U.S. Immigration perspective on U.S. immigration education: The final year of high school, also known as the year of preparation for the college entrance examination, is like a long marathon for students in China. So, how do American high school students spend their senior year? How do they go about their daily lives without a national college entrance exam?
Although the United States does not have a unified, once-a-year college entrance examination like China, American universities still need to evaluate the performance of applicants. We might as well call these necessary scores the American "college entrance exam."
Everyone knows that applying to American universities, especially prestigious ones, requires many components, such as application essays, extracurricular activities, awards, and volunteer work. However, academic performance remains the most important part of a university application. The academic records of American high school students when applying to universities mainly consist of GPA, SAT and ACT (one of which can be chosen), SAT Subject Tests, and AP scores.
GPA is accumulated from the ninth grade based on daily grades in various subjects. If grades in the first few years of high school are too poor, it is basically impossible to improve them rapidly in a short period. SAT, ACT, SAT Subject Tests, and AP exams are standardized tests in the United States, but they are spread out over time, giving students the freedom to choose.
Most students take SAT Subject Tests and AP exams immediately after completing the corresponding courses. For example, if a student takes AP Chemistry in the tenth grade, they can take the SAT Chemistry and AP Chemistry standardized tests at the end of the term. The SAT I and ACT are comprehensive exams, and most students begin taking one of them in the eleventh grade. SAT and ACT exams are held several times a year, so if the scores are not ideal, students can retake them.
Because there are multiple choices and the timeline is extended, the American "college entrance exam" does not have the tension of "success or failure in one attempt" like the Chinese college entrance exam. When taking standardized tests, students must also present their student IDs, and the atmosphere in the exam room is serious. However, the pressure on both candidates and parents is not that great. Outside the exam room, you will absolutely not see the scene of domestic parents waiting anxiously under the scorching sun, nor will parents go to burn incense and pray for this. For candidates, each exam score is only a part of the total score, and some scores can be retaken if they are not ideal, so there is no pressure that one single exam result will "determine one's fate."
However, for those American high school students aiming for top universities, the "college entrance exam" is also a heavy burden. In recent years, the competition for admission to prestigious American universities has become increasingly fierce, especially with higher requirements for Asian students. Many Chinese-American high school students take more than ten AP courses, and some even reach twenty! There are also many students who have taken exams every year since the ninth grade. It can be said that for American high school students, those beautiful transcripts on their college applications are earned through repeated efforts and hard work.
Because early applications for American universities are in October of the final year of high school, and regular applications are completed by the end of December, most people complete their standardized tests by the beginning of the eleventh and twelfth grades. This means that the "college entrance exam" for American high school students is completed one year earlier than for Chinese high school students.
Does this mean that the last year of American high school students is spent in relaxation and happiness? This actually varies entirely from person to person. Those students applying to lower-ranked universities or community colleges have little pressure in their final academic year; most choose simple courses, and some use a large amount of their extracurricular time to work and earn money. In the evenings, students from nearby high schools can often be seen working part-time jobs at fast-food restaurants and supermarkets.
As for those students applying to top universities, due to the influence of family education and their own self-expectations, they still prioritize academics in their final year. They not only choose difficult courses, but many also go to nearby state universities to take courses. At the same time, top American universities also have requirements for the high school students they admit; when sending out acceptance letters, they will require students to submit their final official transcripts at the end of the school year. This means that these universities require admitted students to maintain a good academic record throughout that year.