The New Digital SAT

As technology continues to shape our educational landscape, the College Board has implemented a significant update to the SAT. Enter the Digital SAT, a revamped version of the traditional exam that brings the test-taking experience into the digital age, while maintaining the integrity and rigor of the assessment.

Test Format and Scoring

First and foremost, it is imperative to understand that, with the Digital SAT, the test sections and scoring remain unchanged. Students will still encounter the familiar sections—Reading, Writing and Language, and Math—presented in a format similar to the traditional paper-based test. Furthermore, the scoring methodology remains consistent. 

Test Navigation and Features

Students can now bring their computers into the test center, creating a more personalized and user-friendly testing experience. It is recommended that you use your own computer since you are most familiar with its functionalities and interface. Make sure to fully charge your computer as you may not have access to an outlet.

If you don’t have a device, the College Board recommends you borrow one from your school, friend, or family member. Be sure to check with the College Board for more detailed information. SAT Device Lending.

To streamline the process, students are advised to download the digital application the night before the test, in order to alleviate stress and avoid last-minute technical issues. 

During the test, a proctor will provide an access code, granting students entry into the digital exam environment. Once the test is accessed with the code, all other applications and functionalities on the computer will be disabled in order to maintain test security and integrity.

Navigating the Digital SAT is intuitive and user-friendly. The test interface displays questions at the top of the screen, with answer choices conveniently listed below each question. A timer is featured at the top of the test, allowing students to monitor their progress and pace themselves accordingly.

One notable feature of the Digital SAT is the ability to flag questions and return to them later within the same section. This allows students to manage their time effectively and revisit challenging questions without feeling rushed.

Additionally, students taking the Math section will still be provided with a formula sheet, ensuring fairness and consistency in problem-solving. Furthermore, there will be a calculator embedded in the online test, which will be available to students throughout all the sections.

Adaptive Exam Structure

The adaptive nature of the Digital SAT introduces a dynamic testing experience tailored to each student's proficiency level. Upon entering the Math section, you will find that the first module serves to establish a baseline, determining the initial difficulty level of the questions presented. 

As students progress through the exam, the test adapts the questions to each student’s performance, adjusting the difficulty of subsequent questions accordingly. This adaptive approach not only shortens the overall duration of the test but also ensures a more personalized and efficient assessment of a student's skills and knowledge.

Managing Test Anxiety

With the new changes comes the need to manage test anxiety effectively. The Digital SAT's adaptive format may initially catch some students off guard, especially as they encounter questions of varying difficulty levels. The more familiar you become with the types of questions and timing of the test, the more relaxed you will be on test day. One of the important factors in taking the digital SAT is practice. Try taking a full-length practice test simulating the test day environment. This should be done using a computer adaptive test. That means no cell phones or other distractions. After receiving the results, you will know which areas to focus on. Continue this process until you have achieved your desired results.

Learning breathing techniques to focus and calm your nerves will also help on test day. Get to the test site early so you can settle in. Make sure to get enough sleep and eat a healthy dinner and breakfast before the test.

Self Study and Tutoring

For most students, we recommend you take the first test without preparation, because you will most likely be taking the test a second time anyway. Before the second sitting, tutor or self study, whichever is most efficient in terms of time and money for your family. If you are a Journey Ahead client and wish to discuss further, please set a meeting with your counselor.

Focus on Majors: Business

Business is among the most popular majors in the U.S., according to the National Center for Educational Statistics, comprising nearly 1 in 5 bachelor's degrees. Business majors explore fundamental business principles and practices that enable companies to run efficiently. Students pursuing a business major often study multidisciplinary concepts so they can develop strong communication, leadership, and analytical skills.

When considering a major in business, research different programs and how they align with your goals. Below is a sampling of options:

Business Intelligence prepares students for analyst positions. The degree combines management, marketing, technology, and data analytics. No computer programming is required; rather, you will develop skills enabling you to manage and interpret large amounts of data and, most importantly, use data to make management decisions. Some skills you will learn are data collection, integration, analysis, critical thinking, and problem-solving. 

