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Hey guys, so ever since moving to Lebanon from Canada the SAT has been choking me.

Im moving into Grade 12 this year ( American Program highschool, I hold a Canadian passport)
and this year I'm applying for university ( hooray right? not really ... )

Well here in Lebanon apparently they only take your :
Grade 10 & 11 marks because when you apply in grade 12 in October, your marks for the rest of the year wont be viewed except maybe the first term of grade 12.

And then theirs that big ugly obstacle the SAT!

Grrr, I took this 4-5 hour test once and I scored average ( 1230 )

430 Math
400 English
400 Writing

... Although my marks for Grade 10 : 85% <-- Final Year Average
Grade 11 : 87% <-- Final Year Average


Applying for : Freshmen Year
Now I'm looking forward to getting in to LAU or AUB, now here's where I need the help since Im not really filled with knowledge when it comes to Lebanese Universities.
Everyone says you can pay and go in, I here it everywhere I go especially for LAU.

LAU sets a minimum requirement of 1200 Sat ( this year 2011, I dont know if they will change that soon )
And AUB wants 1050 ( Reading + math only - which I scored 830 on ) for freshmen year.

Now people tell me dont worry, you have a canadian passport and LAU only wants the money.
Is this the un-exposed part of LAU & AUB will they let me if I "pay extra" ?

Im new in Lebanon and coming from North America this would be completely against the law.
You think theese universities would reject me if I apply with those scores and marks?
I dont think I'll do better on the SAT this time cause I cheated to get 430 on the math before haha.

Thanks guys & sorry for the real stupid and useless thread but I just had to ask to get a detailed answer and maybe some of you have some experience you'd like to share with universities I'd love to hear it.

Cheers!
its very not true! you can not pay your way in a decent universities such as AUB and LAU. the only way to get in is to get high scores in your SAT. and trust me there are hundreds of people apply each year to these universities and places are limited so unless you got good grades they wont accept you. i am not trying to put you down but i think you need to work harder on your SAT, good luck
I know a lot not so bright guys (to avoid saying d**b) and they are currently studying Business related majors there. So basically as long as you have the money you can go there, but not for all majors i suppose
I'm not entirely sure why it's so relevant to talk about paying your way through in such a very important subject. College is the most important phase in your life and you should understand how critical it is. What you do in college and how you proceed with it defines how you approach the rest of your life.

You may or may not believe me and you may or may not take my advice but I do want to set things straight for you. College should not be taken lightly, education should NOT be taken lightly. You will hear a lot of "College taught me nothing" and this is simply untrue, if you pay attention in class, if you do your homework, if you place effort in excelling in every aspect you are bound to get anywhere you want.

My advice to you is, as of today, contact the universities you're interested in and grab the admission requirements. Start studying as of today, find people to tutor you, ask friends to help, ask lebgeeks for help. It's nothing but a small phase in your life that is so essential that you will regret not doing it right when you grow up.

Remember, this is your life we're talking about, it's neither mine nor anyone else.
I advise you to take the SAT again, and this time focus on increasing either your English score or Math score. They will take the highest scores from both exams, so even if you score less on Math the next time, you still have 430 from the last time. Think of these scores as the minimum in your arsenal. And I agree with xterm, start working hard as of now. The minute you pay your way into anything, you'll take everything for granted and your performance in anything you do will be affected by this attitude. If you think "it's just this once", everyone else won't be thinking that: they will believe that you have bought your way into anything as soon as they find out. It's the Lebanese mentality, stick to your Canadian morals and try again. If you quit from the first time you fail to achieve something, you'll probably won't achieve most of your goals. So buck up, get a SAT prep book, study the living crap out of it, and face another SAT test with an "I can" attitude.
I have no idea about LAU, but for AUB there is no shortcut, you need to nail the SAT. You might get prioritized if your parents donate a big sum to AUB, this does not dilute the importance of your SAT scores and is no way a shortcut.

For the math part, I remember a book called Cracking the SAT. It was a very nice resource. I used to wake up early in the morning and start training. A few hours later I would do some sports to shape-up, take a shower and start again. Depending on your absorption rate, you need at least three hours a day for two weeks.

