Baaaaaad Advice

I wanted to relay some recent, flat-out bad advice from guidance counselors that some frustrated parents shared with me over the past month or so.

But before I do, and in case you are a guidance counselor  -- sorry, "school counselor" (the proper term, apparently) and think I'm doing this to bash you, I'm not. 

I'm merely REPEATING actual examples of poor advice -- or no advice -- that others have mentioned to me, so that you and your fellow parents can avoid them, and thereby steer clear of the consequences of following said bad advice.   (I actually like most of the guidance counselors I've met, professionally and personally.)

Nonetheless, I'll press on.  This one's about submitting your SAT or ACT scores as part of your college application, versus going the test-optional route and keeping your scores to yourself.

I've probably heard this advice 15-20 times this year:  do not submit your scores if it's below the average reported score for that college.  The stated or unstated reason has to do with not giving the admissions officer a reason to reject the student.

Here's what I GENERALLY advise, based on many conversations over the years with former and current admissions officers, some of whom have worked for our firm, others I know from conferences and other industry events: if the score is in the 25-75% range, you should probably submit, with a few exceptions, which I'll cover in a bit. First, the reasons to submit:

1. Admissions officers would rather see scores than not see scores.   Why?  They are still reasonably accurate predictors of how well a student will do in college.
2. If you do not submit your SAT or ACT, the inference is pretty clear:  your score is lower than the range reported by that college (the implication is not "My scores were too high and I didn't want to show off)
3. If you do not submit scores, the rest of your application, including GPA and rigor of course load, becomes more important.  If those two areas are weaker than your competition at a particular school, you should submit your scores if you're in that 25-75% range to help your argument that you can, in fact, succeed academically at that college
4. The number of kids taking the SAT has quietly increased since the pandemic.  The College Board reported that 1.9 million Class of 2023 students took the exam, up from 1.5 million in 2021.  Colleges know this.  They also know that kids from affluent areas score better.   If you are from an affluent area and your child does not submit their scores, you're not protecting some deep dark secret.  

Exceptions.

1. If an admissions officer tells you directly to submit only if the score is higher than the middle 50%, go by that advice.  It's rare, but it happens
2. If your score is at the bottom of the range reported, but you're applying to a specialized, competitive program at that college that attracts more competitive students, you might not want to submit. Examples:  engineering, computer science, elite schools of business (Wharton, Stern, Ross, etc.)
3. If you're applying to a "Public Ivy"  -- an out-of-state, state university that favors in-state applicants, but you live out of state.  The requirements for non-residents to be accepted are usually significantly harder than in-state applicants.  UNC Chapel Hill comes to mind.  If your scores are at the bottom of the 25-75% range, don't submit them.

Announcement.

In two days, I'm launching a new book, compiling these bits of actual, bad advice and offering tips on how to overcome them:  The Pocket Guide to Surviving Your Guidance Counselor's (Lack Of) Advice.  It's already been trashed by a guidance counselor, too!

Keep an eye on your inbox Friday morning for the promo.  (All gross proceeds go to charity.). Until then...

Carpe college!

-Andy