ACT vs SAT

Hey guys! Ever wondered what standardized test you should take? Here is a quick overview of some key factors and a quick quiz to help you! 

ACT	SAT
$67 with essay/$50.50 without essay	$64.50 with essay/$49.50 without essay
You can send your test to 4 schools for free, additional tests cost $13 each plus taxes.	You can send your test to 4 schools for free, additional tests cost $12 each plus taxes.
Sections:	Sections
Time and # of questions: Science: 35 min/40 questions Math: 60 min/ 60 questions English:45 min/75 questions Reading: 35 min/40 questions Essay:40 min./ 1 prompt	Time and # of questions: Reading: 65 min/ 52 questions Writing and Language: 35 min/ 44 questions Math without calculator: 25 min/ 20 questions Math with calculator: 55 min/ 38 questions Essay: 50 min/ 1 prompt
Scale: 1-36 Essay: 2-12	Scale:400-1600 Essay:2-8
Accepted by all colleges and universities in the US	Accepted by all colleges and universities in the US
Key difference: The Science section.	Key difference: The no calculator math section
Type of math: ACT has a much larger focus on geometry, which makes up about 35-45% of ACT Math. The ACT also tests a few concepts that the SAT doesn’t test at all. These include things such as matrices, graphs of trig functions, and logarithms.	Type of math: geometry accounts for less than 10% of SAT Math questions.Trigonometry makes up less than  5% of the SAT test. The ACT and SAT both have a big emphasis on algebra.
There are 11 states that require the ACT: Alabama Hawaii Kentucky Mississippi Montana Nebraska Nevada North Carolina Utah Wisconsin Wyoming	These states 10 require the SAT: Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Illinois Maine Michigan New Hampshire Rhode Island West Virginia
On ACT Reading, questions can flow randomly and do not routinely follow the order of the content in the passages.	On SAT Reading, all questions given to you follow a chronological order—that is, in the order of the passage to which they refer.
My score: 28 without essay Science: 26 Math: 27 English: 28 Reading: 29	My score: 1160 with essay Evidence based readig: 630 Math:530 Essay: 6

I personally did way better on my ACT than my SAT. On a conversion scale my ACT score would be a 1310 on the SAT. I increased my score by over 100 points and yes I did study but honestly for me it was just that the test was easier than the SAT so it is all about finding the right test for you.

Statement	Agree	Disagree
I struggle with geometry and trigonometry.
I am good at solving math problems without a calculator.
Science is not my forte.
It’s easier for me to analyze something than to explain my opinion.
I normally do well on math tests.
I can't recall math formulas easily.
I like coming up with my own answers for math questions.
Tight time constraints stress me out.
I can easily find evidence to back up my answers.
Chronologically arranged questions are easier to follow.

 source: Prepscholar 

Now, count up your check marks in each column to find out what your score means.

Mostly Agrees — The SAT is your match!If you agreed with most or all of the above statements, the SAT is what you've been looking for. With the SAT, you'll have more time for each question and won't need to deal with a pesky science section or a ton of geometry questions.

Mostly Disagrees — The ACT's the one for you!If you disagreed with most or all of the statements, you'll most likely prefer the ACT over the SAT. On the ACT, you'll never have to come up with your own answers to math problems, and you get to let your opinion shine in your writing.

Equal Agrees and Disagrees — Either test will work!If you checked "Agree" and "Disagree" an equal number of times, either the ACT or SAT will suit you. Unless you decide to take both, I suggest taking official ACT and SAT practice tests (as described in #1 above) to see which test's format you're ultimately more comfortable with.

Interviews 101

Hey guys if you are in the college application process at the moment you probably already know about college interviews. I am actually having my first interview on August 12th... ugh I am so nervous, but I feel really prepared! So first of all make sure you know what kind of interview you have.

There are 3 major types of interviews:

• Evaluative:  Usually offered by admissions officers or highly trained current students, these are generally the most formal interviews.
• Informational or Non-Evaluative:  These are offered as ways for prospective students to get to know a college better, and at the same time to give the student the opportunity to share information that may not be easily conveyed in the application.
• Alumni:  Selective colleges may offer alumni interviews to applicants after they have submitted their applications.

