Where the SAT doesn't matter (as much)

I could go on and on about how I feel about the SAT and ACT, but I won't. I like to think that I speak from experience, not only doing a lot of college counseling at my school, but also as a paid SAT essay grader for Pearson, the company that scores the SATs. You know, the company that accidentally gave 4400 students an incorrect, lower score last year.

However, I have relatives coming to visit tomorrow, my house is a mess, and I'm really not ready for the impending start of school (14 days and counting... the clock is ticking, and because of the stress level around here, my eyelid is also ticing, albeit in a different way than the clock.) So a rational discussion of the merits of the SAT will have to wait until a later date, when I have more energy to devote to writing and (hopefully) less to class and houseguest preparation.

Anyway, while I'd never advise a student to *not* take the SAT/ACT seriously, it's still reassuring to see lists like this.

I find this especially useful because, in the district in which I teach, many students applying to universities do not speak English as their first language, and our AP Calculus students routinely score 450-550 on the math section of the SAT.

(Note--I'm not at all trying to denigrate the teachers by mentioning this--I believe low test scores are endemic in low-income districts, due more to socio-economic reasons than any lack of intelligence on the part of the students. For example, I, who never got higher than a C in math and only completed math through Algebra 2, scored 120 points higher on the math SAT than my husband, who went through AP Calculus and majored in mechanical engineering in one of the top public engineering undergraduate programs in the nation. The difference is that I was fortunate to attend a high school whose API is currently a 795, vs. my husband's alma mater's API, which is a 626.)

For posterity, here are California's listed schools:
# Academy of Art College, San Francisco, CA
# Alliant International University, San Diego, CA
# American Intercontinental University, Los Angeles, CA
# Armstrong University, Berkeley, CA
# Art Institute of California, Orange County7
# Art Institute of California, San Diego7
# Art Institute of California, San Francisco7
# Art Institute of Southern California, Laguna Beach, CA7
# Bethany College of the Assemblies of God, Scotts Valley, CA1,9
# Bethesda Christian University, Anaheim, CA9
# Brooks Institute of Photography, Santa Barbara, CA
# Calif. College for Health Sciences, Nat'l City, CA4
# Calif. College of Arts, San Francisco, CA, Email: enroll@cca.edu
# Calif. Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, CA
# Calif. Institute of the Arts, Valencia, CA
# Cal. National Univ. for Advanced Studies, Northridge, CA8
# Charles R. Drew Univ.: College of Allied Health, LA, CA
# Coleman College, La Mesa, CA
# Columbia College: Hollywood, Tarzana, CA
# CSU Bakersfield, Bakersfield, CA3
# CSU Chico, Chico, CA3,11
# CSU Dominguez Hills, Dominguez Hills, CA3
# CSU, Fresno, CA3
# CSU Fullerton, Fullerton, CA3
# CSU Hayward, Hayward, CA3
# CSU Long Beach, Long Beach, CA3
# CSU Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA3,11
# CSU Northridge, Northridge, CA3
# CSU Sacramento, Sacramento, CA3
# CSU San Bernardino, San Bernardino, CA3
# CSU San Marcos, San Marcos, CA3
# CSU Stanislaus, Stanislaus, CA3,11
# Design Institute of San Diego, CA
# DeVry Pomona College, CA3,7
# DeVry University, Freemont, CA3,7
# DeVry University, Long Beach, CA3,7
# DeVry University, Pomona CA3,7
# DeVry University, West Hills, CA3,7
# Golden Gate University, San Francisco, CA
# Humboldt State University (CSU), Arcata, CA3
# Humphreys College, Stockton, CA
# Institute of Computer Technology, Los Angeles, CA
# Interior Designers Institute, Newport Beach, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, Anaheim, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, San Bernardino, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, Rancho Cordova, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, Lathrop, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, Los Angeles, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, Oxnard, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, Sylmar, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, Torrance, CA
# ITT Technical Institute, West Covina, CA
# The Kings College, Van Nuys, CA9
# La Sierra University, Riverside, CA3
# Life Pacific College, San Dimas, CA5,9
# Lincoln University, Oakland, CA
# Masters College, Santa Clarita, CA1,9
# Mt. Sierra College, Monrovia, CA
# National Hispanic University, San Jose, CA
# National University, La Jolla, CA
# New College of California, San Francisco, CA
# New School of Architecture, San Diego, CA
# Northrop-Rice Aviation Institute of Tech., Inglewood, CA
# Pacific Union College, Angwin, CA
# Patten College, Oakland, CA
# Pitzer College, Claremont, CA
# Remington College, San Diego CA (Education America University)
# San Francisco State Univ. (CSU), San Francisco, CA3,11
# San Jose State University (CSU), San Jose, CA3
# Silicon Valley College, Multiple Campuses, CA
# Sonoma State University (CSU), Rohnert Park, CA3,11
# Southern Calif. International College, Santa Ana, CA1
# Southern California Institute of Technology, Anaheim, CA
# University of West LA, CA
# Vanguard Univ. of Southern CA, Costa Mesa, CA1,3
# Westwood College of Technology, Anaheim, CA
# Westwood College of Technology, Upland, CA
# Westwood College of Technology, Los Angeles, CA
# Yeshiva Ohr Elchonon Chabad/West Coast Talmudical Seminary, LA, CA9

Explanation of the numbers:
Key: 1 = SAT I/ACT used only for placement and/or academic advising
2 = SAT I/ACT required only from out-of-state applicants
3 = SAT I/ACT used only when minimum GPA and/or class rank is not met
4 = SAT I/ACT required for some programs
5 = SAT I/ACT not required if submit SAT II series
6 = University of Maryland University College is a separate institution from University of Maryland at College Park
7 = Must submit COMPASS, CPAT, TABE, WAIS, Stanford Achievement Test, ASSET and/or college entrance exam if not submitting SAT I/ACT scores
8= Distance Education School
9= Religious Affiliation
11= Admission/Eligibility Index calculated with 3.5 GPA or lower and SAT I total score of 400.