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New SAT Scores Give Florida Students Bright Futures Advantage

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Florida high school seniors should take advantage of the new SAT scores and apply for the Florida’s Bright Futures Scholarship program. The Bright Futures Scholarship is still using the old scores for eligibility even though the raw scores on the new SAT test are significantly higher than the old. In other words, students who would have received an 1100 on the old SAT are now seeing a score of 1170 if they took the new, redesigned SAT exam. Getting this higher score will make high school seniors eligible for the Bright Future scholarships. Students should take advantage of this before the eligibility requirements are changed. The last SAT date for seniors to take the test is June 4, with late registration being on May 25.

Florida high school students who qualify for the Florida Academic Scholars (FAS) award need to have scored 1290 on the SAT. Students who qualify for the Florida Medallion Scholars (FMS) award need to have scores 1170 on the SAT. Students cannot combine scores from the old and the redesigned SAT, but they can use scores from either the old or redesigned SAT exam.

Students should take advantage of the higher scores on the new SAT as soon as possible. We believe that at some point the scholarships will make the adjustments.

The Bright Futures Scholarship program is available to eligible students who live in the state of Florida. This award was designed to make college more affordable to promising high school graduates and may be used at any in-state institution.

The new SAT test was given for the first time in March 2016. These new SAT test scores are on a 1600-point scale rather than a 2400-point scale. To move from the 2400-point scale to the 1600-point scale, the scores for the Reading and Writing sections were combined into a single section with a maximum score of 800. The Math section is still scored out of 800. The SAT essay was redesigned and is now optional. The essay is scored on a scale that goes from 2 to 8. This score is separate from the 1600-point score and not included when calculating the Florida Bright Futures eligibility.

Students wondering how their score on the new SAT compares with scores on the old SAT can easily compare them using the Official SAT Score Converter mobile app and/or online tool to compare scores. The Converter is from the College Board, the private company that produces the SAT test. After entering the SAT score and getting the results, students will also be able to see the comparable ACT scores.

With the state of Florida paying out up to $103 per credit hour each semester for the Florida Academic Scholars and up to $77 per credit hour each semester for the Florida Medallion Scholars, earning the Florida Bright Futures award can save families thousands of dollars over the course of a four-year college degree.

For more information on Florida’ Bright Futures Scholarship program, SAT testing and/or college admissions, visit http://www.internationalcollegecounselors.com or call 954-414-9986.

About International College Counselors

The college advisors at International College Counselors help students from all over the world find, apply to, and gain acceptance into the college of their dreams. The expert educational consultants at International College Counselors are dedicated to helping students and their families successfully navigate the college admission process.