What to wear:

• Evaluative: Business (women/men)
• Informational or Non-Evaluative: Business Casual 
• Alumni: Business Casual

What questions might they ask (links to how to answer them):

College Interview Questions:
Describe a challenge you overcame
Tell me about yourself 
What are your future plans in 10 years? 
What will you contribute to our college?
Do your grades accurately reflect your effort and ability?
Why are you interested in our college?
What do you do for fun?
What would you do differently high school?
What do you want to major in?
Recommend a good book to me
What can I tell you about our college?
What did you do this summer?
What do you do best?
Who has most influednce you?

How to become an AP scholar

Hey guys, as you may know I recently was sent my award certificate for being an AP scholar and I am super excited about it! When I first told my friends (most of them are also AP students) they were really surprised and thought that it was impossible to do for them to be AP scholars. I'm here to tell you how you can easily become an AP scholar:

My Award :) Sorry it is blurry:(

All my scores so far... don't mind the Chemistry one...

As you can see above I passed most of my AP test except for Chemistry. I am not happy with my Chemistry score but I was a hard test and I am going to retake it next year so it really doesn't bother me that much. Some people have ask me how I was able to become an AP scholar even though I failed a test. Well, to become an AP scholar you only have to pass 3 or more tests with a score of 3 or better. Here is a link of All AP scholar awards.

Now to the main point. How can you become an AP scholar?

1.  Are you fluent in any language other than English? Is that language offered as an AP test?- If your answer was yes to both of those questions then I suggest you buy yourself a Princeton Review book to look at the structure of the test and take the test. That is what I did with my German test. Also if you need a review book for the German AP test comment down below because I have a totally unused one, that I can give you!
2. Do you have a passion in a particular subject field?- If you have a natural gift like memorizing dates or all chemistry formulas use it. Buy an AP book for a subject you are informed in, even if you haven't taken a class in it, and teach it yourself. You can even go to teachers for help!
3. Take tests you find easy- if you think that the hardest test ever is Art History and Calculus BC is easy to you... take your strong suits!
4. Take all the tests corresponding to classes you've taken- Even if you aren't 100% sure you'll do great on the test make sure you still take all the tests corresponding to your classes you've taken. You'd be surprised how much easier the test is from the actual class and how much more you remember when it really comes down to it.
5. Take as many tests as you can- I know they are expensive but hear me out. At my school they didn't give the German Test on the sign up sheet so I went to talk to our AP coordinator. They ended up requesting the test for me and I got a 5 on it! With this score I will have 12 credit hours at the school I intend on going to. With that test alone I am 2 classes short of a minor in German! The moral of the story is don't skip out on tests!
6. Retake tests you failed- I will retake my Chemistry test next year because it did not reflect my true abilities since I did not study or truly prepare. So if you feel like that with any of your test do retake it. It is better to fail twice instead of not trying at all.

I wish all of you the best of luck in becoming AP scholars! 

Here are some helpful links to help you study:

• Crack AP tests
• Princeton Review
• AP practice exams
• College Board
• Ask students who have past the tests for help and tutoring if they are willing
• Khan Academy
• Crash Course with John Green
• NMSI

Minor vs Major

Hey guys, welcome back to the blog! So today I am going to answer so big misconceptions that everyone including myself has had about the Minors and Majors in college.

Let me start of with a question: How many credit hours do you get from most classes except for labs?

I'm sure you knew that it was 3. And I am sure you know that labs such as Chemistry 1 lab are 1 credit hour because most of the times they are complimentary to the main lecture class.
Fun Fact: I found out last week that for most colleges the class number's (you know the 1302 English) second number is normally the number of credit hours you earn through the class. So if your class is BIOL 1106 you receive 1 credit hour and most likely it is a lab class that compliments your main lecture class.

