1. WELCOME TO AP/DC AND SAT/ACT INFORMATION NIGHT
PRESENTED BY AMY BLYTH

2. ADVANCED PLACEMENT VS. DUAL ENROLLMENT (CREDIT)
BE INFORMED AND MAKE THE BEST CHOICE FOR YOUR STUDENT
BOTH OFFER A RIGOROUS PROGRAM OF STUDY
IF YOU ARE NOT DECIDED ON A COLLEGE OR CAREER PATH, CHOOSE THE SAFEST OPTION IN TERMS OF CREDIT

3. LET’S COMPARE ADVANCED PLACEMENT DUAL ENROLLMENT
TAKE THE CLASS; EARN THE WEIGHTED CREDIT
TAKE THE TEST WHICH DETERMINES THE COLLEGE CREDIT YOU CAN EARN
EACH COLLEGE HAS CREDIT AGREEMENT WITH COLLEGE BOARD (collegeboard.com)
EASILY CARRIES ACROSS STATE LINES
STANDARDIZED CURRICULUM AND PACING TO MATCH TEST
TEACHERS STILL ADHERE TO SPS GRADING POLICIES
TAKE THE CLASS, EARN THE GRADE
TRANSFER GRADE TO A PUBLIC COLLEGE WITHIN THE STATE, BUT NOT ALWAYS FOR THE CLASS (ELECTIVE CREDIT)
MUST EARN C OR BETTER FOR TRANSFER
PARENTS ARE LIMITED IN THEIR INVOLVEMENT WITH THE PROFESSORS (FERPA AGREEMENT)
BASIC OVERVIEW OF CURRICULUM, BUT WHAT IS TAUGHT/HOW TAUGHT IS UP TO PROFESSOR (GRADING, ETC)

4. MORE INFORMATION SIMILARITIES THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
BOTH COST THE SAME ($100)
BOTH GROUPS OF STUDENTS HAVE TO TAKE THE SOL TEST
THE POTENTIAL TO EARN COLLEGE CREDIT IS AVAILABLE TO BOTH
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
IT IS ADVISED NOT TO TAKE A DC CLASS THAT PERTAINS TO YOUR MAJOR- MOST COLLEGES ARE GOING TO MAKE YOU RETAKE THAT CLASS
IF THE COURSE IS CONSIDERED A PRE- REQUISITE FOR A MAJOR PROGRAM, DO NOT TAKE THE DC VERSION OF IT
EX- VA TECH WON’T ACCEPT THE DC PRE- CALCULUS CLASS FOR ENGINEERING MAJORS
HOW IT AFFECTS GPA
WHAT IS BETTER- GETTING A “B” IN DC PRE-CALCULUS WEIGHTS AS A 4, BUT AN “A” IN MATH ANALYSIS GETS A 4.5
SOMETIMES AN HONORS CLASS CAN GET YOU A HIGHER GPA

5. THINKING ABOUT YOUR STUDENT
HOW MOTIVATED IS YOUR STUDENT?
ARE THEY WILLING TO PUT IN THE TIME TO DO THE READING AND PREPARATORY WORK FOR A COLLEGE LEVEL COURSE?
IS YOUR STUDENT’S SUCCESS TIED TO YOUR INVOLVEMENT?
HOW STRONG IS YOUR STUDENT WITH CRITICAL THINKING AND FREE RESPONSE TESTING?

7. THE SAT- collegeboard.org
THE SAT WAS RECENTLY REDESIGNED AND THE FIRST ADMINISTRATION OF THE NEW TEST WAS IN MARCH; SCORES JUST BEING RELEASED TODAY
THE SAT IS DESIGNED TO BE AN APTITUDE TEST; BUILT ON WHAT COLLEGES WANT AND EXPECT A STUDENT TO KNOW
THERE ARE NOW 2 OPTIONS FOR THE SAT
WITH ESSAY AND WITHOUT ESSAY

8. THE NEW PSAT/SAT
THE PSAT THAT YOUR CHILD MAY HAVE TAKEN IN OCTOBER WAS REDESIGNED TO MATCH THE NEW SAT
ANALYZE THE SCORE REPORT TO PREPARE FOR MORE STANDARDIZED TESTING
STRONGLY ENCOURAGE STUDENTS TO TAKE THEIR FIRST SAT SOON
RE-TAKE THE PSAT IN THE JUNIOR YEAR FOR SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

9. SAT WITH AND WITHOUT ESSAY
SAT- STANDARD
CHECK WITH COLLEGES TO SEE IF THEY ARE REQUIRING THE ESSAY PORTION
MORE COMPETITIVE SCHOOLS WANT TO SEE THE ESSAY PORTION
SUPERSCORING- TAKES THE HIGHEST SCORE IN EACH SECTION NO MATTER WHICH SESSION YOU TAKE THEM IN TO GIVE YOU A COMBINED SCORE
STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT STUDENTS TAKE THEIR FIRST SAT IN JUNE OR THE FIRST FALL ADMINISTRATION SO THEY CAN IDENTIFY WEAKNESSES AND START WORKING ON TEST PREPARATION

10. SAT- SUBJECT TESTS
HIGHER END SCHOOLS (UVA, W&M) OFTEN REQUIRE OR STRONGLY RECOMMEND TAKING THE SUBJECT TESTS
DO NOT TAKE THESE IF YOU ARE NOT ENCOURAGED BY YOUR COLLEGE OF CHOICE
SCORES ARE USED FOR CLASS PLACEMENT AND SOME APPLICATION IF YOU ARE DECLARING A MAJOR WHEN APPLYING

11. THE ACT- actstudent.org
TEST IS DESIGNED AROUND WHAT STUDENTS ARE TAUGHT/HAVE LEARNED
TEST IS BASED ON MATH, ENGLISH AND SCIENCE
RECOMMENDED FOR STUDENTS WHO DO WELL IN MATH AND SCIENCE, BUT WAIT UNTIL MATH ANALYSIS HAS BEEN TAKEN
ONLY THE LAST SCORES GO OUT TO THE COLLEGES (NO SUPERSCORING)
RECOMMENDED THAT YOU TAKE IT FIRST TIME DURING LATTER PART OF JUNIOR YEAR TO GET A BASELINE AND THEN AGAIN EARLY SENIOR YEAR

12. FINAL WORDS FROM GUIDANCE
PLEASE DON’T WAIT UNTIL YOUR SENIOR YEAR TO START TRACKING YOUR SERVICE HOURS FOR THE GRADUATION REQUIREMENT
THE TRANSCRIPT SHOWS YOUR SERVICE HOURS ALREADY, BUT IT WILL ONLY SHOW UP TO 50 HOURS REGARDLESS IF YOU EXCEED THAT AMOUNT
HAC IS NOT AN ACCURATE TRANSCRIPT
THE PARCHMENT SERVICE IS WHERE THE TRANSCRIPTS ARE GENERATED FOR COLLEGE AND STUDENTS CAN START THAT ACCOUNT NOW. IT IS FREE UNTIL YOU HAVE GRADUATED
START BY GOING TO THE GUIDANCE HOMEPAGE, SELECT ORDER MY TRANSCRIPT AND FOLLOW THE REGISTRATION PROCESS. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT THE STUDENT ESTABLISHES THE ACCOUNT IN THEIR NAME (NOT THE PARENT).