Anything wrong with taking SAT/ACT several times?

SplashMom · October 25, 2004, 3:09pm

My d, a junior, will soon be taking the ACT and the SAT (December test dates). She mentioned to me that she would like to take each of them several times because she feels her scores will increase each time. She's a good student with a current gpa of 4.25, made a 1200 on the PSAT and a 27 on her practice ACT last year as a sophomore. We haven't yet received PSAT results for this year. Do colleges frown upon students taking these tests more than once or twice? If so, why?

I am thrilled to have found this site. I have several friends with children who will soon be starting college, but none of them appear to be as interested (okay, maybe I'm consumed!) in the process as I. Thanks for giving me a place to discuss it without boring people to death! :)

ellemenope · October 25, 2004, 3:35pm

Taking the SAT/ACT twice is a very common practice, especially for kids who are applying to highly selective schools. At some schools, there's a big difference between a 1200 SAT and a 1400 SAT when it comes to acceptance rates. And many schools will take your highest verbal and add it to your highest math score to form a composite score.

Taking the tests 3 times is less common, but most likely acceptable.

But taking the SAT 4 or 5 or 6 times?? Sounds too far to me. After a while, a kid has to move on with his life--

dadx · October 25, 2004, 3:37pm

There are numerous threads on the old board discussing this idea. There is also data on the SAT site showing the relative score changes for multiple sittings of the tests.

My own view is that it depends on what you might expect from another sitting. Usually students improve in their senior year, having grown older, learned a few more words, etc. But not always. The higher your first score, the more likely that a later score will be lower.

If you have reason to believe that you'll score higher in another sitting, and if your target school is highly competitive with respect to scores, I think three sittings is not unreasonable. Four seems to be slight overkill to me, but IF you think there would be a big improvement the last time, then a fourth would be OK too.

Xiggi on the old board hit the nail on the head for me, when he said that...... while a college might slightly disregard your score if it took five times to earn it, you can be absolutely certain that they will never add points to your score because it was earned in one or two sittings.

sgiovinc1 · October 25, 2004, 3:41pm

Nothing is ever boring on this site! Everyone's opinions and concerns are valued, I have found, which makes me proud to be an AMERICAN!!! How's that for patriotism?

midwesterner · October 25, 2004, 4:01pm

Her score will definitely increase after the December test because December is the last month for the "old" SAT; January begins the new test which includes a new, third section of writing. In 2006, some colleges will take scores from the old test as well as the new one, so she would be wise to take both versions. Math people would do better on the old version, for example.

The ACT tests more practical knowledge than the SAT. A lot of people do significantly better on the ACT. It is also the standard test in the midwest; in Illinois, all juniors take it. It could give her an edge at some schools.

Yet another set of tests she may need are the SAT II, aka the subject tests. She should make a list of her possible schools and their admission requirements. That will tell her if she will need to set aside test dates for the SAT IIs. They conflict with the regular SAT. If she has additional conflicts, like a spring or fall sport, she may not have all that many dates available. It's worth the effort to make out a calendar now with testing options for the next year. <a href="http://www.collegeboard.com%5B/url%5D">www.collegeboard.com</a> has a built in calendar that could get her started.

marite · October 25, 2004, 4:05pm

Midwesterner:

I thought the new SAT was going to be introduced in March? After January, the SAT II-Writing was going to be discontinued.

ellemenope · October 25, 2004, 4:40pm

Good point Marite and midwesterner. I believe that there are colleges that will not accept the "old" SAT for anyone in the class of 2006 and later. Some will look at both tests. It would be worth checking out at each college to which a student plans to send an application.

The SAT 2 Writing will be discontinued, since it will be folded into the new SAT 1. Considering how off the wall some of the grading of the SAT 2 Writing exams seemed, I can only imagine how many problems having an essay be part of the SAT 1s will bring.

midwesterner · October 25, 2004, 6:54pm

Thanks, Marite, I left out January! You are right that it is the last month for the old SAT test.

momsdream · October 25, 2004, 7:59pm

Son is going to be a 3X SAT taker after the Nov test date. His guidance counselor told him to try once more (he's already gotten a solid score, but has a much lower math than verbal - so a retake might gived him a significant lift with the focus on the math)

He also took SATII Math twice...raising the score pretty well the second time.

advice: make sure you understand the methodology of how the scores go to colleges. I spent way too much money sedning scores each time....to more than the four free schools. I could have simply waited until registering for the Nov test to send them out to every school.... Duh!

kjofkw · October 26, 2004, 8:39am

a quick tag to momsdream last note: We discovered that many colleges to which my son applied, accepted the ACT and SAT test scores that were sent with his high school transcript. We did not have to spend the money to send a separate copy direct from the testing agency. Not all colleges accept this. You must check with each one, but it was definitely worth it for us.

mackinaw · October 26, 2004, 11:10am

More than 3 times is probably excessive and obsessive. There are many things a senior in high school should be doing other than testing and retesting in hopes for a score increase. The answer in any case depends in part on whether schools average the scores across sittings, and, fundamentally, on how high the scores are to begin with. If you get a truly high score, what's the point of retesting for perfection? Focus on essays, EC's, school work, or a little R&R!