Inside Higher Ed: “Social Media as ‘Fair Game’ in Admissions”
Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Twitter: @metsgroupsales, @KapTestNews,@KaplanSATACT
New York, NY (April 20, 2018) — To help high schools students across the New York City area gear up for the college admissions process, the New York Mets will be hosting College Prep Day on Thursday, May 3 at Citi Field, partnering with Kaplan Test Prep, a premier provider of educational test preparation services. Kaplan will provide guidance and insights to the expected group of approximately 4,000 students on the path to college and how to be stand-out applicants.
As part of College Prep Day, attending students will enjoy video spots featuring Mets players describing their college experiences, as well as exclusive insights from Mets Front Office personnel on the importance of a college education and what the Mets organization looks for when hiring interns and full-time positions. A Kaplan Test Prep executive will also offer guidance for college applicants navigating the admissions process on topics including how to decide which college admissions test is right for you and how to maximize your potential for scholarships. Additionally, Kaplan will share exclusive insights from its annual college admissions officers survey, including how social media factors into the admissions process, and provide an opportunity to secure a scholarship for an SAT® or ACT® prep course. Following the informative program, the event continues with exhibitors on the Mets’ Field Level Concourse where students can meet with admissions advisors who will answer questions and provide information about their colleges and universities. Attendees will then enjoy a day at the ballpark to watch the Mets take on the Atlanta Braves.
“We couldn’t be more excited about partnering with the Mets to inspire New York area students to succeed in their college admissions journeys,” said Brian Carlidge, executive director of pre-college programs, Kaplan Test Prep. “Both the Mets and Kaplan share strong New York roots and decades of promoting educational programs. Our goal with College Prep Day is to leave attendees feeling well informed, better prepared, and more confident so they can own the college prep process and achieve their goals.”
The event will commence at 11 AM with the Kaplan presentation, followed by the Mets Front Office talk, and then the college fair with exhibitors. If you are a NYC area student who’d like to attend, please contact your school’s guidance office to encourage them to participate. Schools that would like to participate can contact Mark Phillips at mphil@nymets.com or 718.565.4350.
SAT® is a trademark registered and/or owned by the College Board. ACT® is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc. Neither endorses this event.
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 100 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as professional licensing exams for attorneys, physicians and nurses. Among those tests are the SAT®, PSAT®, ACT®, GRE®, GMAT®, LSAT®, MCAT®, NCLEX-RN® and bar exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
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Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company (NYSE: GHC)
Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Twitter: @KapTestNews, @KaplanSATACT
New York, NY (April 17, 2018) — More than two-thirds of colleges (68 percent) say that it’s “fair game” for them to visit applicants’ social media profiles like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to help them decide who gets in — despite the fact that less than a third actually engage in the practice, according to Kaplan Test Prep’s annual survey of admissions officers*. Notably, students agree: a separate Kaplan survey of over 900 high school students finds that 70 percent consider social media profiles “fair game” for admissions officers evaluating applicants — an increase from 58 percent in 2014**.
Admissions officers who say it’s “fair game” shared the following reasoning:
Admissions officers who said they viewed this as an “invasion of privacy” shared the following:
But while a strong majority of admissions officers are ideologically comfortable with this practice, only 29 percent say they have actually done it — a decline from 35 percent last year, and down from a 40 percent high watermark in Kaplan’s 2015 survey. But this isn’t because admissions officers are necessarily forbidden from doing it, as only 20 percent say that their school has official guidelines or policies; and of that 20 percent, only 33 percent are not permitted to do so.
Yariv Alpher, executive director of research for Kaplan Test Prep, noted that some of the decline can likely be attributed to changing social media habits, as teens have migrated from Facebook to non-archival social media platforms like Snapchat.
“You cannot visit an applicant’s social media profile if you can’t locate them, and as one admissions officer shared with us, ‘Students are harder to find.’ They’ve gotten savvier in hiding or curating their social media footprints, even as they’ve become very comfortable with the notion of having a digital presence to begin with. By the same token, colleges have largely become comfortable, in theory, using social media to help them make admissions decisions,” said Alpher. “That said, in practice, the strong majority are sticking with the traditional elements of the application, like standardized test scores, GPA, letters of recommendation, and personal statements, which still overwhelmingly decide an applicant’s path. For most, these traditional factors provide enough useful information to make a decision, like it has for generations of their predecessors.”
