The Latest SAT Scam
12 College Application Tips Webinar
It's been quite a stretch for recent SAT-related scams. Last week's was about so-called "free" prep courses.
This week: a "new" story about kids at top private, New York City high schools getting extra time on the SAT for newly-discovered disabilities that popped up just in time for the standardized tests.
What a coincidence!
Thing is, this isn't new.
After the whole Operation Varsity Blues/Felicity/Lori scandal broke in 2019, numerous stories broke out about parents bending or breaking rules to give their kids an edge in college admissions. The Wall Street Journal wrote how 80% of students in the Newton, Massachusetts school system received extra time accommodations on the SAT and ACT. (I graduated from Newton North in1986.Tiger Pride!)
So here we are again, five years later. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
If kids are able to boost scores by 200 points by breaking the rules, obviously that's crappy and penalizes others who play by the rules.
But there's another victim here, one that admittedly you might have a hard time feeling sympathy for:
The cheaters.
Why? Because the implicit -- yet deafening -- message they get from their conniving parents is "You're not good enough to achieve something on your own. Mommy and Daddy are going to break some rules for you."
Say hello to Mr. Imposter Syndrome, your new friend who will live with you the rest of your life.
Advice For Ethical Parents
This story serves as confirmation about the craziness around college admissions that still exists, and the types of families you and your kiddo are competing against.
Don't kid yourself. It never went away, even after Varsity Blues.
Tomorrow's Webinar
I'm running a brand new webinar for Class of 2025 students, to show them how to put together a (nearly) perfect college application. If you have a younger child, you are also welcome to attend.
The first hour will cover how to photoshop your child so that she looks like a water polo or soccer star. If we have time, I'll cover rowing.
The rest of the program will describe where to find high scoring people to take the SAT or ACT for you, and how much to pay them.
Hardy har har. Here's what I'll actually cover tomorrow night:
- How to get into a decent college, today
- How to construct a strategic and balanced college list
- How to avoid "Admissions Armageddon"
- How to answer one of the new supplemental essays about diversity even if you don't feel or look particularly diverse
- How to earn a 30K per year merit scholarship even if you didn't cure a pandemic or single-handedly build a village in a third world country
- Test-Optional: To Opt or Not to Opt
- The New Digital SAT: right for your kiddo?
- Merit Scholarships: how to get 'em without spending six months on stupid internet sites that offer fake contests or other misleading ways to sell you a student loan instead
- Financial aid: how to get it, even if you think you won't qualify
- More, including the stuff I come up with right after sending out this email. And your questions, I'll save time for Q&A.
Here's where to go:
Please share this invitation with anybody you know who could benefit from this class. No charge.
- Andy Lockwood
Long Island's Greatest Unindicted College Advisor
Andy Lockwood, featured in the Netflix documentary Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal
(As an expert, not a suspect)