Sooo, anyway back to the main subject: Minor vs. Major.
Some friends of mine have ask me about the differences, what they should get and what's easier. So let me start of with the fact that the answers to those questions are very dependent of what job you want in the future. If you want to be in business maybe get a major in business and minor in a foreign language or communication or whatever compliments your professional goals. Personally, I want to be a Biochemist who does research in Alzheimer's so I will major in Biology with a concentration in molecular and Cell Biology but I am also planning on majoring in Spanish. Why in Spanish? Because of the fact that I think it is a very interesting language and it is one of the fastest growing languages. Most recent breakthroughs in medical science have been in Spanish speaking countries especially Mexico. That is why these to majors are right for me. If you do not know yet what you want to do please do some research, talk to professionals, get internships to test the field, because you should know what you are working for hen you enter college.
major vs. minor college degrees

So without further ado:

Minor	Major
Requires about 18 credit hours Example Minors	Requires about 120 credit hours  Typical Degree Plan
Minors do not give you a Bachelor's degree, but they do give you a diploma (in most cases).	Degree: Bachelor's degree (B.A., B.S., B.B.,B.A.A.S. etc.)
Many majors do not require perquisites	Most majors at least 15+ hours of Major requirement that have to be completed on top of core requirements before you can start classes that actually pertain to your major
Minors often compliment you Major with a quick overview of key elements	Majors give you more time within a subject/ go more in dept
Minors look good on a resume	Your major is the most important part of your resume
Your college might not offer them in the subject area you are interested in	You should pick a college that offers the major you want
You can get a Master's degree from a minor	You will look like a better candidate when applying to a master's degree pertaining to your major
2-1 concept: if you have 1 major you should get 2 minors	2-1 concept: if you have 1 minor you should get 2 majors

Thank you guys I hope this helped somebody!

Dorm essentials

Hey guys I know a lot of people are currently moving into dorms or are preparing to, so I thought why not make a list of dorm essentials and where to find them for a good price!

1. Bedding
2. Study Lamp
3. Towels
4. Shoe Storage
5. Storage Bins
6. Laundry Hamper
7. Laundry detergent and softener
8. Dishes- Mugs, Plates, Silverware (Ikea often times has $1 dishes in there clearance section that are very high quality)
9. Shower Caddy
10. Reusable Water bottle
11. Backpack
12. Batteries
13. Extension cords
14. Umbrella 
15. Iron & Ironing board
16. Light bulbs
17. Flashlight
18. Paper towels and other cleaning supplies
19. Garbage bags/ Garbage can
20. Portable charger
21. Bath rug 
22. Shower shoes
23. First Aid Kit- with pain killers and vitamins
24. Shower curtain
25. Toiletries- Shampoo, Conditioner, Body wash, deodorant, makeup, lotion,... etc.
26. Appliances based on availability of them at college- Coffee maker/ Mini Fridge/ Microwave
27. Dish soap
28. Decorations- lights, posters, mirrors, plants, throw pillows, tapestry or anything that makes you feel more comfortable and at home
29. Dry erase board or calendar
30. Desk organizers
31. Clothes Hangers
32. Fan- if your college does not have A/C's such as colleges in the North or New England

Some helpful websites for shopping or inspiration:

• Dormify
• Target College Checklist
• Bed Bath and Beyond
• College dorm essentials
• OMC Dormlife
• Sand Cloud
• HP
• Costco
• Wayfair
• The Container Store
• Etsy

If you feel like I missed anything or you know any other good resources, make sure to comment down below and I will make sure to check them out and add them to the list!

What to look out for...

Hey guys, so you might not know this, but I am currently applying to colleges and omg it's crazy! So obviously before I started applying, I did some research on colleges/Universities I want to go to. I've narrowed it down to 2 choices out of a long list of 30 "good" colleges. So when I was narrowing it down, I realized that there are some key factors that showed me if  the school was a good choice for me academically, socially and financially. So I want to share with you some factors to be aware of when looking at colleges:

