seems like it would have current info for admissions statistics and essays, which would be helpful making a coherent and doable list. Also for keeping it organized. We have naviance, but I think it is more outdated. Also, basically if we are interested in anything other than the local directional or state flagship we are on our own.
Does anyone who uses it think it is helpful? Worthless?
Thanks for any input.
@mamaedefamilia Yes, a 34, but the 30 is so low in comparison to her top scores, and she thought with practice she could get the science up enough for a 35 composite, and she doesn’t want schools to think she’s bad in science. Hopefully, her AP bio test went well and she can report that.
Her “dream” school is close to impossible to get into from our HS, and normally recommends SAT subject tests, which she’s not taking. But, it is what it is. And, I think there are plenty of schools where she will thrive (hopefully some of which will give her merit aid!). We have “geographic diversity” going for us!