College Board Hurting More Than It Helps

Connor Skarzynski
A student stressed about the college process and the pressures of College Board.

Beginning the college process has never been an easy task to do, but with tools, students can use nowadays, the process should never be easier to complete. What’s being found is College Board becoming more harmful than helpful. We have found that Collegeboard, while helpful at times, is quickly becoming an obstacle to students during the college process and can be a deterrent to students looking to get to college. It’s a “not-for-profit” company when in reality, cares solely about profit. The countless options they have available cost money and require other resources not available to all students which makes it very hard to obtain an even playing field like they were hoping for.

When interviewing Mr. West, an English teacher here at Hall, said, “Collegeboard is tied to achievement which in many ways is tied to a student’s ability to access resources such as Princeton Review or test-prep courses which aren’t spread across socio-economic groups.” Collegeboard doesn’t work for the best interest of the students. There are several types of people from all types of backgrounds many don’t consider. Even though there may be a small majority of people that struggle to access vital resources, there shouldn’t be such disadvantages for anyone. Going back to an earlier point made, this proves the obstacle that many refer to when discussing the college board process. Dr. White, an AP psychology teacher at Hall offers backup explaining why the College Board disadvantages many students. She states, “you specifically, might really know the material, and then take their test, and not do well on their test simply because I feel the way they worded the test wasn’t really effective.” Students across the United States work extremely hard in their respective AP classes only to prepare for one exam written by the college board. Teachers teach how they want to teach and don’t base their lesson plans solely off of the College Board. Teachers may word something differently or explain a subject in a different way than the college board does. Therefore, testing isn’t completely fair to the students because the test questions they see might be worded in a way they haven’t seen before. 

Joey Shuey

Students often find themselves struggling to grasp control of the College Board institution. Many find that when you don’t spend hundreds of dollars for SAT tutoring, or prepping for ap exams, it can be impossible to gain a competitive advantage on those who do. The College Board had allowed students to shell out money that they don’t have, for potentially an SAT score better by only 100 points than a previous one. Robbie Barrieau, a senior at Hall High School, stated his thoughts on the College Board by saying, “I believe too much of my life is reliant on this one institution.” Robbie brought up the sad reality of what the College Board has done to students all over the country. Another senior at Hall High School, David Llyons asked if he feels himself or other students at a disadvantage while taking the SAT due to expensive tutors. He stated, “Yes, I definitely believe so, wealthier families who can afford these expensive tutors definitely have an advantage.” A point of view, commonly shared by most students, in which they believe the playing field is uneven. The College Board has successfully created a monopoly to get money from students who want to do better, and it most likely won’t be going anywhere, anytime soon.