On Tuesday, March 26, about half of MTA Juniors took the SAT in school. This is noteworthy for a few reasons. First of all, why take the SAT at all? Most colleges, including all the ones most MTA students are considering, are test-optional. The SAT and ACT are not required. So, these 39 students chose to prepare, study, and test even though they were not required to do so.
Second, it was a Tuesday. Who takes the SAT on a Tuesday? The whole world tests on Saturday, except a small group of Sabbath observers who test on Sunday.
Third, how could these MTA students test at school, when MTA is not a national test center? If you try to register for the SAT on the College Board’s website, you will not see MTA as a listed test center.
The answers are that, yes, these students felt it was worth the trouble to test even though the colleges they’ll be applying to next year will not require it, and yes, MTA is able to offer the SAT through a program called “School Day,” where any high school can administer the test to its own students on any day it chooses (within a prescribed window). As a result, these students were able to take their regular busing to come to school, attend their regular Shacharis, and then take the test in the comfort of their regular surroundings.
And why are these students testing? Many of them are hoping to apply to the Honors Program at YU, which is not test-optional and requires an SAT of 1450 or better. Others simply want to add to their portfolio another impressive accomplishment with which to attract the attention of college admissions officers. (For example, although the Ivy League is test-optional, it is also true that all the MTA students in the last few years who were admitted to Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Penn, Princeton, and Yale, all submitted test scores). Still others are hoping to demonstrate that even though their grades are not as good as they would like, their aptitude is greater, which they hope to prove with a high score. And for all of these students, MTA is happy to offer the test and dedicate the time, space, and staff to make the test possible.
MTA has been offering “SAT School Day” for many years and encourages other high schools to offer it, as well. If you would like it at your school (or your child’s), please contact College Guidance at MTA for advice about how to set it up.
