This spring, The College Board (“TCB”) unveiled its new Score Choice program, which TCB claims will help students to be less stressed when taking the SAT.  I was reading some of the predictable outrage about standardized tests when I came across a page on the College Board web site (which has since been removed) that mollified college admissions people by assuring them that even if a student opts for Score Choice the college still can request a copy of all of the student’s scores, which suggests that any Score Choice may remain the college’s.  (more…)

I often field questions about Maine Prep’s average SAT score increases and whether we offer any guarantees. In this entry, I’d like to share a little insight into such statistics and guarantees. Certainly, since no company that I know of follows up with every single former student, any company’s claimed “average score increase” should impress only those who are convinced that most sugar-based breakfast cereals (“part of a nutritious breakfast!!”) are chock full of vitamins and iron.  (more…)

In a recent post about Score Increases and Guarantees, I wrote about how you might want to look carefully at any score increase guarantee numbers from the national chains.  However, just because no prep company can provide a name-by-name score increase spreadsheet is no reason to conclude that test prep doesn’t work.  That’s The College Board’s (“TCB”) position, by the way, even though the company sells voluminous test preparation books, CDs, and other materials.  Here’s a short history:  (more…)