Tutortestprep - Blog

Narrowing Down the College List

8/3/2018

By Amy Johnson

The main factors that a student needs to consider when choosing what colleges to put on their short list are financial cost, social environment, academic programs, and geographic location.

None of these factors is necessarily more important than the others, but each needs to be carefully evaluated. The summer and early fall going into a student's senior year are the most important times to narrow down the college list, before applying for schools. Here are several questions to ask yourself, as a parent or student, in each area:

Financial:
How much money do I have available for college? What amount has been saved in a college savings plan or will the student be working to pay for college expenses?

How much debt am I willing to take on? What student loans or parent loans are available and how much, if any, debt am I willing to acquire?

What is the Net Price of the colleges that I am considering? The sticker price of a university is not what you will pay. Many universities offer scholarships based on income or academics, so ensure you are looking at the net price before making a decision.

Social:
Do you prefer a large university or a small university?

Have you visited the college or university to get a feel for campus?

What types of activities are you interested in joining? Does the school offer those organizations or extracurricular activities?

What is the student to professor ratio?

Academic:
What is your intended major and intended career choice? Does the college have your desired program and, if so, does it have a history of success?

What are the admissions guidelines? How does my SAT, ACT, or GPA stack up to the average score or GPA that the university generally admits?

Geography:
Do you want to stay close to home or attend college farther away?

Is an in-state college or university a better fit or does a college out-of-state meet your needs better?

Does the location of the school suit you? Is it in an urban environment or more of a neighborhood, rural feel?

Need help deciding?
If these questions seem overwhelming to you, let us help. We offer a free consultation to talk to you about our college planning services. One of the ways we can help is by input your student’s information (academic performance, preferences, location, etc) into our personalized software, GuidedPath. This ensures that all the important factors are considered before building the perfect college list. Call John at (610)457-5288 or Amy at (308)760-0746, and we’ll be happy to answer your questions or provide more information.

Watches on the SAT & ACT

8/3/2018

By Amy Johnson

The SAT and ACT tests are intense and require you to pay close attention to the time and pacing of the exam. You want to keep track of time for yourself on the SAT or ACT and not rely solely on the clock in the room, but what are the rules?

According to College Board (the SAT folks), you can bring a watch, but it cannot have an audible alarm or make any “beeping” noises. All digital watches or watches with alarms need to be turned off. Essentially, your watch cannot make any noise. In addition, you are not allowed to bring a separate timer of any kind.

The ACT policy is: “Bring a watch to pace yourself, but do not bring a watch with an alarm. If your alarm sounds during testing, you’ll be dismissed and your answers will not be scored.”

So, how can you keep track of time during the individual sections of the test without a timer and without a digital watch (that you might risk beeping)? You can, of course, rely on the clock that might be in the room or wait for the test administrator to say “5 minutes left!”, but we would like you to have more control over your time.

Here is our best advice for keeping track of your time on the SAT and ACT:

Use an analog (non-digital) watch and before each section begins, reset your watch to 12:00.

Using this method, you do not have to mentally calculate the time remaining before the end of the test. The minute hand will tell you how long you have been working. During the exam, you don’t need to know what hour it is, so you can focus on the minute hand to time each section.

For example, even if your first section is starting at 8:41am, set your watch to 12:00. You’ll know that you have 45 minutes before the end of the section or 12:45 is your stop time. You do not have to mentally remember that 45 minutes after 8:41am is 9:26am. Do not spend your time doing math problems on your watch, save your time and brain power for the test.
Here are the sections and times of each test:

ACT
English is 45 minutes
Math is 60 minutes
Reading is 35 minutes
Science is 35 minutes
Optional essay is 40 minutes

SAT
Reading is 65 minutes
Writing and Language is 35 minutes
Math No Calculator is 25 minutes
Math Calculator is 55 minutes
Optional essay is 50 minutes

You don’t have to memorize these. The test administrator will announce the time limit before each section begins.

You can purchase a basic analog watch on Amazon for less than $20. Here are two options that would work well:
Analog Watch #1
Analog Watch #2

You want to look for an analog watch that has minutes marked on the watch face, like this one (pictured).

When you are doing practice tests, you should monitor your time and pace yourself. Proper pacing and being aware of how much time you have in each section is an important part of being successful on the ACT and SAT. If you would like help with pacing, and other test taking strategies, please contact us. Our tutors are experts who will personalize the tutoring sessions to your needs.

