Dear Juniors and Seniors in high school,

As the school year kicks off soon, I know a lot of you are probably stressing out with either early or last minute details of applying for colleges and scheduling tests. I graduated high school 2 years ago, and looking back, the college process should not have been as stressful as my friends and I made it out to be. There is a lot of pressure built up around studying for the SATs and ACTs and making sure you can get the highest score as possible because that is the only way you will ever succeed in getting into your top college. This is the most false statement I have ever heard. Now, I am not saying you shouldn't study and try your hardest for these tests because they unfortunately still mean something to colleges but what means more to colleges and universities is who you are and what you have and will accomplish in the future. Standardized testing doesn't show a persons drive or persistence. They don't show a persons attitude or willingness to go outside their comfort zone in order to further their knowledge, and they definitely don't accurately show how much you actually do know about subjects they test you on.

A lot of SAT and ACT questions are formed in order to trick you. The makers word the questions in order to confuse you and turn a simple addition problem into the hardest word problem you have ever seen. Personally, I believe trickery doesn't show knowledge. I received a 1500 on my SATs and a 20 on my ACTs and this is after taking a course in order to help me study. I was so upset. I was stressed and embarrassed. In hindsight, I realize those tests are not what mattered. I go to Union College and am on the Deans List. I am incredibly involved on campus and found my perfect fit for a school.

Through the process I learned that a lot more than test scores are taken into consideration. There are campus visits, interviews, email conversations, college fairs, how hard you push yourself in school, how involved you are in high school, and a whole bunch more. Through all of those things to consider, SAT and ACT scores are just a small portion of material they look at.

So Juniors, Seniors, and everyone else stressing about standardized test scores, just remember that they don't judge who you are as a person and your attitude. They aren't accurately depicting how successful your future will be, and they certainly do not determine how smart you truly are. Study for them. Try more than once, but do not get yourself down and out over a low score because you and only you decide how well you do in the future.

Best of luck!

Sincerely,

The worst test taker you'll ever know.