Dear customer,

Welcome to the October edition of ICON+’s University Access Newsletter. You are receiving this e-newsletter because you inquired about our test prep and/or admissions consulting services.

This month, we focus on how to solicit an exceptional university letter of recommendation.

Just when you thought the countless late nights you spent on your college applications were coming to a close - when you finally obtained your ideal SAT score after weeks of drilling, trimmed your admissions essays to perfection, and tweaked your activities list for the billionth time, you are hit with another crucial application task: soliciting great recommendation letters.

Why are Recommendation Letters Needed?

You think: Oh man - another sleepless week! Why do they even need references? Don’t they have gobs of information about me already from the rest of my application?

University admissions officers are not just trying to throw another application hurdle your way (although one could argue that some admissions committees are just a teeny bit sadistic). Recommendation letters do serve a very worthwhile purpose: They provide another, more objective perspective into your potential as a university student and future professional. Say you’ve claimed to be a hotshot student leader with exceptional cross-cultural, communication, and technical skills on your essay. Or, you said you were instrumental in your team’s Olympiad winning streak. Well, the admissions committee wants to know if your version of the truth or your perception of your own competencies is shared by the people around you.

Therefore, although the recommendation letters should not replicate every message and narrative you wrote in your essays, there should be some common themes that tie the entire application together. If you have branded yourself in your essay as a strong peer counselor and environmental activist, your recommendations should also highlight these points.

To read on click here

It’s that time of year, when applications for US universities begin to open. Looming ahead of you are hours upon hours of studying for that all important college admissions exam, the SAT Reasoning Test. Required by the vast majority of well-regarded universities in this US for admissions purposes, your SAT score supposedly predicts how well you will do in college academics.

Considering that your SAT results constitute a significant chunk of the success or failure of your applications, perhaps you have launched yourself into your SAT prep course and books without asking yourself, “Does my SAT score REALLY predict my academic success in college?”

John Allen Paulos of ABC News wrote an article on this same topic, and the answer is not as straightforward as you might think.

Actually, the correlation between SAT scores and first year college grades isn’t impressive at all; only about 10-20 percent of differences in college grades are explained through SAT scores.

To read more click here

During listening section you will listen to recorded information. While you're listening, you'll see pictures of the speakers or other images on your computer screen. If you don't understand a spoken dialogue on a listening section, do not worry about it and do not get involve in an inner dialogue: What did he say? I didn't understand that word!.

This inner dialogue causes you to concentrate on what is going on your mind and you miss out on what is happening in the dialogue. It is important to train yourself to stay relaxed in this situation. Other useful prep tips:

• Increase vocabulary knowledge, perhaps by using flashcards.
• Focus on the content and flow of material. Do not be distracted by the speaker’s style and delivery.
• Anticipate what a person is going to say as a way of staying focused.
• Stay active by asking mental questions. E.g., what main idea is the professor communicating?

To read the full article click here