Not sure where I want to go, but I want my options open. Is a 1530 (750rw, 780m) good enough, in addition to strongs ec’s and grades, to apply to anywhere? In other words, is there any school for which it’s worth it to take the SAT again and try to get a higher score?
What year are you in high school.
Most highly rejective schools have holistic admissions and will look at your SAT score as well as the other things on your application.
I’ll offer some free advice…please find a sure thing for admission that you would be happy to attend, and that is affordable for your family. That should be the first college you add to your application list. Actually…find two…nice to have choices if other schools don’t work out.
Then…build your list up from there.
If you are a senior, do a chance me/match me thread…which will give more details. And folks can chime in about your SAT (which I think is excellent).
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I think that you should do what is right for you, then find universities that fit what you have done. As @thumper1 suggests you should start the process by finding a couple of safeties that are a good fit for you and that will be affordable. Then branch out from there.
1530 is a VERY good SAT score.
I think that this is high enough to apply anywhere. This score is marginally above average even for Princeton (at least according to PrepScholar), and is only marginally below average for MIT, Caltech, and Harvard.
I would not bother taking it again, unless you just really want to take it for fun. This would not be my personal choice regarding what to do for fun.
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Are there schools it’s not good enough ? Yes. They are few but those schools turn down kids with 1600s. And a test score is one small aspect of your app.
If you think you want to do again or if you’re a junior - sure. Do you need to? Nope - and you can apply anywhere with that score. Will it help ? In 99% of cases - where’s scores are accepted bcuz not all school’s do take scores.
Your question is really tough to answer when no schools are named. Look at school profiles or the common data set of schools that interest you to see where 1530 sits.
Good luck.
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Maybe.
Do you want to major in Engineering at MIT? Computer Science at Stanford? An argument can be made that an 800 in Math could make a difference.
But it might not.
Also, the overwhelming majority of applicants to those schools for those majors with perfect Math scores still get rejected. I think your time is better spent focusing on other aspects of your application (essays, ECs, and so on) but it wouldn’t be crazy to try to increase your SAT score if that would make you happy.
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I don’t think so. A 750 in RW is very strong for 99%+ of schools, and the difference between a 780 and 800 in Math won’t matter even at the most selective schools. In other words, scoring a 780 instead of 800 won’t be the reason you don’t get accepted.
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I’m a junior
Take again of it makes you happy - another one or two times. In Spring and early Fall next year.
Won’t hurt.
But with no school list can’t say if necessary.
1530 equals the 99th percentile. The difference between that and a perfect score is a handful or so of items. 1530 is an extraordinarily good score and would be viewed that way by any admissions office.
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You can apply anywhere, but the top-tier schools are going to have very low admission rates, no matter what. Your score is excellent, and as others have said, the minutia difference between any other potentially higher scores is not going to be the factor that makes or breaks your admission. In my opinion, you are one and done. Congratulations
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I’m hardly an expert so take this for what it’s worth. My S23 scored a 1530 (770W/760M). We weren’t sure whether to take it again and he didn’t in part because there have been many posts here and elsewhere in the past stating that it won’t make much of a difference. He got into many schools he was happy with but didn’t get into many others.
We didn’t think much of it but the next year I do remember listening on some podcasts/zoom calls from uber-expensive college counselors (who I was unwilling to pay for but do informally advertise on these boards) say that 1550 seems to be the score that they see for most of their students admitted to Ivy+ and highly rejective schools. I then talked to another counselor who I’ve gotten to know and respect, and was not trying to sell me his services. He also shared that it was rare for his clients (upper-middle class to wealthy kids) to get into Ivies with scores less than 1550 unless they were hooked. Do I think that’s why my son didn’t get accepted to some schools - no, I don’t think 20 points mattered much for him. It is holistic admissions and maybe he wasn’t a good fit or there were other deficiencies.
But it seems to be the opinion of some that 1550 is some sort of magic number. My daughter got 1520. I told her not to take it again unless she was aiming for these uber-rejective schools. She didn’t take it again and we’ll see what happens.
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My daughter also stopped at 1520 (2nd sitting for her). It seems that’s probably good enough for most schools on her list other than MIT (where that score is about 25th percentile, more or less) and anyway MIT requires sending scores from all sittings, so she figured it wouldn’t really look better to add more sittings, even if she could improve. Fortunately she doesn’t have her heart set on any dream school… she’ll do her best on the applications and just see how it goes.
Best of luck to both the OP @paperpencil129 and to your daughter! 
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There’s an old saying with regard to the Ivies that a high score won’t get you in, but a low score can keep you out. I think there’s some truth in that. So, if we’re assuming that below 1550 is now the new “low”, I just want to be clear for those who go back for 2nd and 3rd takes to hit the magic number, it still doesn’t mean you’ll get in. In fact, it probably has very little to do with the final decision and is just one of those things they can use as a screen to get manageable numbers of applications with which they do their holistic reviews.
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The table I put up from Brown shows a 1480-1560 25/75. We don’t know if most float to the top, evenly, or bottom - and not everyone submitted to Brown (was 85%) - so it’s obvious people are getting in with below a 1550. Are they hooked? I don’t know.
In the CDS, Princeton shows a 1530 at the 50th percentile with a 1500 and 1560 25/75. 77% submitted.
So I think even unhooked kids are getting in with below a 1550 at the creme de la creme.
Given this student is early in their Junior year, there’s no burn out yet - so for that reason alone, I’d take the test another 1-2 times.
Great points, @tsbna44. Looks like the private counselors have got it wrong with at least some Ivies.
OP: A composite score of 1530 is excellent, but by elite universities’ standards it is not outstanding.
Recently the new “do not retake” composite score is 1550 according to some private college counselors; this represents a 10 point rise from just two years ago during which many suggested that a 1540 composite score was the “do not retake” standard.
Whether or not you retake the SAT is mostly based on whether or not you are confident that you can improve your score and whether or not you are psychologically prepared to put forth the effort necessary to increase your score. And, this should be taken in the context of the schools to which you are applying and the strength of other aspects of your candidacy for admission.
You don’t need to take it again. Your time would be better spent on some other aspect of your application.
I’ll be honest. I’m a high school teacher. If you’re my student, I’d say 750+780 is good enough; however, if you’re my own child, with better understanding of your learning and progress, I’ll likely encourage you to take it again, especially if you’ve constantly scored perfectly in math. Statistically speaking, 780 and 800 are not significantly different; however, the common perception of 780 is that “it’s really good almost perfect”, while the perception of 800 is “there’s potential that’s not evaluated in the test”. I score 780 because that’s the highest I can reach, but if I score 800 that’s because there’s only 800 for me to get. So, if you know your peak is “almost perfect”, then leave it as is; if you know you have more potential, try again.
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OP, can you see where 1530 places you in relation to your school average? I imagine in most cases, 1530 is more than high enough. That said, my kid had to retake with 1540 because it wasn’t high enough in his HS for the top schools. But his school average is about 1500.