By: Kylie McAllister [Co-Executive Yearbook Editor] @smileeyyykylie

To some students it seems like their entire future depends on one number, one test. The ACTs, SATs, Compass, ASVAB and other standardized tests can be stressful, tough and even upsetting if the student doesn’t get the score they originally expected. If people do not get a good enough score to get accepted in colleges then they won’t be able to get a good paying job in order to support themselves and their families. Some may take these tests many times to make sure their score is as high as they can get, but do these scores really show how smart the students really are?

In high school, everyone is told to get good grades in all of their classes in order to have a good GPA. Colleges look at GPAs and standardized test scores to determine whether to accept a student into their college. While some students may get good grades in high school, they may still not get a sore on their ACTs or SATs that reflect that. A student may have straight A’s and other students may see them as extremely intelligent, but according to the standardized test score the student might just be a little above average. To get good grades in high school people don’t always need the brains, if they have motivation and a strive to succeed they could pull straight A’s.

A student may be naturally smart, but if they don’t test well they may not get the score that they deserve.  When a college looks at a students ACT, SAT, or other standardized test score that is low they may not realize how dedicated the student really is and how smart they actually are. Colleges look so much at how good of grades and how good of scores that students get that they sometimes don’t realize the full potential of a student.