Good luck!
Your score is 830 (Critical Reading + Math) and it is very low. You need to get at least 950 to be admitted in Freshman! Take the SAT again and focus only on Reading and Math :)
Well man again I recommend you train using books like kaplan for math and barron's / collegeboard / princeton's review for english...focus on one subject at a time and ace it...then focus on the other...math is easiest to start with, engllish needs some time to master. Good luck!
And also you must be fast
So a good training is the only way... Since you're from Canada why don't you go on a French system?
xterm wroteI'm not entirely sure why it's so relevant to talk about paying your way through in such a very important subject. College is the most important phase in your life and you should understand how critical it is. What you do in college and how you proceed with it defines how you approach the rest of your life.

You may or may not believe me and you may or may not take my advice but I do want to set things straight for you. College should not be taken lightly, education should NOT be taken lightly. You will hear a lot of "College taught me nothing" and this is simply untrue, if you pay attention in class, if you do your homework, if you place effort in excelling in every aspect you are bound to get anywhere you want.

My advice to you is, as of today, contact the universities you're interested in and grab the admission requirements. Start studying as of today, find people to tutor you, ask friends to help, ask lebgeeks for help. It's nothing but a small phase in your life that is so essential that you will regret not doing it right when you grow up.

Remember, this is your life we're talking about, it's neither mine nor anyone else.
Its not about that xterm, I understand that fully, I've scored 85% + in highschools and now some stupid test is going to stop me from getting into university?

I mean its just a 4 hour test which depends which University I get into it?
What happened to my highcshool marks , this sucks. ...
But thanks for the advice all.
Why waste your money on a uselessly over-expensive university anyway? What's wrong with the Lebanese university? From an academic perspective, it is very competitive to the universities mentioned above, and the best part is that it's almost for free. You can finish a BS and a Master's degree and not pay more than 1,000 USD. Moreover, I've noticed that LU graduates are preferred to many other private universities in the market.
Listen to be me jad and listen to me very well

For freshman year admittance to LAU and AUB (in specific) they not only care for SAT but also school grades

Back in 2009, me and 6 friends from my 12th grade class applied to freshman in AUB

They ONLY take 3 top students from the Grade 12 class in school, based first on their school grades and then SAT

Of us 6 students, there was one guy who had good SAT - 600/550/500 (reading, crtical thinking, writing),

He was a slacker in school though 60 year avergae, very lazy, no homework, not coming in for finals, you name it

He didn't get accepted. I applied with school grades of 92, 90, and 90 (i was the top of my class) along with just 500/500/450

The other 2 had similar grades, and my best friend had 80 averages in last 3 years of school.

however didn't end up going to AUB - too expensive for me and their financial aid was being a behatch, AND they didn't even have my major of choice

I was offered a entrance schoalrship at LAU, 1000$ of financial aid and a paid job, along with them actually having my major (pharmacy)

Bottom Line : you will get into LAU or AUB, but not with your SAT (you are pushing it but its still theoretically possible with your school grades) - you can probably pass by in LAU with 400's scores - but if you want AUB you have to score those 500's. So please study hard, or you may regret it ! Your school grades are great - and those are the hardest to fix, SAT is something you can easily work on but you must start from now.

This is only freshman guys, he isn't applying for sophomore i.e. they will take his admission slightly easier

If you need anything from LAU talk to me about it, i can probably arrange for you to talk to some students in AUB as well

I really hope this helps.

To add about paying extra and all that - its complete BS - there IS however preference to those who donate to AUB or in LAU to those who know some people that know some people ... etc Also if you have ANY family part of ANY LAU staff your more or less already got your acceptance - Regardless if you have high grades and good SAT you will shin out any people with "wastaaat" or money and all that nonsense.

I got similar scores as you the first time, but i scored much better the second time, as for the third time i scored slightly more - so really its all up to being committed

Just a small question, what major do you have in mind after Freshman year ? - you do realize that admittance to your major also requires a certain average that you must attain in freshman year.
The-MMMs wroteListen to be me jad and listen to me very well

For freshman year admittance to LAU and AUB (in specific) they not only care for SAT but also school grades

Back in 2009, me and 6 friends from my 12th grade class applied to freshman in AUB

They ONLY take 3 top students from the Grade 12 class in school, based first on their school grades and then SAT

Of us 6 students, there was one guy who had good SAT - 600/550/500 (reading, crtical thinking, writing),