• Pictures lie! Colleges will show you the most beautiful spots of their campus on postcards, brochures and on their websites because they want you to go to their college. Always try to go see the college in person if you can. I can't tell you how many colleges disappointed me in person! Even Harvard was disappointing....
• Admissions rate in context of graduation rate: if a college has a high admissions rate (over 50%) but a low graduation rate (below 50%) that is an indicator that many people either leave the college by transferring to another college or that maybe there aren't that many resources for people to get help to graduate. Now if you are in love with a college DO NOT change it because of this just take into consideration you might have to find somewhere to go for help that is not the college. Another reason why this is important is because sometimes it is an indicator of if a college cares about their students. If students feel like they don't have the resources to succeed and graduate of course they will transfer out or drop out.
• Do not look at rankings! Rankings change every year and yes, it is nice to go to a top 3 or top 5 school but it means very little if you want to further your education beyond a bachelors degree. If you plan on getting a PhD like me that will be the first degree on your resume people will see. That is truly the only school that will matter because of course you want your PhD from a prestigious school! The school you get your bachelors degree at should be the school that makes you look best academically! If you go to an Ivy League school, but graduate with a 2.0 GPA that isn't as good as going to a state school and getting a 4.0 and maybe even graduating Valedictorian! It's not worth it to get hung up on rankings and worry about not getting in the top school when you can maybe go to a top 100 school, graduate debt-free and have a perfect GPA. 
• Money, money, money,....  Of course, everyone wants scholarships, grants and financial aid, but some schools might not even offer them. Always check if and what kind of scholarships schools you are interested in have. Some schools might have a page like this: Trinity Scholarships or even a net price calculator like this: Net Price Calculator Trinity Also make sure that the tuition is worth it for you. If you go to a school that is $64,000 a year and you get $20,000 in scholarships is that affordable for you and is it worth it to you to maybe graduate with almost $200,000 in debt for a bachelors degree? If your family can easily do that and/or if that is your absolute dream college then do it! If not maybe you want to find a different option?
• Do not look at Faculty to Student ration rather look at average classroom size! Colleges like to advertise there 9:1 or 10:1 student to faculty ratio which can be veryyy misleading! I'm pretty sure that many other students like me see a student to faculty ratio and assume that your average class size should be 10 since there is one teacher for every then student right? Well, actually a lot of times when the ratio is 10:1 the classes can be in a range from 15-50 students in a classroom. Obviously a small student to faculty ratio is good, but a small average class size is better! Rice University average class sizes vs UTSA average class sizes
• Look at core requirement, major requirements and other requirements. If you already know what you want to major in look at your degree plan. Personally, I want to be a Biochemistry/ Biology with a concentration in Cell Biology and Spanish major. Since I want to be a double major I always try to see through the degree if it is manageable with the core requirements at a school to complete 2 majors.  The more core requirements the less time you spend concentrating on your actual degree. If you are a science major and a school wants you to have 12 credit hours in English and 12 credit hours in Art (this is an over exaggeration of course) that school might not be a good fit for you. Some schools don't even have a core curriculum and if you know you want to focus on only your major that might be a good fit for you.
• Send me your location... Personally, the most important factor I consider when looking at colleges is located. Let's be honest, if you are the type of person to get homesick maybe it isn't the best idea to move from New York to LA for college. But if you don't like living in a small town you might have to look for a big city like San Antonio. Location is a important factor of every college not just because of your own feelings, but also think about the differences in opportunities. If you want to be a Journalist and go to NYC for college you can find internships at all the big newspapers. If you want to be a Physician you might want to go somewhere in Houston because they have the biggest medical facility in the world. If you want to be a geologist maybe a more rural area would allow you to do groundbreaking research.
• Demographics: Personally, one of the first things I look at when looking at a college is Demographics. If a school only admits 20% female students, would I feel comfortable going there? Or if a school disproportionately does not admit a certain Ethnicity, or Race do I feel comfortable supporting that? No! Because college is a place to diversify your opinions and without having people of other backgrounds and ethnicity how will you be exposed to those opinions? Even if a school doesn't admit certain income classes I normally tend to move away from considering them. Especially because it is 2019 no Gender, Race, Ethnicity, Religion or anybody should be disproportionately admitted so I don't want to continue supporting schools like that. 
• Your gut feeling because it is more powerful than anything! I have looked at many schools that I wanted to be my perfect fit because they were prestigious or because they were less expensive than other schools, but none of them "felt right" to me. A month ago I actually went to visit a school that I never had seriously considered and when I walked on campus I didn't imagine myself there, I SAW myself there. My advice is don't force yourself into a school you don't love because of who knows what reason, go with your gut.
• Be realistic: With that I am not saying do not dream!!! I am saying be realistic with your options. For example, if you have a 2.5 GPA and a average ACT score you might not get into Harvard, Yale and Stanford, but maybe you will get into Dean College and Kentucky State! But always dream! If you want to go to Yale, but don't have the test scores and GPA then get amazing recommendations and make sure your essay is capturing! college acceptance calculator

