How many students are there per tutor?
The shared tutoring environment in the Study Lounge will generally not exceed a 4 student to 1 tutor ratio; however, depending on time of day, there may be even fewer students!
What subjects can the Study Lounge tutors help in?
Study Lounge tutors are capable in helping students through advanced mathematics (AP Calculus), advanced science (AP Physics, Biology, Chemistry), humanities, and social sciences. We cannot guarantee support for foreign languages outside of Spanish. Tutors are also qualified to assist with standardized test prep for ACT, SAT, and ISEE.
When do students take the ACT or SAT?
Most General Academic high school juniors will take the ACT or SAT two or three times to ensure they earn the score they need. There is no penalty for taking the test multiple times, and colleges only care about the highest score. Note that most juniors will also take the [...]
How much time does my child need to study for the SAT or ACT?
The genuinely not-waffling answer is that every student is different. How long your child needs to spend preparing depends primarily on: What score do they want to achieve? What score do they have right now? How big is the gap between their goal and current scores? However, the overly simplified [...]
Aren’t the ACT and SAT optional for college applications now?
The shorter answer is that students who have the means and time to prepare and take the ACT or SAT should absolutely do so. Colleges like standardized tests because they're norm-referenced and their scores are comparable across the entire US population regardless of school and curriculum. However, the uncomfortable outcome [...]
How many colleges should I apply to?
Most students succeed with 8 – 12 well-researched schools: 2 – 3 safeties, 3 – 5 matches, and 2 – 3 reaches. Highly accomplished students might consider applying to a higher proportion of reach schools, but every student should balance out their list with colleges of varied selectivity.
What GPA does my student need to get into the college of their choice?
Every high school has a different way of calculating grades, which makes it difficult to use GPA as a metric for college admissions. Some colleges provide aggregate GPA data for recently admitted students, but this is nowhere near as widely available as test score data. Some colleges standardize GPA themselves [...]
How important is standardized testing now that many colleges are test-optional?
Many colleges switched to a test-optional policy with the onset of COVID-19. However, some colleges (including MIT) have switched back to a test-required policy, so we’d recommend checking the requirements of each university on your college list. On the opposite end of the spectrum, a handful of colleges have committed [...]
Which extracurriculars should my student enroll in?
Generally speaking, colleges do not make value judgments about the extracurricular activities a student chooses to pursue. They do, however, value quality over quantity; they look for students who commit to particular activities for the long-term and rise to leadership roles within them. Ideally, your student’s extracurriculars should reflect their [...]
What do colleges take into account when assessing an application?
College admissions officers assess applications holistically, meaning they evaluate the “whole” student. No factor (including grades, test scores, or extracurriculars) is considered in a vacuum; rather, these pieces are all assessed in the context of each student’s unique background. With that being said, a student’s academic record (including their grades [...]