References:
SAT policy:  https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat/taking-the-test/test-day-checklist
ACT policy:  https://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/the-act/test-day.html

Make the Most of Your Summer: Checklist for Junior Year (June to August)

6/6/2018

High school juniors who are preparing to become seniors in the fall need to prepare for their last year of high school and upcoming work that goes into applying to colleges. Here is a list of things they can do this summer.

Visit a few colleges: If possible, travel to a few top target colleges the summer after junior year to visit dorms, classes, and recreation centers. Make sure you contact the school first to schedule your visit. It isn’t the most ideal time, since normal classes aren’t in session, but it will give you some idea of whether or not the school should stay on your list.

Know the deadlines for each of your target schools: Go to your target schools’ websites and start browsing the applications and find out the deadlines. Early decision and early action applications are typically due in November of your senior year, while most regular admissions applications are due between January 1 and March 1. Some colleges also have rolling admissions.

Create a resume: Start recording a record of your academic accomplishments, extracurricular activities, and work experience. This will help you have everything ready when you begin applying for scholarships and filling out those college applications.

Begin drafting college application essays: Your senior year can be very busy, so start drafting your college application essays now.

Work with a tutor to improve your SAT & ACT scores:  Did you take an SAT or ACT test in the spring and would like to get a higher score in the fall? Working with a tutor one-on-one this summer is a great way to boost your scores. Christianson Tutorials can set you up with personalized tutoring at times that are convenient for you.

Get your FSA ID: Before you can fill out your FAFSA in October, you need your username and password. So, request that now at:  https://fsaid.ed.gov

Outline your financial aid plan: Visit your target schools websites and use their financial aid calculators to find the net price for that school. Hint: It isn't the sticker price you usually see on the admissions site. Or, talk to Christianson Tutorials, we can run a list of multiple schools at one time. The "net price" determines how much your family will need to contribute for your college education. Create a list of all the financial aid options you plan to pursue along with the deadlines for each.

Apply for local and national scholarships: Many seniors apply to more than 30 scholarships. That can take time, but is worth every penny. Don't forget about local options or ones that require essays. Fewer students apply for these, so you often have a better chance. Begin applying between junior and senior year continue throughout the school year.

Begin drafting college application essays: Senior year is very busy, so the summer after junior year is a great time to begin college application essays. At least take a few notes of what your target schools are looking for in their essays, and how you may want to respond.

References:  College Admissions Timeline and Planning Calendar - Juniors

Meet our Tutors: Jessica

6/6/2018

Jessica

Jessica was born and raised in Chappaqua, New York. The daughter of an immigrant mother who arrived in the U.S. with nothing but a mission to escape poverty and a scholarship to attend college, Jessica has long understood the value and power of higher education. As we face an increasingly competitive, global economy, having access to a solid education and the opportunities it presents is more important now than ever.

Jessica moved to Pennsylvania in 2004 to attend Swarthmore College, where she received her undergraduate degree in Economics and worked as an SAT/ACT tutor during her junior and senior years. After graduating in 2008, Jessica obtained her Series 7 securities registration and worked for Vanguard in Malvern as a licensed financial representative. Though it was a tumultuous time in the financial world, Jessica embraced the opportunity to educate clients in order to help them achieve their financial objectives. In 2011, she attended Temple University's Beasley School of Law and passed both the Pennsylvania and New Jersey bar exams upon graduating in 2014. She subsequently worked in a compliance role for JP Morgan for over a year and a half, before deciding to make a major change in her path, both personally and professionally. This quest led her back to her alma mater, where she currently works in Advancement, helping to manage their charitable planned giving and stewardship program. The highlights of this multi-faceted role are her regular interactions with alumni, parents, and friends of the college, who all share a deep appreciation for the skills and experiences afforded them or their loved ones by the college, and who wish to pay it forward to current and future generations of talented students.