I'll continue this post in a pt. 2 later on! Thank you for reading!
This is an example of Pictures lie!





Actual picture of registrar building



 

Picture used by schools website



AP vs. Dual Credit

First things first for all my college bound kids... Most of us often are given choices between AP classes and Dual-Credit classes but what is really the way to go? The answer depends on your answer to these questions:

• Are you staying in-state or are you going out of state for college?
• What degree do you plan on getting?
• How good are you at test taking? Do you have test anxiety?
• Are you leaning towards a Public or Private College? 
• Does your high school offer the classes you want to take in dual credit/AP?
• Is there a local community college you can take dual credit at?
• How does your state handle AP's and dual credit?
• Can you afford the AP tests?

AP	Dual Credit
Expensive if your school doesn't offer a fee waiver. $94 without fee waiver over college board. At my school it is $25 per test but if you take 4 test it is still $100. AP Fees	Mostly free and only expense is material like books
Accepted at every state school if you have a score of 3 or better. Some schools even take 2's. Most private Universities do except AP credits but often times they only accept certain tests and certain scores. Many don't take the World History credit and certain languages. For example, this link for the score sheet of Trinity University. AP Scores at Trinity	Accepted at most state schools such as University of Texas- San Antonio and at some private Universities too, but not accepted at most prestigious schools such as Ivy League schools.
Many schools do not offer AP classes or AP tests but you do not have to be enrolled in an AP class to take an AP test. I never was enrolled in AP German Language & Culture but I took the test and got a 5. If you are fluent in any language AP offers a test in I recommend you look at the structure of the test and maybe study that and take it. Also if you are in a class that is not AP but feel like you understand it for example US history maybe buy a Princeton Review book and study the test on your own time. That is what I am doing with Psychology! Princeton Review Books	Many schools do not offer dual credit but if you have a community college close to where you live you are entitled to take classes there that transfer to your high school for credit. Community Colleges actually reserve spots for high school students and if you meet the eligibility requirements you should talk to your counselor about enrolling there. Example Community College Programs
Is accepted at almost all institutions no matter what state.	Often is not excepted if you go out of state.
Can help you finish of core requirements in high school.	Can help you graduate with an associates degree from high school.
Requires you to score a certain score on a test to get credit, which someone with test anxiety might find hard.	Requires college level course work and the meeting of deadlines as set by your Professor.
If you fail it colleges won't hold it against you and you can retake the tests anytime you want to and if you pass then you'll still get credit.	If you fail the class it will go on your college transcript and affect you college GPA.
AP tests scores can look good on your college application, especially high scores. I actually am an AP Scholar which is an award you get if you pass 3 or more AP test. I put this under the awards section on all my applications.	Dual credit shows colleges you took more rigorous courses and also makes you look good.
AP classes give you more weight in your GPA. This means that if you have a 90 in a class in your GPA it will actually be calculated as a 100.	Dual credit gives you more weight than regular classes but not as much as AP classes. If you have a 90 it will b a 95 in your GPA.
Some school require you to have a teacher recommendation to enter an AP class.	Some states, like Texas, require you to pass a test before you can take dual credit. Required Tests for each State
There are a limited amount of AP tests in certain subject areas and test so there are only so many classes and tests you can take. AP Courses and Test	A community college probably offers more course than AP's because they already have the courses there for students to finish an associates degree.

I hope this chart helps you! Thank you for reading!