He was a slacker in school though 60 year avergae, very lazy, no homework, not coming in for finals, you name it

He didn't get accepted. I applied with school grades of 92, 90, and 90 (i was the top of my class) along with just 500/500/450

The other 2 had similar grades, and my best friend had 80 averages in last 3 years of school.

however didn't end up going to AUB - too expensive for me and their financial aid was being a behatch, AND they didn't even have my major of choice

I was offered a entrance schoalrship at LAU, 1000$ of financial aid and a paid job, along with them actually having my major (pharmacy)

Bottom Line : you will get into LAU or AUB, but not with your SAT (you are pushing it but its still theoretically possible with your school grades) - you can probably pass by in LAU with 400's scores - but if you want AUB you have to score those 500's. So please study hard, or you may regret it ! Your school grades are great - and those are the hardest to fix, SAT is something you can easily work on but you must start from now.

This is only freshman guys, he isn't applying for sophomore i.e. they will take his admission slightly easier

If you need anything from LAU talk to me about it, i can probably arrange for you to talk to some students in AUB as well

I really hope this helps.

To add about paying extra and all that - its complete BS - there IS however preference to those who donate to AUB or in LAU to those who know some people that know some people ... etc Also if you have ANY family part of ANY LAU staff your more or less already got your acceptance - Regardless if you have high grades and good SAT you will shin out any people with "wastaaat" or money and all that nonsense.

I got similar scores as you the first time, but i scored much better the second time, as for the third time i scored slightly more - so really its all up to being committed

Just a small question, what major do you have in mind after Freshman year ? - you do realize that admittance to your major also requires a certain average that you must attain in freshman year.
Hey MMS, well this was extremely helpful and useful information which I will take into consideration, and thank you for the others who commented as well I appreciate it alote!

Yes for freshmen year and I want to major in business ( ECONOMICS), but you see I study in a private school in Lebanon and in grade 11 I also took economics & marketing, and I had a 97% in both, but do universities like LAU or AUB consider theese academic subjects?

You mentioned they only take the top 3 students from grade 12, but if I apply in October then my transcripts from grade 12 would not be sent because I would of not graduated yet.

I have registered for the SAT in October and im studying my behind off, using a book called cracking the SAT, really useful and i'll attempt to score those 500's. I also have a couple of relatives in LAU (3).

I really appreciate your help and will get back to you if I need any help.



& Kassem to answer your question - I dont know how to read arabic or write it in that fact, it will be quite a problem for me :/
Thanks for the suggestion!
Being an AUB graduate myself and as others already mentioned, there simply is no shortcut for getting accepted.

My only realistic recommendation for you is to study hard for the SAT, at least the math part because you can/should easily ace this section compared to the English which is considerably harder.

But then again, if you've been raised in NA then English shouldn't be a huge obstacle. Nevertheless, focus on lifting your Math score.

If you somehow fail to meet the English requirement I believe they are still staging their own EEE test which is very stupid and you would nail it with eyes closed.

Remember this: college is not a number of credits, it's a lifestyle. Be serious, fair and mentally strong and the sky is your limit.
WizaRd wroteBeing an AUB graduate myself and as others already mentioned, there simply is no shortcut for getting accepted.

My only realistic recommendation for you is to study hard for the SAT, at least the math part because you can/should easily ace this section compared to the English which is considerably harder.

But then again, if you've been raised in NA then English shouldn't be a huge obstacle. Nevertheless, focus on lifting your Math score.

If you somehow fail to meet the English requirement I believe they are still staging their own EEE test which is very stupid and you would nail it with eyes closed.

Remember this: college is not a number of credits, it's a lifestyle. Be serious, fair and mentally strong and the sky is your limit.
Hmm, I wonder if they would let me take that EEE test instead of the SAT english and take it as a pre developement course in my freshmen year.
Yes for freshmen year and I want to major in business ( ECONOMICS), but you see I study in a private school in Lebanon and in grade 11 I also took economics & marketing, and I had a 97% in both, but do universities like LAU or AUB consider theese academic subjects?

