The new SAT will be implemented in March next year. How should American undergraduate students apply and plan when the old and new SAT alternate, especially when the SAT scores are delayed? What changes have taken place in the admission requirements of American universities? The advice given by senior industry insiders is that if the SAT score is delayed, you may wish to take ACT or apply for an ideal American undergraduate institution.
American elite schools are increasingly recognizing ACT.
"In the face of the delay in SAT scores, we can take ACT. At this stage, there are fewer people applying for ACT scores, which is more dominant. " A few days ago, the SAT and ACT project manager of the Foreign Languages Department of New Oriental School often suggested. She introduced that SAT is an academic level test (IQ test) and ACT is an American college entrance examination, both of which are American college entrance examinations. However, due to the early establishment of SAT, more people signed up for SAT in China than ACT (the ratio is SAT:ACT=9: 1), while in the United States, the ratio of SAT to ACT is 47:53.
It is often said that with the popularization of ACT, some famous schools have requirements for ACT, such as Harvard University's admission requirements changed to: NEW SAT/ ACT+writing, Princeton University's admission requirements were: SAT 1+SAT2(3 doors)/ACT, and Cornell University's admission requirements were: SAT 1+SAT2(2 doors)/ACT+Write. In the United States, many students take both exams, which can better prove their academic ability.
ACT was introduced to China on 20 10, which is characterized by its small difficulty, large number of questions and partial to science, while SAT is partial to liberal arts, which is more suitable for China students with generally good science foundation. Moreover, because there are relatively few people who refer to it at present, ACT has never cheated, so its gold content is high. The upcoming 20 15 beijing beijing.
Competing for the new SAT:ACT has a large number of questions and little difficulty.
"Compared with the same period last year, the number of students in this summer's ACT training class has increased by two or three times. I believe that in a few years, students in Ann will recognize ACT more, "Chang said. Regarding the difference between the new SAT and ACT, Chang Li Xia concluded that the perfect score of the new SAT is 1600, that is, math 800, reading+grammar 800; ACT is divided into English, mathematics, science, reading and writing, with full marks and 36 points for a single subject, among which science includes physics, chemistry and biology. The science part of ACT requires 40 questions and 4 articles to be completed in 35 minutes. As for writing, ACT gave a topic and asked to write an article within 35 minutes. The new SAT is to read articles first and then analyze rhetoric and argumentation skills, which is one of the basic skills that students studying in the United States should have, while writing is graded separately. In addition, the new SAT has a historical article, which means that students should have American cultural and historical background; For example, in mathematics, ACT requires 60 questions to be completed within 60 minutes; In addition, ACT has a scientific reasoning problem. If you want to get good grades in ACT, you need special training.
It is often said that if you apply to the top 30 schools in the United States, ACT will get more than 33 points, and if you get 27 or 28 points, you can apply to the top 50 schools. To apply for the top 30 schools, it is estimated that the new SAT score is above 1400. If you are a senior one or a senior two student, I suggest you take the TOEFL test first to lay a solid foundation for your language, and then try to hit the new SAT or ACT. Whether it is a new SAT or ACT, it takes a year or a year and a half to prepare.
ACT scores can also be used as the evaluation basis for freshmen's scores.
It is reported that ACT has a test center in Xi 'an -Xi 'an No.1 Middle School. Jin Ming, director of the International Department of Xi 'an No.1 Middle School, introduced that PGA, an international course, was started in 2009, and students who have finished the course can take the ACT exam on campus. 20 1 1 the first batch of students took the ACT exam, and more than 300 students have taken the ACT exam. The ACT exam is only for students on campus, and candidates outside the school have to take the exam in Hong Kong. The school will apply to arrange two ACT exams according to the situation. This year1October 24th 10, another exam will be arranged on February 24th 12. On the examination of 65438+1on October 24th, the average score of science was close to 3 1, and the average score of mathematics was 33. ACT scores have improved year by year. Every year, the headquarters of ACT will check some test sites.
Jin Ming thinks that ACT is more suitable for China students. In addition to the delayed SAT scores, the old SAT answers incorrectly and has negative scores, which makes China students unhappy (the new SAT will cancel the negative scores). ACT pays more attention to high school knowledge. For universities, ACT scores can be used as a basis for evaluating whether freshmen's scores reach B or above. However, if the language ability is not up to standard, it is still difficult to take the ACT, because ACT requires candidates to have strong reading ability, material analysis ability and logical thinking ability.
Zhang Pufen, head of the American Department of Northwest University's overseas study service center, said that if you are about to graduate from high school in 20 17 and want to take the exam in 20 16, I suggest you take the ACT exam. We also suggest confirming which exam the school you apply for needs you to take. At present, ACT only allows Guangzhou Automobile International Preparatory College students to take the exam. Therefore, students who want to register for the ACT exam in China need to take GAC Preparatory Course. For details, please check the information on the ACT exam registration website.
AP courses are becoming more and more important.
According to Zhang Pufen's analysis, American universities are increasingly demanding the authenticity of application materials, and a few universities in the United States have even begun to require domestic applicants to submit proof of achievements of relevant institutions. For example, the University of Alabama requires students to start the transcript certification of NACES institutions.
In 20 16, standardized examinations and minimum requirements will be diluted, and more attention will be paid to academically difficult courses. American schools are increasingly aware that China students have strong test ability, and standardized test scores such as SAT and TOEFL are no longer the focus of schools' attention. Last year, an American high school student from China was admitted to Boston College in normal batches with GPA3.7, TOEFL 96 and SAT 1680, mainly because the students took the AP exam while studying in the United States, got three full marks and took credit courses in several universities. This reveals a message: academic courses are important assessment indicators, so the importance of AP courses began to increase.
At the same time, the importance of applying for articles and interviews is also rising. Excellent writing is the first skill that applicants need to stand out from many applicants. Ivy League schools generally use alumni interviews, and top liberal arts colleges will maintain this tradition. More schools will want to see everything except the scores of applicants in application papers and various forms of interviews. Extracurricular activities are the most important factor in deciding whether to enroll after the scores of famous schools reach the standard. The school chooses admission from the credible results of extracurricular activities, strong competition results and applicants who participate in over-selective summer camps.
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