Jesuit senior class more competitive

By Robbie Roach
Magis staff writer


In the last few years, students at Strake Jesuit and schools across the country have witnessed a trend of higher grades and SAT scores. This fact is seen markedly in the class of 2005 compared to the last three senior classes.
Although students are doing better in school on average than they were years ago, Jesuit has not necessarily had an increase in academic strength every year. Mr. Kulick, director of the guidance and counseling department at Jesuit, says, “there have been fairly sharp variations in the ability levels of previous classes. Some have been stronger than others . . . . Although [academic strength] is hard to predict [in a particular class], it has been progressively going up.”
One way to compare the strengths of classes is to compare SAT scores. The national average score on the SAT has traditionally been a 500 on the verbal section and a 500 on the math section. Mr. Kulick says, “SAT scores have been creeping up slightly in the last few years. The average verbal score last year was 518 and the average math was 513.”
Indeed, SAT scores have slightly gone up at Jesuit as well in the last three years. The average SAT scores for the classes of 2003, 2004, and 2005 respectively are 1278, 1285, and 1297. PSAT scores are also up with the classes of 2003, 2004 and 2005 scoring 181, 181, and 184. The class of 2005 had the second most National Merit Semifinalists in the history of the school with 17, compared to an average of 8 or 9.
It is probably GPA standings that show just how well the class of 2005 has performed academically compared to prior classes (see table below). There is a marked improvement seen just between the classes of 2004 and 2005. The current senior class has also shown a greater interest in more selective schools than prior classes. Mr. Kulick says, “Students have come in larger numbers to visit selective college representatives this year. Last year, only one person showed up to speak with the Harvard representative while 20 people showed up this year to speak with her.”
The upward trend will probably continue past the senior class with the sophomore and junior classes as well. For example, the class of 2006 scored very well on the PSAT last year. The class of 2007 had 24 out of 228 tied for first in the class with all A’s freshman year. Mr. Kulick says that the average is usually somewhere around 15-18 freshmen who get all A’s.
Indeed, it seems that we can continue to expect the trend of Strake Jesuit students becoming academically stronger.