There is substantial variability in the degree to which the SAT and high school grade point average (HSGPA) predict first-year college performance at different institutions. This paper demonstrates the usefulness of multilevel modeling as a tool to uncover institutional characteristics that are associated with this variability. In a model that…

Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in New Orleans, LA in April 2011. The current study examined the differential validity of the SAT for predicting cumulative GPA through the second-year of college by college major, as well as the differential prediction of cumulative GPA by college major among…

The current study will explore the validity and potential of using the SAT, in conjunction with HSGPA, to arrive at a predicted FYGPA to improve student retention at four-year postsecondary institutions. Specifically, this study examined whether college students who did not perform as expected (observed FYGPA minus predicted FYGPA) were more…

Presented at the national conference for the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in 2010. This presentation describes an alternative way of presenting the unique information provided by the SAT over HSGPA, namely examining students with discrepant SAT-HSGPA performance.

[Slides] presented at AERA in Denver, CO in April 2010. This study examined the relationship between students' self-reported high school grade point average (HSGPA) from the SAT Questionnaire and their HSGPA provided by the colleges and universities they attend. The purpose of this research was to offer updated information on the relatedness of…

Presented at the College Board Western Regional Office (WRO) Forum in San Diego in February 2009. This presentation explores SAT test validity and how it can be used to inform both advisement and placement at the national or institution level. Institutional validity can be measured using the Admitted Class Evaluation Service (ACES) which schools…

Presented at the national conference for AERA (American Educational Research Association) . This study examined whether there are distinct differences in the demographic characteristics, HSGPA, first-year college performance, and second-year college retention rates among students who have discrepant CR-W performance.

[Slides] presented at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in 2009. This study investigated the presence of a general rise in high school grades without a corresponding rise in SAT scores, as well as different grading criteria between schools, as shown by differential relationships between AP course grades and exam scores. These…

Presented at the Annual National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) in New York in March 2008. This presentation explores how different item weighting can affect the effective weights, validity coefficents and test reliability of composite scores among test takers.