And lest applicants think that what they post online can’t be held against them once they are already accepted, they should think again. Nearly one in 10 (nine percent) admissions officers say they had revoked an incoming student’s offer of admission because of what they found on social media. This finding comes on the heels of Harvard University’s decision last year to revoke the acceptances of at least 10 students for posting highly offensive memes on a private Facebook group for incoming freshmen.
For a short video illustrating the results of the survey, visit here.
To schedule an interview about Kaplan’s survey results, please contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 212.453.7538.
*388 admissions officers from the nation’s top national, regional and liberal arts colleges and universities – as compiled from U.S. News & World Report – were polled by telephone between July and August 2017.
**914 high school students who prepared for the SAT®, ACT®, or PSAT® with a Kaplan course between October 2017 and February 2018 were polled via email.
Test names are the property of the respective trademark holders, none of whom endorse or are affiliated with this survey.
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 100 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as professional licensing exams for attorneys, physicians and nurses. Among those tests are the SAT®, PSAT®, ACT®, GRE®, GMAT®, LSAT®, MCAT®, NCLEX-RN® and bar exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
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Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Company (NYSE: GHC)
Press Contact: Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Twitter: @KapTestNews, @KaplanLSATPrep
New York, NY (April 12, 2018) — As momentum builds among law schools to allow applicants to submit GRE scores instead of LSAT® scores, those most directly impacted by the admissions policy are largely split on the issue. A Kaplan Test Prep survey of nearly 2,000 pre-law students finds them roughly evenly divided: 39 percent are against law schools offering applicants a GRE option; 33 percent are in favor of it; and 28 percent are unsure*. The survey also found aspiring lawyers divided on taking the GRE had they been given the option, with 28 percent saying they would have; 28 percent saying they would not have; and 44 percent unsure.
Among the pre-law students who would have taken the GRE, given the option, much of their reasoning focuses on the flexibility of the GRE and the perceived notion that the LSAT is more challenging:
Among the students who would have still stuck with the LSAT, the reasoning often focused on the thinking that the LSAT is the more relevant test for law school:
The finding come just as the American Bar Association, which governs the nation’s 200+ law schools, deliberates this week on what, if anything, to do about the issue and law school admissions testing in general. To date, nearly 20 law schools already allow or have announced plans to allow applicants to submit GRE scores, including Harvard, Northwestern, and Georgetown.
“Opening up the applicant pool to GRE takers gives law schools more prospective students to choose from just as they begin to recover from a period of historically low application volume. It provides something of a safety net in case another application slump hits. It also gives law schools the opportunity to diversify their student bodies, a long-held goal by many in the legal education community. But our survey finds that many of tomorrow’s lawyers aren’t convinced of the efficacy or personal benefits of this admissions approach,” said Jeff Thomas, executive director of pre-law programs, Kaplan Test Prep. “Only 17 out of 204 accredited law schools currently allow applicants to submit GRE scores. That means most applicants are probably going to be applying to at least one law school that is still LSAT-only, so it makes sense to prepare for the LSAT. Additionally there is some uncertainty if the American Bar Association will allow this admissions policy to continue. If they come out and clearly state that law schools have a right accept GRE scores, we expect more schools to adopt this policy, which may provide students a true choice.”
Thomas also notes individual test takers’ skill sets and preparation may determine which of the two exams is more challenging, despite the perception among many pre-law students that the GRE is the “easier” of the two exams.
For a short video illustrating the results of the Kaplan survey, click here.
To schedule an interview about Kaplan’s survey results, please contact Russell Schaffer at russell.schaffer@kaplan.com or 212.453.7538.
*Based on the results of a Kaplan Test Prep e-survey conducted between June 2017 and February 2018 of 1,977 pre-law students who took a Kaplan LSAT course.
GRE® is a registered trademark of the Educational Testing Service. LSAT® is a registered trademark of Law School Admission Council, Inc. Neither is affiliated with this survey.
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com) is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings as well as a complete array of print books and digital products, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 100 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as professional licensing exams for attorneys, physicians and nurses. Among those tests are the SAT®, PSAT®, ACT®, GRE®, GMAT®, LSAT®, MCAT®, NCLEX-RN® and bar exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
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