Business Management & Administration There is a subtle difference between administration and general management. Business administration is concerned with the detailed operations of running a business, while business management is about overall leadership and seeing the bigger economic picture. A business management degree focuses on planning and organizing the activities of a business or organization in order to achieve its goals and objectives. In contrast, a degree in business administration provides a broad background and allows the student to focus on a specialized area of business. Both business management and administration degrees typically include the same core subjects, including marketing, accounting, economics, and finance. These subjects give students a background in how businesses work, from how products are sourced and manufactured to how they are marketed and sold, and finally, how the money is managed and used to grow the business.

A student of business management will generally then go on to take additional courses in related areas that may include communications, logistics, decision-making, information systems, and human resources. 

Often, a business administration student will specialize in a specific area such as marketing, accounting, finance, entrepreneurship, healthcare management, international business, or operations management.

Applied Economics/Economics prepares students to pursue careers that use data and economic principles to address real world problems such as food production, trade, environmental, and sustainability issues. Students learn to weigh competing pieces of evidence critically, make sound decisions, and communicate their findings to various audiences. Economics is a significant theoretical model of how societies function. Applied economics is the implementation of that model broadly and in a myriad of specific circumstances. 

Accounting majors learn how to create, maintain, and audit a detailed and accurate system that displays the finances of a business or organization. They study the theory behind accounting and learn how to analyze the financial position of a firm or organization.

Accounting majors often work to become certified public accountants (CPAs) and provide expertise in business finance for a wide variety of industries. Many programs allow you to select an area of specialization, which can help you if you know what career you want to pursue after you graduate. Bachelor's degree programs in accounting can help you develop financial problem-solving and decision-making skills.

What Makes a College Experience Successful?

When it comes to satisfaction with work and life after college, it’s not where you go to college, but what you experience in college that matters, finds a study from Gallup and Purdue University.

Researchers surveyed over 30,000 U.S. college graduates about their job engagement and overall satisfaction with life. The study found that the type of college attended – public or private, small or large, very selective or not very selective – had little effect on a graduate’s long-term work satisfaction or sense of well-being.  

Instead, researchers found strong correlations between the types of experiences students have in college and their odds of being engaged at work and thriving in other areas of life.

Specifically, college graduates were more likely to report feeling engaged in their current jobs if they’d had one or more of these key experiences in college:

• An internship or job that allowed them to apply what they were learning in the classroom.

• Actively participated in extracurricular activities on campus.

• Worked on academic projects that took a semester or more to complete.

• Had a professor who cared about the student as a person.

• Had a professor who made them excited about learning.

• Had a mentor who encouraged them to pursue their goals and dreams.

Students who reported that they’d had three or more of the above experiences more than doubled the odds of work satisfaction after college. 

Additionally, the study found that finishing college in four years or less doubles the odds of work satisfaction for working graduates.  

Commitment to work is an important indicator of whether or not a graduate feels they are thriving in other areas of well-being, such as feeling socially connected, healthy, and financially stable. The study found that a college graduate’s odds of thriving in other aspects of well-being are four times higher if they feel they are engaged at work. Not surprisingly, if graduates felt that their college had prepared them well for life outside of college, they were twice as likely to express satisfaction with other aspects of their well-being. As with work engagement, however, the type of college attended had little correlation with other aspects of well-being.  

Another key factor in the future well-being of college graduates: student debt.  The study found that the higher the amount of student debt, the worse graduates scored on well-being. Only 4% of graduates owing between $20,000 and $40,000 in student debt were thriving in all areas of well-being, compared with 14% of those who did not take out loans to pay for college. 

What implications does this study have for students and parents weighing college options?  “When it comes to finding the secret to success, it’s not where you go, it’s ‘how you do it,” note the study’s researchers. “These elements – more than any others – have a profound relationship to a person’s life and career.”

Resource: The full Gallup-Purdue University study, Great Jobs Great Lives, can be downloaded at this link: http://www.gallup.com/poll/168848/life-college-matters-life-college.aspx.

