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Health & Fitness

College Application Essays - Avoid the Stress

How important is the SAT to the college acceptance process?

First, for the purpose of full disclosure, this is my opinion of standardized testing in general. The only people who truly benefit from the SAT are real estate agents. A high school proudly proclaims that 99% of the students scored a 2200 or better and everyone wants to move to that town….driving property values into the stratosphere. Don’t get me started on what happens next. That’s a different blog altogether. 

Additionally, countless studies have shown that a multitude of variables can negatively affect a score (by MANY points)…everything from an argument with a friend the day before to a stomach ache. Not to mention test anxiety. (Why the heck are so many children on anti-anxiety meds?) Wait until you are MY age….then it’s time for a psycho-pharmacologist…and a good friend named Vinnie)

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SAT and the College Process

The SAT is not the tool that gets the student into college. It’s the tool that “allows” the student to apply to that particular college. Qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 doesn’t mean victory at the finish line. Wow…look at me…a Long Island Jewish guy with a race car analogy. What’s next? Hockey?

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If your son or daughter scores a 2300 on the SAT, that is great…..but everyone else applying to that school (or schools) also received a 2300. Think of the SAT as permission to be taken seriously….along with the other 22, 000 candidates.

The bottom line: The better the score…the more OPTIONS there are. But don’t rush out and start bragging that your teen is going to Yale or Harvard just because of a 2380. (At this point I should insert a hockey analogy but I know nothing other than the last time I went to a fight, a hockey game broke out). Harvard turned down 500 students with perfect SAT scores and 1,100 students with an 800 on the math component.

However: That doesn’t mean a lower score should keep a student from applying to a reach school. When they look at a student they are looking holistically. They may see another quality or qualification that they find intriguing. Oh…and yes…that is why the essays are so important.  Always REACH….You never know.

I will be presenting a FREE workshop on the Top Five Mistakes Students Make on their College

Application Essays at each of the following libraries, PTAs and organizations. (Pre-registration is strongly advised. Please call the library or other organization if you wish to attend)

I am also available to speak at YOUR organization. Did I mention it’s FREE?

 Jericho Public Library   March 24  

Bellmore Memorial Library – March 27

Syosset Public Library March 31  

Port Jefferson Library   April  2        

Lake Success Jewish Center April  7     

Sea Cliff Village Library April 10  

Northport Library – April 21

Smithtown Public Library April 28    

Harborfields Public Library April 29   

Great Neck Library May 5

Rockville Centre Public Library May 15

Randy Levin is the ONLY college application essay adviser asked to speak at the National College Fair- Nassau Coliseum. The Guidance Dept and English Dept of Half Hollow Hills HS brought Randy into the classroom to speak directly to students. All of Randy’s clients are accepted to the Ivy League or other prestigious colleges. He has a MA in English and a MFA in Creative Writing. He is a published writer and former high school English teacher. For FREE information, go to his website: WriteToCollege.com
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