Tip of the C.A.P. News–I Hope You Like Our New Direction

I hope that everyone is enjoying the beginning of a restful and enjoyable summer. I want to tell you about a bigchange here at Tip of the C.A.P. and explain how it will not change the overall approach of the blog.

I have found my job in college counseling to be the most satisfying work I’ve ever done, as it gives me a feeling every day of having helped make positive contributions to students, their families and their futures. When my wife (who is the most amazing school librarian) was offered a new job at St. Catherine’s School in Richmond, Virginia, we knew that we had to move from our home in Pennsylvania after a dozen years in the Keystone State. Such a major upheaval seemed to me to be a great chance to make a change in my own work situation. After nineteen years of working at independent boarding schools (St. Paul’s SchoolGroton School and Wyoming Seminary), including the last eight years as a college counselor, I was interested in trying to find a position that would expand my knowledge of the college admissions business; I looked into jobs in college admissions offices as well as ones at high schools, when out of the blue an opportunity to move onto Method Test Prep presented itself.

As of July 1, 2015 I will be an Account Executive for Method Test Prep with responsibility to increase the company’s customer base. I am incredibly excited for this! I had been Wyoming Seminary’s point person for Method Test Prep, and have been a supporter of MTP’s self-paced web-based tool for several years.  One of the other things that impressed me about the company was their mission statement:

  1. To help students achieve more academically and to impact the families and schools we work with in a positive way.
  2. To be a great place to work.
  3. To run our business in the most intelligent way possible.

All three points sound great, but the first point resonates particularly strongly with me. I look forward to working with college guidance professionals in schools around the world who are interested in providing top notch SAT and ACT preparation for their students. I am also eager to show how Method Test Prep can help independent college counselors.

 

If you’ve read this blog since the beginning (or scrolled through all the old posts) you know that I’ve written several posts revealing my dislike of standardized tests, such as:

My Thoughts on Three New College Admissions Methods (2014)
SAT and ACT Security Policies And What They Mean To You (2012)
Musings on the SAT Report on College & Career Readiness 2012 (2012)

 

I mentioned this to the founder of Method Test Prep, and he told me that he agreed. However, he feels strongly that as long as so many college and scholarship opportunities depend on success on standardized tests (tests which reward students who have prepared in advance) the best thing to do is to democratize access to test preparation and make it available to everyone at very low cost (the flagship product of Method Test Prep costs schools $2-$3 per student). This appeals to my social justice instincts, and makes me feel very good about working for the company.

While my job will be changing, the blog WILL NOT. If you have been a fan of the “So You Don’t Have To” series describing my visits to colleges and universities you can count on more installments coming in the next few months. I also plan to continue to write reviews of books related to the college admissions landscape, and other topical articles. Thank you for your support over the last few years. I hope that you will continue to find the blog helpful, and I also hope that in my new position I will be able to work with you to help your students achieve their goals.

Thanks for reading the blog!

Ethan Lewis

 

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