Category: High School Planning & Testing

  • Choosing High School Courses (Spanish River HS 2023/2024 Course Selection Guide)

    Choosing High School Courses (Spanish River HS 2023/2024 Course Selection Guide)

    Choosing high school courses can be an important decision that can significantly impact your future academic and career goals. Here are some steps you can take to help you choose appropriate high school courses: Most high schools publish an annual course guide. The 2023-2024 Course Selection Guide published by Spanish River High School in Boca…

  • Understanding A-G Course Requirements for California Public University Admission

    Understanding A-G Course Requirements for California Public University Admission

    Many students are surprised to learn that to be considered for freshman admission to a California public college you will need to meet your high school graduation requirements and the California colleges’ curriculum-based admission requirements.  For UC schools, such as Berkeley and UCLA, this means that students must take at least one full year of…

  • The College Board Eliminates SAT Subject Tests and Optional SAT Essay

    The College Board Eliminates SAT Subject Tests and Optional SAT Essay

    The College Board announced on January 19, 2021, that it will discontinue administering the SAT Subject Tests and the optional essay section on the SAT, changing the standardized testing calculus for many college-bound students. The SAT Subject Tests offered students the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge in certain subjects on a standardized scale. While Subject Tests…

  • Ivy Schools Announce Test Optional for Class of 2025

    Ivy Schools Announce Test Optional for Class of 2025

    Penn, Cornell, Dartmouth, Columbia, and other Ivy League schools will not require  SAT and ACT test scores for applicants in the 2020-2021 admissions cycle. After College Board and ACT testing agencies canceled and postponed multiple test dates amid the coronavirus outbreak, the schools joined numerous others in deciding to no longer require the SAT or…

  • What Is a MOOC?  AND Why I Recommend Them

    What Is a MOOC? AND Why I Recommend Them

    MOOC (/muːk/) stands for massive open online courses.     A massive open online course is an online aimed at unlimited participation and open access via the web.  In addition to traditional course materials such as filmed lectures, readings, and assignments, many MOOCs provide interactive user forums to support community interactions among students, professors, and teaching assistants.…

  • Free Online Assessment Can Help Identify College Majors and Careers

    Free Online Assessment Can Help Identify College Majors and Careers

    My Majors assessment, which is often recommended by college advisors, is a helpful tool for students exploring college majors and careers. My Majors is a free online assessment and can show potential majors that the student had not previously known about or considered.  Based on the assessment results, students can print a report that includes…

  • Test-Optional Momentum Continues to Grow

    Test-Optional Momentum Continues to Grow

    Indiana University in Bloomington and Northern Illinois University grabbed 2020 headlines for joining the expanding test-optional movement. While IU and most other test-optional schools do not require test scores, admissions officers will still consider submitted scores. Strong scores can improve a student’s admissions standing and may also influence scholarship consideration. The test-optional movement continues to…

  • Khan Academy Offers Free SAT Prep and Homework Help

    Khan Academy Offers Free SAT Prep and Homework Help

    Looking to boost your AP or SAT score, or to understand some aspect of physics or calculus that your teacher never properly explained?  Looking to learn something new such as world history, calculus or economics. Check out the Khan Academy. Its mission is to provide world-class education, for free, to anyone, anywhere.   The Academy was…

  • Facebook Warning: Admissions Officers Check Out Students

    Facebook Warning: Admissions Officers Check Out Students

    College-bound students, beware: College college admissions officers may be looking you up on Facebook.  Make sure what they see is suitable for viewing! According to surveys of college admissions officers, social media is often used in the admissions process to vet applicants and recruit prospective students. Some college admissions people have stated that a student’s…

  • Matching Career Options with Personality and Interests

    Matching Career Options with Personality and Interests

    Many high school students (and older people too) are interested in learning about careers that fit with their personality type, interests, strengths & weaknesses, and likes & dislikes. There are a number of self-assessment tools to help you.   Some of these resources also provide a list of suggested college majors and careers that are…