If you plan on attending college, inquire early in high school with the particular colleges that interest you. Talent, achievement, leadership, extra-curricular activities and community involvement are part of the student’s qualifications, but a major factor will be test scores.
Most colleges require a college entrance exam such as the ACT or SAT for acceptance, but scores required for acceptance or scholarships may vary. (See high school course requirements and the College Prep Timeline) You may take any of these tests multiple times beginning as early as seventh grade, which allows the student to become familiar with the testing site, the atmosphere, and the test itself.
The PSAT is a preliminary SAT usually taken by sophomores (for practice only) or juniors which gives you firsthand practice for the SAT I and SAT II: Subject Test. The PSAT taken in the junior year gives you a chance to qualify for National Merit Scholarship Corporation scholarship programs. Even if you do not win one of the 7,600 scholarship awards, the distinction opens the door to many more opportunities.
The PSAT/NMSQT measures the critical reading, math problem-solving, and writing skills that you’ve been developing throughout your life. It does not measure things like creativity and motivation, and it doesn’t recognize those special talents that may be important to colleges. Sample verbal, writing skills and math questions with answers and explanations are available. The PSAT/NMSQ can be administered in mid-October by high schools. You will need to contact your local public or private high school in August to register your student.
The SAT I measures verbal and math reasoning abilities. The SAT I was designed with question types that reflect your reasoning abilities, not just the amount of information you’ve accumulated during school. As an example, many math items can be answered by using complex equations, but they can also be answered correctly if you can reason through the problem. The reading test passages require extended reasoning in order to answer the questions related to the passage. The SAT II: Subject Tests are one-hour, primarily multiple-choice tests in specific subject areas.
The basic registration fee for the SAT I is $25 which includes reporting scores to four colleges of your choice. Fees for the SAT II subject exams vary from $6-11 each with a reporting fee of $13 for the entire SAT II exam.
National test dates for the SAT I are Oct. 11, Nov. 1, Dec. 6, 2003 and Jan. 24, March 27, May 1, June 5, 2004. You must register six weeks in advance. You may get a free registration bulletin by calling (609) 771-7600. Register online at http://www.collegeboard.com .
The other primary college entrance exam is the ACT, which consists of tests in English, mathematics, reading and science reasoning. ACT results are accepted by virtually all U.S. colleges and universities. The ACT includes 215 multiple-choice questions and takes approximately 3 hours and 30 minutes to complete including breaks. Actual testing time is 2 hours and 55 minutes.
The ACT Assessment tests are curriculum based. The ACT Assessment is not an aptitude or an IQ test. Instead, the questions on the ACT are directly related to what you have learned in your high school courses in English, mathematics, and science.
You may take the ACT multiple times, but only once each testing session. Only your highest score is considered for admission and scholarships. At least 60 days must elapse between tests.
The basic registration fee for the 2003-2004 ACT is $25 which includes reporting to four colleges of your choice. The ACT is administered on five national test dates: Oct. 25, and Dec. 13, 2003, Feb. 7, April 3, and June 12, 2004. Register six weeks before the test date. Call (319) 337-1270 for a student registration packet. Register online at http://www.act.org/aap/regist/elecreg.html. You may find a free practice test for the ACT and SAT online at www.school.aol.com/highschool/college .
You can save time and money by getting credit for what you already know by taking CLEP (College-Level Examination Program) tests. Every exam costs about $50 but can save hundreds of dollars in tuition. Each of the 34 subject area exams consist of a 90-minute test with two parts and is worth 3-6 hours of college credit. Credit for CLEP exams is awarded by over 2,800 colleges but you should check with the college you plan to attend to see which exams are accepted and the score considered satisfactory.
Advanced placement exams are given to high school students who have used college texts or materials in high school and desire to obtain college credit. Check with nearby colleges or high schools for testing information. Tests are administered in May and consist of a different subject being tested each morning and afternoon. There are 32 subjects available. Ask the college if receiving college credit in high school will make the student ineligible for freshman scholarships.
The Dept. of Defense will pay tuition to any college as long as the student maintains a GPA of 3.0. The student is required to work for the DOD 4 summers and 5 years after graduation. For more details, go to their website listed below and then explore other programs from their home page.
This is not an exhaustive list, nor does it in any way guarantee that you will be accepted to any of these colleges. Don’t limit your search to this list.
ACT official site
www.act.org/aap/index.html
SAT official College Board Site
www.collegeboard.com
Official Site of the GED Testing Service
www.acenet.edu/calec/ged/home.html
Advanced Placement Program
www.collegeboard.org/ap/students/index.html
Department of Defense
www.nsa.gov/programs/employ/
Homeschooling Friendly Colleges
http://rsts.net/colleges/
Scholarships and College Prep
www.cashforcollege.com
www.homeschoolteenscollege.net/collegeessays.htm
www.srnexpress.com
(see entrance essays by homeschoolers)
Test Prepsites
www.kaptest.com
www.petersons.com
www.powerprep.com/getstarted.htm
www.testprep.com
Getting Ready for College Early: Aug. ‘97 online book
www.ed.gov/pubs/GettingReadyCollegeEarly
And What About College?: How Homeschooling Leads to Admissions To
The Best Colleges and Universities
by Cafi Cohen
Homeschoolers’ College Admissions Handbook
by Cafi Cohen
How to Earn a Degree Without Going to College
by James P. Duffy
Getting a College Degree Fast: Testing Out and Other Accredited Short Cuts
(1996) by Joanne Aber.
The College Board: 10 Real SATs
a set of 10 old SAT tests and tips, as well as
review books and sample ACT tests are available from Barnes and Noble Book
Stores and Educator’s Publishing Service
www.epsbooks.com (800) 225-5750. 664 page book. $18.95
Kaplan’s Higher Score on the SAT/ACT/PSAT
Last updated: 09/30/2003
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