Every year, tens of thousands of students apply to Ivy League schools. Only a small fraction receive an offer of admission. The difference between those who are admitted and those who are denied often comes down to strategy. Few application processes are as intense as the Ivy League. You might be your high school valedictorian– but so is your competition. On average, Ivy League schools have an acceptance rate of…

If you’ve ever opened up your College Board account to retrieve your scores and not liked what you found… well, you’re not alone. About half of all SAT takers retake the exam, and there are a lot of benefits to doing so. In fact, taking the exam multiple times correlates with improved admission rates and higher test scores.  But, just like taking the test itself, you should approach taking and…

The SAT was introduced 100 years ago, in 1926. By the 1960s, the G.I. Bill meant that more people were attending college than ever before, and the SAT was almost universally adopted by schools in the United States. But in 1969, we saw the first school to go test-optional, Bowdoin College, drop the test. Since then, test-optional admissions slowly gained ground– mostly at small liberal arts colleges. In 2019, there…

Preparing for the SAT may feel like an extra stressor in an already packed high school schedule, but the exam offers meaningful advantages that can shape both your college path and your long-term goals. The fact is, there are a lot of benefits to taking this exam, beyond the ones you might expect! Even as many colleges maintain score-optional admissions policies, the SAT remains a powerful tool for students who…

Ever since the first university opened its doors to students (either the University of Al-Qarawiyyin in Morocco in 859 or the University of Bologna in Italy in 1088, depending on how you define it), some schools have had more prestigious name recognition than others. During the Enlightenment, it was the University of Paris. The UK has Oxford and Cambridge. In the United States, that prestige converged around eight specific schools…

Since its introduction in 1959, millions of hopeful college students have taken the ACT. Today, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic kickstarting test-optional policies, many students question whether or not the test is still worth taking. But honestly? The answer to that isn’t just a resounding yes, it’s “Yes, and it’s actually more important now than ever before.” With the rise of grade inflation, the increasing difficulty of college…

For decades, the SAT has been a major part of the college admissions process in the United States. Many students see it as a hurdle they must clear on the path to higher education, while parents and schools often treat it as a marker of academic readiness. Yet despite its long history and widespread use, the SAT has always been controversial. Critics argue that it creates unnecessary stress, reinforces inequality,…

Your second-to-last year of high school is full of obligations and opportunities, including standardized testing. Preparing for the SAT during your junior year can feel like a big task, but it’s one that pays off. Whether you’re aiming for competitive college admissions or merit-based scholarships, your SAT score is more than just a number; it’s a signal to colleges that you’re ready for the challenges ahead. The good news is…

If you’re a high school student in the US today, you’ve been taking standardized tests since you were in the third grade. Maybe you sometimes have nightmares about Scantron bubbles; maybe you relish finishing early and getting extra quiet reading time. However you feel about standardized testing, these tests are a big part of how both the American education system and the college admissions systems work. But these tests are…

Most people have heard about the Ivy League, at least in passing. These eight schools– Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University– are known for their highly selective admissions practices and excellent graduate outcomes.  But they aren’t the only selective schools with impeccable reputations in the US. In fact, the most selective top university in the US isn’t even…