SAT/ACT

By Dr. Wayne Adams

For SENIORS, it is hard to believe that college application season is upon us again. This means keeping up grades, campus visits, activities, athletics, social lives, qualifying for Bright Futures scholarships, and figuring out how to have the best application for acceptance to “dream schools” and backups. For the Academic Scholars level (WORTH AROUND $25,000), the minimum SAT score required is 1330 and the minimum ACT score is 29. For the Medallion Scholars level (WORTH AROUND $18,000), the minimum SAT is 1210 and the Minimum ACT is 25. Almost all of my students qualify for one of these levels, with many far exceeding what is required. I show them how this is like having a job that pays $50 to $100 an hour for their effort. Recently, a parent called and asked if I could help her daughter, a rising senior at an excellent high school, raise her SAT score from 1360 to the mid-1400’s because the daughter of a friend from that school had applied last year to UF with a 1380 SAT and was not admitted. With increased popularity of our Florida Universities, it is no surprise that admission has steadily gotten more competitive. For UF, FSU, USF, or UCF, students today need almost “straight A’s” PLUS a high SAT or ACT score. To be in the middle range to be admitted: UF SAT 1360 ACT 33; FSU 1350 or 32; USF 1320 or 30; UCF 1250 or 28. The first three criteria for consideration are Class Standing, GPA, and SAT/ACT score(s). Most students selfselect out and don’t apply to schools where they would not have a chance for admission (i.e., applying to UF with a SAT of 1000). The first place most students can really stand out is with their application essay. Having talked with admissions officers for years across the country, this essay is critical because it is their first chance to learn something personal about a student, life experiences, and why that admissions officer should select a student for admission compared to all the other applicants. Recently, I helped a student with their essay. Here is a quick comparison of the student’s introduction “before and after”. BEFORE: Mount Baldy, a treasure that is talked about throughout the Philmont scout reservation, was about to be summited by my friends and I. After waking up at 3 A.M and many long hours of hiking up steep terrain, we reached the summit. The view was mesmorizing. The sense of accomplishment that I felt in that very moment was unlike no other. AFTER: When I scanned the horizon from the summit of Mt. Baldy, towering 10,300 feet into the azure California sky, my heart filled with joy. To the north and south rolled away smaller mountains like waves in the ocean. To the east, I saw the emptiness of the Mohave Desert. To the west, I saw a field of clouds overshadowing the terrain underneath, stretching out to the Pacific Ocean where sunlight flashed like stars on the waves. What a magnificent reward for years of planning and preparation! What a spectacular glance at the possibilities for my future! Some directions will be gorgeous, more beautiful than sunsets over any ocean. Some will be dry and barren just like any desert. Some will be summiting other mountains as part of life’s continuous journey. My JUNIORS and SOPHOMORES are usually focused on getting a headstart on the SAT and/or ACT, and being ready for the PSAT to qualify for National Merit Scholarships.

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 200+ points on the Writing, Reading, Writing and Essay, and Math, and 4 – 7 points on the ACT composite. They have been admitted to 8 of the top 10 universities in the country, 18 of the top 25, and many schools 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), NYU, Northeastern (Boston), Boston College, Georgia Tech, Naval - Air Force - Merchant Marine Service Academies, 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 Berkley Conservatories of Music. Many have received academic, athletic, or music scholarships. 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.