Majors, Minors and Concentrations

Students are typically asked to choose a major when going to college. Understanding choices beyond a major allows students to broaden their area of expertise and interests.

Majors: Your major is defined as the specific, primary area of study you will focus on during your college career. Typically, you don’t have to declare your major until the end of your second year to graduate on time. Anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 of your classes will be within this area of study. Your major selection will appear on your official transcript. Coursework will move from introductory classes, through the intermediate level and on to advanced senior level in a cohesive arrangement. 

Minors:  A minor course of study is a set of classes, from 15 to 18 credit hours, designed to complement and enhance your choice of major. Some college majors require a minor, but typically, the choice of minor is an individual one for each student to consider. A minor can be your opportunity to explore a new subject of interest or add coursework that enriches your choice of major. Many colleges permit more than one minor and will identify that minor on the official transcript.

Concentrations: This is a coordinated group of coursework that represents a sub-specialization or emphasis within a specific major field of study. Concentrations are defined within your major and allow you to customize your experience. The selection of your concentration, sometimes called a ‘track,' will provide a potential employer with more information about your specific areas of interest and expertise.

Most high school students have no clear idea of what they want to study in college – they just know they want to get into a great college that will help them realize their unique goals and ambitions. 

When looking at colleges, it is important to review each listing of academic majors available. Is there more than one that draws your interest? According to the National Center for Education Statistics, about 80% of college students change their major at least once. As a nod to the understanding that many young people are unclear about their choice of major, some colleges are creating programs designed to encourage exploration across the range of liberal arts disciplines. One more great possibility for some hard-working and talented students is the completion of two majors – this is known as a double major. Careful attention to graduation requirements is critical to successful completion. 

The opportunity to broaden your undergraduate career by selecting a minor is easily available to most students. Colleges often offer many minors, and several allow students to complete more than one. It is important to work closely with your advisor to be sure that you graduate on time. Two strong reasons for selecting a minor are personal fulfillment and professional enhancement. It also reveals to a prospective employer that you are knowledgeable about several fields, thus making you a more desirable candidate.

Students who resist being ‘put in a box’ will be excited to review concentration options within their choice of major. This gives students the chance to choose something that matches their interests, allowing them to explore and gain expertise in a sub-specialization of their major. Examples include Tourism and Hospitality Management with a concentration in Destination and Event Management, English with a concentration in Science, Medicine, and Literature, and Business Management with concentrations in Entrepreneurship and Accounting. 

Have you heard of Shakespeare’s metaphor about the world being your oyster? Well in this case, a college degree can be your own personal pearl - to be selected, enhanced, and completed through a variety of course offerings, all designed to create a customized degree program that will reward you with both personal growth and professional opportunities. 

Comparing College Financial Aid Offers

After months of anticipation, your child’s college admissions decisions have arrived with great news. Congratulations!  But, before making a college choice, many families still have one more very important thing to do: compare the financial aid offers from all of the colleges to which their student has been admitted. 

Your family should receive financial aid and scholarship offers from your child’s colleges by April 1. If you have not received a financial aid offer from a college to which your child has been admitted to by that time, call the financial aid office immediately. 

Once you have received all of your child’s financial aid letters, the following three-step process can help your family accurately compare the offers and make a smart decision about which college to attend.

Step 1: Determine your total cost of attendance for each college 

While colleges provide estimates covering tuition, room, board, fees, and additional costs like books and personal expenses, these may not align with your family's actual expenses. Certain majors or distant locations may incur extra costs (e.g., lab fees, and travel expenses). Research specific factors like airfare, major-related expenses, and local living costs. Don't rely solely on the college's estimate; create your own "estimated total cost of attendance" for accurate comparison when evaluating financial aid offers.

Step 2: Compare your family’s out-of-pocket costs for each school

Every college expects each family to contribute something to their student’s education.  To make sure you’re accurately comparing what each college will cost your family, compare each of the following items from each financial aid letter one by one:

Student Aid Index (SAI): The SAI is used as a guide by college financial aid offices to determine how much aid a student is eligible to receive. This figure is determined by parental and student income and assets declared on the FAFSA.