Shortly before settling in her position at Swarthmore, Jessica connected with fellow Swarthmore alum, John Christianson, and made a return to tutoring. She enjoys the unique connection and bond with each of her students, discovering their interests, and doing a deep-dive to ascertain their strengths and weaknesses. She is a strong proponent of testing strategies combined with honing strengths and shoring up weaknesses in order to maximize their results. Jessica is results-oriented, has worked with students of wide-ranging skills, and has never had a student do worse in a round of testing after working with her. In short, she lets the scores speak for themselves. All of these concepts are part of the added value Christianson Tutorials offers, setting it apart from a generic SAT/ACT prep course.

A self-admitted foodie, Jessica spends her free time cooking, traveling, visiting with family, and board games. She is also an animal lover and always enjoys meeting her students’ four-legged friends. Regarding the path she has taken, Jessica has no regrets and is most proud of the fact that she overcame the fear of leaving her comfort zone and changing course. She has since achieved her highest levels of personal and professional satisfaction and fulfillment. Her advice to students is: “Discover your passions and what you're good at, then you won’t feel like you're working. It's also never too late to make a change and chart your own path.”

If you are interested in working with Jessica or any of our other tutors, please contact us at (610)457-5288 or (308)760-0746.

Financial Aid Terms You Should Know

5/4/2018

Adapted from Speak the Language: Financial Assistance/Cappex
©2013 and Federal Student Aid Glossary https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/glossary.

Created by the IECA College Affordability Subcommittee

College Consulting Can Help Students with Admissions and Financial Aid Options

5/4/2018

By Amy Johnson

Do all the college choices overwhelm you and your high school student? Do you wish that you had someone to help narrow down your options and assist with figuring out the best financial aid package? An Independent Educational Consultant can help. The Independent Educational Consultant Association (IECA) is a not-for-profit, international professional association representing experienced independent educational consultants.

An IECA member educational consultant is a skilled professional who provides counseling to help students and families choose a school, college, or other program that is a good personal match: one that will foster the student’s academic and social growth. Independent Educational Consultants can provide a student and family with individual attention, firsthand knowledge of hundreds of educational opportunities, and the time to explore all of the options. Because they are not tied to any specific school or college, IECA member consultants are not burdened with unrelated duties, and are available at the family’s convenience - not just during school hours during the school year.

John Christianson, the Executive Director of Christianson Tutorials, is an IECA Associate Member. He and his team can help you and your students:

narrow down college choices based on the student's specific academic performance, campus desires, and financial situation
Provide advice on appealing the financial aid package offered by the student's selected college
Give a complimentary second opinion or consultation on available college planning services

Give John or Amy a call to discuss how we can help you and your student with the college process.

John: (610) 427-5288
Amy: (308) 760-0746

I have good grades and test scores. What else are colleges looking for?

3/6/2018

By Amy Johnson

It is true that your high school grades and test scores are important factors in the college admissions decision. However, colleges are looking for more than just smart students to join their campuses. They want students with strong characters and a commitment to the community. According to BigFuture, the type of qualities that admissions counselors are looking for include:

Leadership
A willingness to take risks
Initiative
A sense of social responsibility
A commitment to service
Special talents or abilities

You can show your character on your college application by highlighting your extra-curricular activities and summer and after-school jobs. Keep in mind that the admissions counselors are not looking for quantity, but instead for quality of activities. The college essay is also a great opportunity to show your character and interests, and to provide more of a narrative than a list of activities can do. Additionally, if you have the chance to provide letters of recommendation, these can help show your skills and strengths from someone else's perspective.

Stefanie Niles, Dickinson College Vice President sums it up perfectly. She says, "Nothing is more important than a high school transcript showing strong academic performance in a solid curriculum. We want to admit students who will persist to college graduation, so knowing that you can do the work starts with a thorough review of high-school performance. The essay also matters; we want to see that you can write, what you write and what we can learn about you. We want to enroll students who will contribute to the life of the campus, so we are eager to see how you have contributed to your high-school community or the community in which you live."

References:
Big Future: Character Counts
Washington Post: What College Admissions Counselors Say They Want

Net Price Estimates of Three Universities: Swarthmore College, Villanova University, and Muhlenberg College

3/6/2018

By Amy Johnson

Funding college is not a one size fits all proposition. Families need to know how their unique family situation fits into the financial aid process. The EFC Calculator is an Expected Family Contribution (EFC) calculator that takes each family’s unique situation into account to generate a specialized strategy for reducing college costs. Proven effective, families have used these strategies for over twenty years to be pro-active when making financial plans for college.

