I took the SAT this Saturday, and I was asked to stay after the test. They told me my scores would be cancelled because on one of the sections, I had “one extra answer after the test ended.” The supervisor that I talked to said that it was because the bubble was “darkened”, and that meant that I went over the time limit after the test was finished, gaining an unfair advantage. If you didn’t know this, the proctors count the amount of answers you have for each section during the breaks, and then once more after the test to make sure you didn’t go over the time limit. I haven’t seen the report they filed yet, but the supervisor said one of my answers ended up being “darkened all the way”, and that counts as a new answer. I’m pretty sure they made a mistake in counting, because there’s no other way to explain why I would go back for just that one answer and not even the last question in the section. I couldn’t ask to see me test because the rules of the SAT state that you may not see the test before or after testing. Because of this one answer, my whole score might be (most likely will be since I obviously do not have sufficient evidence that I didn’t go back for one answer) cancelled. I did ask the proctor if it was because I flipped through the answer key, and he replied with “yes”. But what I meant by that was how I flipped through to erase the pencil transfers incase they got marked as wrong. I did send an email out trying to explain, but I doubt they’ll take my word over the proctor’s.
I thought it was weird when the supervisor said it was because it was “darkened”, that means they can basically assume I darkened every section of my test. The supervisor didn’t clarify anything and told me the only thing I could do is email College Board about this. I did not go back for that one answer since I have taken the SAT before and I knew there was no point in risking it for one question.
For those of you that have cancelled scores in the past, is it possible to do a retake (even if there is a charge)? I’m concerned because this is the last time for the old SAT before they push out the new SAT in March. I know that they do not notify the colleges of your scores being cancelled and that people have done retakes after “cheating” to prove they didn’t actually do it.
Details are sketchy. What exactly happened?
Did you go back through any of the sections after time was called?
Did you go back and answer questions in previous sections?
Did you go and fill in answers which were light, or erase stray marks? If so was this during the test period, or after the time was called?
I never went back through the test booklet with the questions. The only thing I did was go through the actual answer sheet and erase the pencil transfers. I never went back to other sections to darken any answers. When I was erasing the transfers, the proctor was standing right in front of me when I put my pencil down and picked up my eraser. I was erasing the marks after I was done with section 9 of the test when I finished early. The only thing they did say that indicated that I had went back for that one question was that the “bubble was darkened all the way”, so I don’t really understand what the supervisor meant by that. He said it counted as an extra answer, and that I had 18 before, and now I answered all the 19 questions. I tried to tell him that there was 20 questions in that section, but he just told me I took advantage of the time and could only call or email the College Board.
I only went back to erase the transfers because I press extremely hard on my pencil and the bubbles end up on the other page, and there’s always a possibility that those might actually be counted by the machine.
Counting marked answers! What if they count wrong! That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard.
Unless they witnessed you marking answers after the time is called, they cannot call it cheating with such a circumstantial evidence. But then I’m no CB unfortunately.
Is counting answers what CB ask proctors do?
I have never heard of a proctor counting answers.
That’s why I’m extremely frustrated about this. If I really did want to cheat I would’ve gone to the other sections to bubble in the other two I missed, and I would just admit it on here since I already know there’s basically no repurcussions, but the thing is that I didn’t do it and the way they monitored it was ridiculous. What if they actually counted the amount of answers for that section wrong? They’ll still believe the proctor over me, and the fact that I did say “Was it because I flipped through the answer sheet” made them justify that I cheated. I couldn’t even explain to the proctor why I flipped through it because I was in shock that it occurred and also because he cut me off and told me I cheated.
That was the only explanation of why my score would be cancelled, and the proctor did say “because you added one extra answer and it was ‘darkened’, we will have to cancel your test.” How can they possibly even see that it was “darkened”?
As for the retest, is it even possible or would I have to take the ACT?
Update: I explained my situation to several people who had taken the SAT on Saturday, and all of them said they never counted the actual amount of answers they had. So how credible is this proctor? There were another three people that were held after the exam, and he dismissed one of them after saying that he made a mistake.