Upper school counselor Jason Whalen said the state’s change to the SAT from the ACT will not have much of an effect at Notre Dame.
In an announcement yesterday that took most educators in Michigan by surprise, high-school juniors in the state will be required to take the SAT college-assessment exam instead of the ACT. The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) said that all juniors will take the SAT as the state-administered college assessment exam beginning in 2016. The ACT has been Michigan’s “free” assessment exam since 2007.
Notre Dame’s counseling department also was caught a bit off-guard by the announcement, but said it won’t affect upper-division students much at all, at least in the short term. Current high school juniors will take the ACT this March, and it will still be free, according to NDP officials.
Jason Whalen, a counselor for Notre Dame’s upper-division students, said that as a school NDP doesn’t administer the Michigan Merit Exam (ACT is a component), and has not done so since the State of Michigan disbanded the Michigan Promise Scholarship. “We don't anticipate that changing with this news,” he said. “There is also no reason to believe that this decision will affect our curriculum either. We do not ‘teach to the test’ now, and will not in the future.”
The College Board, which administers the SAT in the U.S., won the bid from MDE based on a proposal that was $15.4 million less over the three-year contract than the next bidder.
Michigan officials said the change will save money and that schools will be given the resources to adapt to the change. The College Board’s winning bid came in at $17.1 million.
The change is not without some potential questions for Notre Dame, Whalen said, but the counseling department is already chasing down the answers.
“This decision by the state had us scratching our heads at first,” he said. “Only time will tell, but I think its important to note that we have already begun to speak with college admissions professionals and will continue to do what's in the best interest of Notre Dame Prep students and families.”
Going forward, as far as assessments are concerned, Notre Dame has and will continue to administer the PSAT during the fall of junior year, as that is tied into the National Merit Scholarship competition. Whalen said in year's past, the school has provided 9th and 10th graders with an opportunity to take a practice ACT in the form of the “EXPLORE,” which ACT has replaced with the “ASPIRE” test.
“Providing exposure to practice tests in both the ACT and SAT has given us the opportunity to advise students on an individual basis as to which test would be more beneficial for them in the college admissions process, which is our foremost concern when it comes to standardized testing,” Whalen said.
He noted that there is a general misconception by students and parents that the ACT is preferred in Michigan and the Midwest, and the SAT is the test of choice for universities on the east and west coasts.
“That's not true,” he said. “All colleges and universities across the country will accept the ACT or the SAT and do not view one test as preferred, or a better tool for evaluating students.”
Counseling Director Vlado Salic added that since the announcement came out yesterday, he has been in contact with U-M, MSU, and other college admission directors in the state who said they don't anticipate any major changes. Salic said they all utilize a holistic approach, meaning that the test (ACT or SAT) is just one of many factors they consider in the admissions process. “Kalamazoo College noted that the ACT and SAT test plays only a small role in their decision,” he said. “So they predict it will likely have no effect at all on their admissions.”
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.