Workshop

Should you submit your test scores to a test-optional college?

Should you submit your test scores to a test-optional college?

At this point in the summer, it’s no longer news that a huge number of colleges and universities have gone test-optional for the next admissions cycle. Many have already declared they will be test-optional for a year or two after this one, and some have permanently gone test-optional. Some, of course, were already test-optional even before COVID-19 forced testing sites to cancel. So if you haven’t already taken an SAT or ACT, you shouldn’t worry. (And, for your safety, you shouldn’t take the test this fall, even if you find an open test site.) But this year many students who do already have test scores are facing a dilemma that used to only be a decision for a few people: should you send your scores to a test-optional school?

Put together your own writing workshop

Put together your own writing workshop

Last week I was inspired and energized, though. I was invited to be one of the instructors at a week-long college admissions essay writing workshop. Even though I was brought on as an admissions coach and gave talks about things like test scores and how to understand holistic admissions, the organizers still let me lead a workshop group of six students as they took a college application essay from planning to a third draft. It was exciting to see people get real help from peer review, and all week I kept thinking to myself “people can do this at home.”

So today I’d like to share what made the workshop successful, and how a small group of students could set up their own workshop of peers.

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Results from my student survey

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Results from my student survey

Last week I spent two days talking to seniors at Carnegie Vanguard High School during their English class. We talked about what colleges are looking for in applicants, how the different parts of an application work together, and how colleges actually process all those applications. The students also had tons of really great questions.

But first, I had some questions for them. Before our talk, I asked them to fill out a quick questionnaire. Here are the questions I asked and some comments on their responses. If you’re working with college-bound students—either in a school setting, as a parent, or because you are a college-bound student yourself—this may be useful for you.

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I offer a six-session, one-on-one coaching course for a limited number of students. Each session has a different focus and requires about an hour of homework before our 45-60 minute meeting. We can meet in person if you're in the Houston area, or we can meet over the phone or through a video conference. It's made for students in the 10th or 11th grade. 

I can also do a three-hour workshop with a group as small as three people or a class as big as 30. It essentially takes students through the first half of the coaching course, but in a slightly less personalized way.

If you'd like me to give a 30 or 45 minute presentation on my approach to college admissions, I can do that. This is made for PTAs or other groups of adults.

Because each workshop or presentation is tailored to your needs, and because getting to different places is more or less expensive, I don't have set prices published. But feel free to contact me for more details or a proposal. 

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