Would welcome thoughts/experience on how many times a student should take the SAT or ACT and if taken multiple times what scores get sent to colleges (do colleges see the scores from every SAT/ACT the student has taken)?
Thank you.
Two times is usually fine (in my experience) although there are kids that take the tests more times than that. Only a handful of schools require all SAT/ACT scores to be reported - Georgetown is one of those. Most schools will now automatically superscore if your best scores aren’t from one sitting. Many folks suggest trying both the ACT and the SAT to see which one the student does better on although I don’t have practical experience with that as neither of my kids tried the ACT.
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I’d say most people don’t suggest that. Although taking both via timed practice tests is fine for that determination.
Twice is always fine. Three times, if necessary, is common. More than that, one shouldn’t expect much change in score - presuming the student prepped weaker areas after the earlier tries
I’m not a fan of taking the exam for crap and giggles (aka practice); that’s what practice tests are for
As noted, except for Georgetown, you only need to send the best exam (or best section if the college superscores)
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Thank you!
I guess “many” is an overstatement. However, I’ve read a lot here about trying both (albeit it doesn’t need to be an “official” test) to find the one the student is more likely to do well on. Of course, as I mentioned, neither of my kids did this so . . .
I would say 1 to 4.
Our feederish HS recommends trying out each (edit: which I agree is not common, but they recommend it because it seems to work sometimes), so that would be 2 to start. But sometimes people try one, get the score they need, so they are done. And of course if you are really good at simulating a real test at home, you can shade the odds in your favor at picking your better test for the first. But if the first is a disappointment, they do suggest trying the other.
So say you do the 2, then the idea is you pick your best, do some prep, and try it again. And I think a lot of people then get the score they want. So that is 3.
But some people do not get the score they want. At that point they could just go TO. But some people think they can do better, maybe more prep, maybe it was just a bad day, whatever, so they do 4.
At that point, if you still don’t get the score you want, it is probably not worth beating your head against the wall further. And you might be running out of cycles anyway. So just go TO.
Anyway, I think that is more or less how it worked for at least the vast majority of kids.
And as for Georgetown or whatever–if you really, really want to apply to Georgetown, you could maybe do more prep and at home evaluation before doing that first test. But I think most of our kids just saw how it went, and if Georgetown was not in the cards, so be it.
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My kids took a sample test that mixed in ACT and SAT sections to help them decide which exam to focus on. If something like that is available, it could make sense.
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Depends.
One kid took it 6 times - the last time - got him $4K extra.
It depends on the score, schools targeting, and how a higher score might impact.
Taking more gives you the possibility of randomness - how else does a kid go from a 34 on one section to a 24 the next time on the same section - some are just easier…to helping superscore - to like my kid who went to an auto merit school - more money - so those 6 times got us $16K more.
So I don’t think you can know up front - you have to take a look at:
- The score
- The selection list
- The student’s ability to study - so they can do better - after knowing what’s on the test
- Their ability to handle pressure. For some, 2x is too many. For others, six times is no problem
Good luck
I think both sons took it 3 times. Watching the process I would say twice is enough. Prep, test, review weak areas, retest. Done. Spend the time and energy on keeping grades up and essays. If they won’t study or practice for tests don’t bother with a retest.
One son preferred the SAT. The other the ACT. Take a couple of practice tests under test conditions to see which one is better for your student.
The one that took the ACT scored the same all three times but with different sub scores.
The one that took the SAT forgot his calculator the first time.
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Our school recommended ACT and SAT practice tests and then for the student to prep whichever test they felt more comfortable. My D would have been one and done had she not needed to sit for the ACT again for the state requirement.
Personally I’d have your child prep well so they don’t have to keep testing. IMO, there are better uses of time.
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I’m a test prep tutor.
99% of students don’t need to take the test more than twice. Any more than twice isn’t likely to see any dramatic increase in score. The best results are obtained from being well prepared. Practicing with official tests is by far the best way to improve. Students can practice at home, school, or the library and not spend the time and money going to a test site and enduring that additional stress.
