SATs and the job market.
In the classic 1967 film “the graduate” Dustin Hoffman newly minted college grad received a piece of unsolicited sage advice. “Are you listening? Plastics”.
The insight came form a family friend concerned about Hoffman’s future job prospects. Plastics were the coming field back then– Just what wall street and invest banking were up untill several months ago.
Today things are different. If we updated that scene in the graduate the advice to Hoffman likely would be more cerebral. “One word are you listening? The SAT, I hope you did well.”
To be more explicit the score you received on the scholastic aptitude test. They SAT scores had better be good.
I’m referring to the revised SAT. The three-hour and 45 min battery of tests that will play an increasingly important role not only in getting admitted to the right college, but also in determining whether you qualify for a job interview– after graduation.
Why is this attention suddenly being focused on the SAT. Educators often short sighted tell youngsters that being a well-rounded student is more important, and that SAT scores are only one small measure of their academic achievement.
Speaking from a humanistic stand point, that is undoubtedly true. However, your SAT scores have a value far beyond getting to the right college–a value you might not have considered.
Many advisors fail to emphasize the changing nature of the job market period for applicants seeking employment in major consulting firms, the reporting of SAT scores is standard practice.
This is a growing trend among many leading industries. After decades of garde inflation and bloated class rankings, SAT scores have become the gold standard by which not only tp colleges select their best candidates “and keep their places in the college rankings”, but the single most reliable criteria that employers use to select their most qualified candidates.
The last three students I interviewed for Harvard were number one in their respective classes–along with 21 other students at one high school. Future employers likely will take this diminution of competitiveness into consideration.
If your son or daughter plans to compete for admission to an élite college, he or she better start preparing early to score well on the SAT, with further knowledge that a job can hang on the outcome. Grades alone no longer can pull you through.
An extra 100-200 point on the SAT can make or break a students chances for that dream job. The Wall Street Journal reported that there are clear cut-off lines: The going minimum at Hotjobs.com entry level consulting positions is 1350 on the critical reading and math sections of the SAT.
Some off -Wall Street firms have set even their highest standards. Configuresoft, Inc., a Woodland, Park, Colo., systems management software company, requires combined score of 1400 in CR and Math for applicants applying for sales positions. A spokesman for the firm said the companies clients routinely demanded sales people with high-test scores.
So the Dustin Hoffman’s of today would be well advised to study hard for the SAT. Take the test with the knowledge that future employers most likely will demand to see your scores. “one word. Are you listening? The SAT. I hope you did well.