When i applied to LAU, and during grades 10-12 i had taken advanced Biology, and Chemistry courses which is equivalent to the 201 courses that are offered in universities i.e. the slightly more higher courses . Now im not sure if this aided my admission, but boy oh boy did it help me achieve a high grade in all Chem and Bio courses so far - its quite funny for all my friends used to ridicule me for working too hard at school :P But usually, no they don't that much (things probably have changed since) - im guessing if you were in some major league of sports or physical activity, or any other type of activity that would adda plus to your application but anything else no i don't think so. Also your major requires you to do Freshman Arts as apposed to Freshman Science - and on my behalf i can tell you this is very very easy - you should be able to build a very strong GPA during freshman which WILL help you in university.

You mentioned they only take the top 3 students from grade 12, but if I apply in October then my transcripts from grade 12 would not be sent because I would of not graduated yet.

This is AUB (top 3 thing) and also this may have changed, but i have seen this not only with my class, but also with my friends that were 2 years behind of me in the american class - the same fashion occurred, only 3 people (top) out of the whole class were taken for freshman. You will receive a provisional acceptance and as soon as you get your grades and school diploma you send them to AUB and then you get the final confirmation - AUB a LAU are really strict about deadlines, i highly advise you check their deadlines.

I have registered for the SAT in October and im studying my behind off, using a book called cracking the SAT, really useful and i'll attempt to score those 500's. I also have a couple of relatives in LAU (3).

This is great news. It's always good to have someone "on the inside". Best of luck with the SAT ! I'm sure you'll do much better !

I really appreciate your help and will get back to you if I need any help.
Any time, you are most welcome, just drop me a PM.
jad594 wroteHmm, I wonder if they would let me take that EEE test instead of the SAT english and take it as a pre developement course in my freshmen year.
I did the EEE - it ONLY replaces the SAT writing grade - but LAU will need SAT I - in the past we had something called the Freshman Exam i.e. "FE". This however as far as i know discontinued due to eqiuvalence standards - you just missed it.

Anyway, in LAU you see if you have writing grade 400-490 you will enter ENG 101 - the standard english

any lower and you will start with the remedial english - not good for the credit hours wont add for you so basically you'd be wasting your time. IF you get 500+ you get into ENG 102 ;however beware, by doing so (according to LAU) you must take an elective course in place of the ENG101 (this ONLY applies to to freshman) for you must complete 30 credits as a freshman arts student to go sophomore - anyway this is great detail and exactly what i want to talk to you about , there are many things people SHOULD know, so please keep asking so you are fully informed - i aslo checked this with the admission this morning, we still have EEE so if you feel like doing it go ahead - its very easy by the way.

Also please remember, my talk is strictly related to freshman, anyone else reading about this and is entering as a sophomore it's slightly different - and harder, but nothing is impossible with really good school grades and OK SAT scores.
my two cents since you are going to be applying as a freshman then you shouldn't worry that much about the SAT BUT your scores aren't that high even for freshman standards aim for a 1000-1100 (minus the essay) on the essay you should aim for a 480 so you don't have to take an extra english credit in uni. but don't worry most likely you will get in to LAU but you should apply for next month's SAT and STUDY for it
5 days later
Hey MMS, sorry for the late reply, again thanks for the really valuable information and thanks for taking the time to write all of it & help me.

Im actully considering going back to Canada, University of Alberta ( RANKED 162 in the world according to www.webometrics.info ) and the tuition is much more affordable there.

University Of Alberta = $5000 a year, ( 3 year program of bussiness )
LAU = $17000 a year , ( 4 year program because im a freshmen )

Seems to make more sense...
7 days later
Hmm... Alberta apparently looks like the better choice I suppose.
However, if you still plan on staying in Lebanon and attending a Lebanese university, you should think about possibly exploring other universities in Lebanon. AUB and LAU aren't the only good universities here, you know. In fact, a lot of universities here don't really give much weight to SAT scores and see TOEFL as an adequate alternative; one in particular is Haigazian which is an excellent, tranquil, and cozy school with an excellent business program.
If you wanna go to Alberta: Bon voyage and book an early flight to avoid traffic; if you wanna stay in Leb: look at some other universities and happy learning :)
there are courses where they give you the techniques of SAT
they're teaching this at school
for example in choose the best answer you can eliminate the wrong ones which leave you with the correct one
you don't need to study anything except math , at school we take SAT practice exams every week i NEVER study (but we still aren't taking math) anyway i never study and i score 75-80 over 100
the answer is in front of you you just need to find a way to find it