Student Loans: Most financial aid offers from colleges will include student loans.  You may choose to turn down loans or only accept part of the loan amount offered.

Borrowing a manageable amount to cover college expenses can be a good plan.  However, the keyword is “manageable.”  All loans are not created equal.  Federal student loans tend to have the lowest interest rates and, for some types of Federal Student Loans, interest does not begin to accrue until six months after you graduate from college. Some colleges include private loans in their financial aid offers. The interest rates on private student loans are significantly higher than Federal student loans. Use caution when considering taking expensive private student loans, even for a “dream” college.

You’ll want to carefully consider the types of loans each college has offered you and make sure you and your child understand the full cost of each loan, including loan origination fees and interest costs over the life of the loan. 

Parent Loans: To help parents pay their expected share of college expenses, the Federal government offers loans for parents called PLUS loans. PLUS loans, if used wisely, can help cover tuition, but keep in mind that interest and monthly payments begin as soon as you sign for a PLUS loan. Again, you can turn down any PLUS loans in your financial aid offers, but you will need to make up the difference out of pocket. Make sure to understand the terms and interest rate if you do borrow. 

Federal Work Study: Federal Work Study helps cover personal expenses and books by providing on-campus jobs. Students earn up to the awarded amount, contingent on finding a work-study job and working sufficient hours. Failure to meet the criteria affects the financial aid offer. Work Study funds are not available until the student begins working. Despite this, it offers valuable resume-building opportunities. Research indicates that students working 10-15 hours per week, the typical work-study commitment, often achieve better grades. Calculate the total of SAI, loans, and Work Study for each college, and subtract from the cost of attendance to determine the family's "out-of-pocket" cost.

Step 3: Consider the “free” money in each financial aid offer

After assessing out-of-pocket costs, focus on the "free" money offered by each college, such as grants and merit scholarships. Grants act as a discount on total attendance costs and don't require repayment. Be aware of GPA requirements for scholarships.

However, don't base decisions solely on grants and scholarships; prioritize total out-of-pocket costs from Step 2. The college with the most significant scholarship may not be the least expensive. Comparing offers accurately is crucial for an informed decision. Contact financial aid offices for clarification, and once you determine costs for four years, make a family decision for the most sensible choice.

What are you Doing this Summer?

Admissions officers want to see that students have spent some of their summer productively. As you explore options, remember to engage in something you are interested in or passionate about rather than choosing a program because you think it will look good on your college application.

With so many options, students need to keep in mind that there’s not one “best” summer activity. If you find something you are excited about doing, you’re likely to experience the kind of personal growth that makes for interesting college applications.

Some colleges allow high school students to attend summer sessions, where they can study subjects that are not offered in high school, explore possible college majors, and earn transferable college credits. 

Choosing a residential summer class housed at a university is a great way to experience life away from home. Living with a roommate and even doing one’s own laundry can help students feel more independent and self-confident. Many enrichment programs don’t offer college credit but do provide an opportunity for students to pursue their interests. Students who want to perfect their Spanish may want a homestay in Spain or Latin America. A budding engineer might enjoy a camp where they build robots. 

For others, community service is the way to create a meaningful summer experience. The Student Conservation Association sends crews of six to eight students with two adult leaders to national parks, forests, and urban green spaces to hike trails, build shelters, fight invasive species, and protect wildlife habitats.

Of course, you don’t have to travel across the country to be involved in community service. Many local organizations also offer the opportunity to stay involved throughout the school year.

Some students need or want to earn money over the summer. Having a job can help you learn how to work with people, prioritize tasks, and manage time. Earning a paycheck can also provide a wonderful boost to self-esteem.

Summer jobs can also offer opportunities to explore career interests. If a student wants to be a veterinarian, a job at an animal hospital is an excellent way to see what’s involved in being a vet. Working as a camp counselor is great for students interested in teaching or psychology.