The SAT allows substantially more time per question. Since the SAT changed format, I don’t recommend students prep for both the SAT and ACT unless there is a compelling reason. I think few students are better served by the ACT. The English section of the ACT is ridiculously long, at 75 questions. The time constraint of the ACT is unforgiving.
It’s worth mentioning that before the pandemic, and the recent SAT format changes in March of this year, it was more common for students to prep for both tests. I definitely try to steer students away from doing that now. Since 2020, very few of my students prep for both. It just isn’t necessary. It’s more stressful. Students and parents seem to be more aware of minimizing stress in whatever way possible. So many colleges are test optional and that isn’t going away (a minuscule # of college are bucking that trend. Most kids aren’t applying to those schools.) The SAT is generally perceived of as being more manageable, but I don’t think it is easier. Perception is important though.
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Thank you.
My question was not about which test to take as some responses seem to be directed at, but rather on the pros/cons in the eyes of colleges when a student takes the test, in this case the SAT, more than once and how colleges view/interpret the scores (do they see the scores from every test, do they choose the highest scores to create a superscore,…).
There are thousands of colleges in the country. Probably 99% of them, if they care about your score, just care that it’s as high as possible, regardless of how many times you take it. The 1% might care if you take it more than twice, if they want to see all test scores and don’t superscore. Maybe that’s a couple of colleges. My advice doesn’t change. Fewer times is better.
Edit: Each college will indicate on their website if they superscore and if they require all scores from all attempts. Off the top of my head, Georgetown maybe does that, but I’m not sure.
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Colleges do not see scores from every test. They only see scores that students give them. There are multiple ways to submit scores to a college, with different colleges having different rules. Some colleges let students submit scores by self-reporting in the application, while others have the student send a score report from College Board. The college’s website includes this information in the section on applying.
Georgetown seems to be the only one that makes students report scores from all attempts.
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Confirming Georgetown requires all scores. And they are the only US college to do so.
There are no bonus points awarded for only taking once. Some colleges superscore; some don’t. Their admissions site (and the common app) should list the requirements. So there are also no bonus points awarded for submitting in excess of requirements.
Keep in mind that AO’s have limited time to read applications. They are absolutely not looking at SAT scores to assess improvement over time. When a student submits but ACT and SAT, they are absolutely not looking at consistency across platforms. Some students overthink and think more equals better.
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I think basically what happened is that the conversation quickly moved to strategies for having the best possible scores to report, or alternatively knowing you should go test optional.
The reason it shifted so fast is, as others are also saying, that for the vast, vast majority of colleges, all that matters is ending up with the best possible score or scores to report (depending on their superscoring policy). They do not ask, do not know, and do not care how many other tests you took besides the ones you report.
But Georgetown is one exception. I know at least some UK universities like Oxford and Cambridge are also exceptions. There may be more–I have seen some lists online that appear inaccurate (maybe outdated), so you might have to just check for any college of interest.
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They don’t care. This is such over done on here. My son had to take his Act 3 times for multiple factors. His counselor at Michigan told him they liked the idea of not giving up.
The Act was fast due to slower processing issues. He actually got a tutor to help him speed up taking the test. The material wasn’t the issue.
But many studies out there showing little gains over like 3 times if no positive movement. To me, take it once and if needed get help working on the subsets etc that you need help on. Hone on the weakness but continue reviewing the strengths. English section was my sons downfall so he worked and learned some basic tricks and got that section up. Mathy kids don’t always do great on the English sections.
Most schools are self report and superscore. So they don’t care how many you take. They’ll only see the ones you send (to achieve the superscore) when you enroll.
There are a few exceptions, like Gtown.
So go through the school list - see who makes you send up front and the policy about superscoring or not.
Truly the answer you desire - it depends.
Some schools don’t even utilize a test. They are test blind.
So you need to review each school one by one.
But quantity, 99% of the time, won’t hurt. May not help but it won’t hurt.
Would a college look unfavourably at someone whose superscore is from 4 sittings vs someone with the same superscore but from 2 sittings?
Except for Georgetown, there is no valid reason to list 4 attempts on the application
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