<p>Really? They told you? I just called and the guy asked me to fax in copies of my score report and that they would be given to his boss. He said that he was just the messenger and did not know the cutoff.</p>
<p>Yep. I spoke with a woman this morning. She looked up the state cutoff and was more than willing to disclose it.</p>
<p>FYI: In Illinois, 100% take the ACT (!40,000 more or less). 68 had 36 scores. They only have 53 candidates. This without counting the ones that qualify from the SAT. Pretty stiff curve. No wonder you had to have 144 points. Congratulations candidates</p>
<p>That number of 68 36-scorers in Illinois is for the class of 2007. Numbers haven’t been released for the class of 2008. But it is quite stunning that in 2007, 68 of the 314 test-takers worldwide who got an ACT composite score of 36 were from Illinois (where all public school students are required to take the ACT, and most private school kids take it, too). Those high numbers probably repeated themselves for the Class of 2008, explaining the stiff Presidential Scholars curve for Illinois kids. </p>
<p>Fortunately, for college admissions purposes, every 36 is a 36. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/states/Illinois.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/states/Illinois.pdf</a>
<a href="http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/National2007.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/National2007.pdf</a></p>
<p>By the way, only 11000 took the SAT in Illinois.</p>
<p>Not sure where you got that number, j'adoube. Per the ACT High School Profile Report, the number of Illinois test takers in the class of 2007 was 140,483.
<a href="http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/states/Illinois.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/states/Illinois.pdf</a></p>
<p>I called the phone no. referenced above and was given the following information:</p>
<p>AN ACT score of 141 and above is considered equivalent to a 1600. </p>
<p>And yet, I was told, in our state the ACT cut-off was said to be 144 for males for this year. At the same time, according to the ACT data (linked above), last year, only 2 students had an ACT composite score of 36 in our state, in 2005, it was 1 student. It seems strange to assume that there are more than 20 boys who all of a sudden would pop up with a perfect 144 ACT score this year. I know that at the March and April 2007 test dates, respectively, there was only one student with a 36 composite.</p>
<p>Can anybody explain what's going on here?</p>
<p>does anyone know if the test scores come from one sitting or if you took the SATs multiple times does your highest composite score from the two times count?</p>
<p>single sitting only</p>
<p>rower4:AN ACT score of 141 and above is considered equivalent to a 1600. </p>
<p>Do you know what equivalent score if it is ACT score of 140 then? There are not many kids who get 36 in the past (there was one last year, and it was a big news locally.) in our state, then I thought 35, score of 140, is still a good score to be eligible. </p>
<p>And, have any one heard of that they actually add the names on the candidate list if a student is verified to be eligible?</p>
<p>wjb: that number is from the SAT data reports. It's logical to assume that if the ACT is required (and possibly paid by the state), very few will take the SAT.</p>
<p>Northwestern, kids with 36s were not nominated because the people who devised the scheme of how to convert SAT scores to ACT scores for this award basically don't know what they are doing:
I was told two things today when I talked to a supervisor:
A 141 on the ACT and higher is considered equivalent to an SAT of 1600,
BUT for purposes of this year's Presidential Scholar program, (BTW administered by ACT under contract to the US Dept of Ed,) ALL 1600s were converted to a perfect 144 score!
What this means is that any ACT taker who wants to compete with a 1600 SAT taker needs to post a 144 to be considered equivalent, which, by their own admittance is nonsense (see above that 141 and higher is equivalent to a 1600.)
What I'd like to know is how many of the Presidential Scholar candidates are selected based on SAT scores and how many based on ACT scores. I predict that there is an overrepresentation of candidates selected based on SATs because they do not take into account that a score of 144 (or 143) is WAY more difficult to attain than a 1600, assuming a Gaussian distribution. Any statistians here to look at the data: <a href="http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/National2007.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/National2007.pdf</a> ?</p>
<p>Follow-up:
In 2007, 314 ACT test takers achieved a composite score of 36 (that's a total score of 142 or higher), total 1.3 mio test takers
<a href="http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/National2007.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.act.org/news/data/07/pdf/National2007.pdf</a>
The number of perfect scores (144) is substantially lower</p>
<p>In 2007, 1206 test takers (726 males) had a 1600 nationwide on the SAT
Total test takers: 1.494 mio
<a href="http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/highered/ra/sat/SATPercentileRanksCompositeCR_M.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/highered/ra/sat/SATPercentileRanksCompositeCR_M.pdf</a></p>
<p>Unless the nationwide pool of ACT test takers is substantiall less smart than the SAT test takers, ACT takers are being severely discriminated against. Funny that ACT can't figure that out....</p>
<p>tryingtorelax, these are really good data. Someone needs to raise a question to the Presidential Scholar Program with this, and also to ACT. The ACT probably is discriminated in this major program's selection process without knowing.</p>
<p>When I called the Presidential Scholar to verify the cut off score, a gentleman kept saying that he will talk to his supervisor, yet he did not clearly mention the cut off score for our state. I am going to follow up in a few days. </p>
<p>With my experience, when people hear from more than one person, they listen better. If you think it is not fair and ACT takers are discriminated, everyone should speak up.</p>
<p>Apologies, j'adoube. I misread your post #65.</p>
<p>Did anyone else just groan when they saw the application and the essays?? haha I read over the essays and clicked out of the site right away. I wish I could pay someone to write those essays for me. lol.
I think we're all pretty essayed out by now, with college and everything.
And the teacher I want to choose retired last year, and she had cancer so I don't even know if she's still living. =(</p>
<p>hey, can we submit the application online?
If we do, the only things we have submit via mail are secondary school report and transcript, right?</p>
<p>I think so</p>
<p>Most of the ppl from my school didn't even know what this thing was how they got it.</p>
<p>Idk either, because I bombed the ACT.</p>
<p>Ughhh when are they gonna publish the list for '09??</p>
<p>The site says that they're mailing the letters tomorrow but I'm curious as to how many candidates there will be this year, considering that scores are going up every year... although I guess the single-sitting aspect of it will make that change less dramatic (since I think people are just TAKING THE TESTS more, not necessarily doing a lot better)...</p>
<p>I'm excited!</p>
<p>Do you think all states' cutoffs for SAT will be 1600 this year? I has a 1600 so I'm not worried... but I want my Ohio friend to get it with a 1590...!!!</p>