SAT/ACT

By Dr. Wayne Adams

SPECIAL … SPECIAL … SPECIAL!! I wanted to let you know that recently Governor DeSantis signed legislation to allow students to count hours from part-time work towards their hours needed to qualify for the 75% and 100% awards. Before, only volunteer hours counted. So if you student had a part-time job this summer, the hours could count towards qualification for the $18,000+ or $25,000+ scholarship levels. Everyone interested should check this out with the Bright Futures program. There are no changes in the SAT and ACT scores needed to qualify for these two award levels.

Upcoming Fall Test Dates: SAT on Oct 2, Nov 5, and Dec 3; ACT on Oct 22 and Dec 10. A SECRET KEY TO COLLEGE ADMISSION IS THE COLLEGE APPLICATION ESSAY Having talked with many admissions officers of the “Top 25” such as Harvard, Yale, Princeton … plus UF, FSU, USF, and UCF, they tell me students who apply “self-select”, that is are in the range for admissions on Class Standing, GPA, and SAT/ACT scores. Often the application essay makes the difference between a “Yes or No” for admission. The 104 page book I have written (cover above) gives my students additional ideas about organization, style, including personal examples and quotations, and much more in writing their best essay. They are all written in “hook, look, took” format … meaning you have to “hook” the reader in the first sentence or two, pull that person in to “look” at what you want to say, leave with a vivid “took”, and say, “Wow! I wish more essays were like this one.” Inside are 40 sample essays that have helped my students gain admission to many colleges in the “Top 25” and UF, FSU, USF, UCF, more. We just finished our summer classes, and I thought you would like to see part of an email I recently received from one of my students. I am happy to report back to you that I got a 32 composite on the ACT! 35 reading, 31 math, 29 reading, and 34 science! I don’t know how I got a 34 on science. I still can’t believe it. I need one more point to improve to a 33, and will be taking the test again soon. Thanks for all your help. I am so happy with a 32, and potentially even a 33. As we move ahead in the fall term … SENIORS are getting ready for these exams as part of their college applications. Most are due by Jan 1, except for UF which has a “stone cold” early Nov deadline. For a much higher chance of acceptance, I advise seniors to go for “early decision” or “early acceptance” because the probability of acceptance is usually 2 - 3 times higher than for regular admissions.

JUNIORS often want to have an idea of their scoring levels, and to be prepared for the PSAT in mid-October … which is the only qualifying exam for the National Merit Scholarships.

SOPHOMORES are getting ahead by gaining experience taking these exams and assessing where they are with scoring.

Also, many public and private high schools periodically give the SAT to “track” students, meaning to see at what level they are capable of scoring academically which means what level of classes they can take.

If You Would Like To Talk More About Your Student … Please contact me at 727-253-0639 or send me an email at wwa0811@ mykolab.com.

Dr. Wayne Adams is one of the leading SAT and ACT tutors in the country. His students normally improve around 200 points on the Writing, Reading, and Math superscore on the SAT, and 4 – 7 points on the ACT composite. They have been admitted to all 5 of the “Top 5”, 9 of the “Top 10”, and 19 of the “Top 25” universities in the country, , and many top universities in Florida. These schools include Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Stanford, U Chicago, Duke, U Penn, Johns Hopkins, Cornell, Notre Dame, Emory, UC Berkley, UCLA, USC, UNC (Chapel Hill), Wake Forest, NYU, Northeastern (Boston), Boston College, Georgia Tech, Service Academies: Navy - Air Force - and Merchant Marine - Penn State, LSU, Auburn, UF, U Miami, FSU, USF, UCF, Florida Atlantic, Florida Gulf Coast, FIU, New College of Florida, Stetson, and Julliard – Manhattan - New England - and Berklee Conservatories of Music. Many have received academic, athletic, or music scholarships. He has also tutored three juniors who scored at the national merit finalist/semifinalist levels on the PSAT. He is a former Dean of a Graduate School of Business and Full Professor, and began college teaching at the University of Maryland in 1968. He has degrees and advanced studies at Harvard, Yale, Vanderbilt, Columbia International, and Luther Rice.