By using your unique Expected Family Contribution, you can calculate the net price estimate for your desired university. The net price for a college is the published price for tuition and fees minus your gift aid (grants and scholarships), but does not include loans for work-study money. Obtaining your estimated net price is the best indication of how much a particular college will cost you.

We pulled the Net Price Estimates for three universities in the area, and estimated the Expected Family Contribution for a family with an adjusted gross income of $65,000. (Other factors are considered like family assets, but we're keeping it simple.)

As you can see from the chart below, Swarthmore College, for example has a published price of $68,876 per year, but this family will be eligible for $39,781 in gift aid and the remainder could be covered by student loans or parent loans. So, although it appears to be the more expensive school on the surface, it ends up costing less because of their generous financial aid.

You can calculate your own Expected Family Contribution at https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/paying-your-share/expected-family-contribution-calculator
or, even better, we can use our personalized tools to input your own information and desired schools and do a comparison that is specific to you.

Source for chart: Guided Path

Is Individual Tutoring Right for Your Student?

1/29/2018

For over 20 years, Christianson Tutorials has been helping students realize their full potentials on the SAT and ACT through one-on-one tutoring. Tutoring enables us to craft how we teach the content and strategies to match the unique learning style and personality of each of our students. While one-on-one tutoring is not the right solution for all of our students, it consistently produces much greater score increases compared to cram courses, online self-paced learning, or regular classes.

There is simply no way to customize the learning process when you are teaching 15, 50, or online to thousands of students. When is tutoring the right solution? Tutoring is effective when the student is committed to staying engaged in the tutoring session and to completing homework assignments.

While you are hiring us to be the experts (and we are), parental involvement is still very helpful in the success of the program. It is recommended that towards the end of the session, the parent(s) ask the tutor for an update and the homework assignment for the next tutoring session. Parental involvement can range from simply monitoring the progress of the child to actually proctoring tests and reinforcing vocabulary words and grammar. While many teenagers are resistant to parental involvement, finding the right mix of involvement can maximize the score increase. Stay proactive and ask the tutor if you can support the tutoring process in any way.

“Our daughter originally started working with a different tutoring company, but their methods were not helping her. She's a good student, but even with their help, her score on the ACT didn't go up much. On her own, she decided to take the SAT instead. And, based on the recommendation of a friend, we decided to switch to Christianson Tutorials. Working with Nate at Christianson Tutorials was different. He related to her well and was very knowledgeable about the tests.

At the other company, it felt like the tutors were just working there until something better came along, but not with Nate. You can tell he really enjoys his job. My daughter's SAT score improved by 200 points after the sessions with Christianson Tutorials! We even have our son working with Nate now. We would recommend Christianson Tutorials to our friends and family.”

-Michele, Parent of Strath Haven School Students

Local Scholarships

1/29/2018

By Amy Johnson

Most scholarship and grant money for college comes from the university that the student chooses to attend and is awarded after the student completes and submits their application and the FAFSA. However, there are multiple sources of local or private scholarships to help supplement the student’s education.

Here are some local scholarship options for the Lehigh Valley area and state of Pennsylvania. Many local scholarships have very specific criteria, such as the parent or student belonging to an organization or the student intending to major in a specific area. Read carefully to see if you qualify, and then submit your application. Some applications are only available through your school’s guidance counselor.

Local Credit Union Scholarships:

Lehigh Valley Educators Credit Union (LVECU)
http://www.lvecu.org/ASP/home.asp
Ten $1,000 scholarship certificates will be awarded
Deadline: January 31, 2018
Applicants must: be a member of LVECU in good standing for 12 months

First Commonwealth Credit Union
http://www.firstcomcu.org/news-and-more/scholarships.html
Five $1,000 scholarship certificates will be awarded
Any graduating high school senior planning to attend a two- or four-year college or trade school full time and is a member of First Commonwealth Federal Credit Union is eligible to apply for a scholarship.
Deadline:January 31, 2018

Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union (PSECU):
https://www.psecu.com/scholarships/
Six scholarships, each up to $8,000, to members graduating high school. Each recipient receives up to $2,000 per year for up to four years, providing scholarship requirements are met.
Be a current PSECU member (by December 30, 2017)
Deadline:February 28, 2018