Some students create their own summer programs. A prospective science major might contact professors at local colleges doing interesting research and see if they could use some help in the lab over the summer. This can be a way for a student to check out if microbiology is really where she’s headed, and if things go well, ask for a recommendation letter. Internship spots fill early; contact prospective mentors now.

There's Good Info in College Admissions Office Blogs

Reading an admissions blog can give both parents and teens an honest view of the admissions process at a particular college. Instead of listening to other parents or friends, whose information will not be comparable to your unique situation and therefore will be inaccurate, blogs give you facts from Directors of Admission and current students. They are a way to get an idea of what makes each college unique and interesting. Blogs can put a human face on the institutional facade.

Student blogs usually cover information and insights into student life, academics and the culture at the college. High school students who are reading about the experiences of their peers might feel less stressed and better manage expectations of what college life will be like. Knowing that others have overcome challenges and still achieved their academic goals can be inspirational.

The blogs written by admissions deans offer years of experience and help eliminate myths that a parent or teen may believe. Since the world of college admissions is constantly changing, blogs can inform readers with information on current trends. There may also be details about the application timeline, required documents, and tips for making a strong application.

Here is a list of reader-worthy blogs. Even if there isn’t a college that interests you in this sampling, it may be worth reading some of them to gain a better understanding of college admissions. Some of the blogs could even make you laugh. Realize that the blogs reflect the writer’s perspectives, and will vary according to their institution and experiences.

Georgia Tech Admission Blog

Admissions Blog at Illinois

Tulane University Office of Undergrad Admissions blog

Jon Boeckenstedt, Oregon State University

University of Virginia Admissions Blog

Tufts Inside Admissions

MIT Admissions

Steps to Success for High School Students

In the midst of worrying about college admissions, it can be easy to forget that your high school years aren’t just about getting into college. High school is an important time for developing the life skills necessary to do well in college and into adulthood. Here are five ways parents can help their high schoolers prepare for success in college.

Help your child choose the appropriate level of academic challenge. High school academics lay the foundation for academic success in college. However, this doesn’t mean that piling on a full slate of AP courses is right for every teen.  Encourage your child to make thoughtful course selections, taking into account both individual strengths and weaknesses, and a reasonable work-life balance. Also discuss how high school coursework aligns with what your student will be studying in college. For instance, strong quantitative skills are a requirement to do well in many college courses; taking math through senior year in high school can help make the transition to those courses go more smoothly, and is essential for all students planning a STEM major.

Cut the reins. It’s nice to be needed, but as your child nears the end of high school, your goal as a parent should be to be needed less. Gradually give your child more freedom to make their own decisions and manage their own schedule: for instance, making and attending a doctor's appointment alone, picking up a prescription from the pharmacy or dealing with a difficult coach. Sure, it’s likely that your child will make a few mistakes along the way, but it will be better to make those mistakes – and learn how to fix them – before going to college. 

Make reading a family affair. There are ways that you can help your child continue to develop the strong reading skills needed in college. Clip or email articles that might interest your child and suggest you discuss them. Ask questions about the books read in English class: What do you like about the book? What have you learned?  Better yet, get a copy of a few of the same books, read them yourself, and talk to your child about your thoughts and impressions of the books.  

Travel. College introduces students to many new ideas, cultures, and ways of doing things. Travel is a great way to help your teen get comfortable with new environments and people. You don’t have to go all the way to Europe on a fancy trip for your child to reap the rewards. Even a quick trip to a new city an hour or two from home can help your child begin to see how to approach the larger world that awaits them in college. 

Teach life skills. Academic success is important, but in order to live independently in college, your teen still needs to know how to do laundry, balance a checkbook, and make simple meals.   Make a list of all of the basic day-to-day tasks you do for your child today, and gradually teach your child how to do each one on the list. Along with practical skills, teens should also work on the communication skills that are essential when living with a roommate. Coping with their emotions and interpersonal skills are also important as they venture into their new environment. Don’t wait until the summer before college to get started. The sooner your child is able to confidently handle these tasks, the easier the transition to college will be.