Pennsylvania American Legion Scholarships
https://pa-legion.com/programs/student-programs/scholarships/
Several different scholarships available:
-Essay Contest with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place awards between $2500-$3500:https://pa-legion.com/programs/stiudent-programs/essay/
-$500 scholarship for a PA senior whose parent of grandparent is a Pennsylvania legionnaire in high school band going on to major in Music (Due May 1, 2018)
-$500 scholarship for a PA student whose parent or grandparent is a PA legionnaire or child of a PA soldier killed in action.Essay required. (Due May 31, 2018)

Parkland High School’s guidance department has an extensive list of local scholarships (not exclusive to Parkland students), including:

$3000 scholarship from The East Penn Section of the American Society of Highway Engineers (Due March 2, 2018)
$500 scholarship from The PA Association of Educational Office Professionals (PAEOP). It is for a PA High School senior who is pursuing higher education in a business-related field (secretarial, office technology, accounting, business education). (Due March 1, 2018) Find details here:https://www.paeop.com/page/71
Three $1000 scholarships from the Pennsylvania School Public Relations Association for public school students planning to major in communications or public relations. (Due March 9, 2018). Details here: http://www.penspra.org/ScholarshipInfo.aspx
$5,000 scholarship from the Society of Women Engineers of the Lehigh Valley for prospective female students enrolling in an engineering program. (Due February 11, 2018). Details here: http://lv.swe.org/scholarships.html

View Parkland High School’s website for a list of more scholarships and links:http://www.parklandsd.org/phs/students/college-scholarships/

Allentown Rotary Club Foundation Scholarship
Allentown high school (Dieruff, Allen and Central Catholic) students are eligible. This is an annual award of $3,000 renewable for up to four years of college for a total of $12,000. Applications are available in the eligible high school guidance counselor offices.
Deadline: February 1, 2018

Allentown School District has an extensive list of local scholarships (not all are exclusive to Allentown students), including:

$1,500 given to a high school senior that lives near Lehigh Valley Mall or a nearby community from Simon Youth Foundation. (Deadline: February 15, 2018). Details here: http://syf.org/scholarships/
$500 - $1,500 given by the PA Restaurant Association to seniors that have been accepted into a hospitality or culinary arts program. (Deadline: March 1, 2018). Details here: http://www.prla.org/scholarship
$1,000 from the Allentown Chamber of Commerce Scholarship. One outstanding high school senior from each of the William Allen, Central Catholic and Dieruff high schools. Each student receives $1,000. Applications are available in the College & Career Center. (Deadline: March 2, 2018)

View Allentown School District website for a list of more scholarships and links:https://www.allentownsd.org/content/scholarships-financial-aid

Pennsylvania House of Representatives Scholarship
Full-tuition Scholarship – awarded to two students. Graduating seniors and legal residents of PA, with a minimum 3.0 GPA, planning to attend any 4 year college in PA, and demonstrating leadership and community service.
Deadline: March 1, 2018
Details: https://www.tfec.org/scholarships/pennsylvania-house-of-representatives-scholarship/

The Philadelphia Foundation
Manages over 50 scholarships. Search their directory and individual criteria.
Details: http://www.philafound.org/Scholarships/AvailableScholarships.aspx

National websites to find more scholarships:

-The Foundation for Enhancing Communities:  https://www.tfec.org/tfec-scholarships/scholarships-overview/
TFEC offers over 120 scholarship opportunities through various scholarship funds administered by TFEC, In 2017, more than $1.37 million in scholarships was awarded to 479 students.

-College Scholarships.org:  http://www.collegescholarships.org/states/pennsylvania.htm
Free scholarship search with no log-in or personal information required.

-Scholarships.com:  https://www.scholarships.com/
Free scholarship search that has you fill out a profile and uses your criteria to filter through over $19 billion in scholarships.

-Fastweb.com:  ttps://www.fastweb.com/
Owned by Monster.com, claims to have over 1.5 million scholarships in its database.

-The College Board Scholarship Search:
https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/scholarship-search
Its scholarships search engine provides information on more than $6 billion in scholarships, financial aid and internships.

Many organizations and businesses are eager to recognize and support local students with their college aspirations. Spend some time researching and applying for local scholarships - you may be surprised at how quickly a few small scholarships will add up to help you pay for tuition, books, or other expenses.

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