Some points to consider before re-taking the SAT

NeoEducators
Sat, 20 Nov 2010 02:51:27 +0000

Retaking the SAT is a widely popular phenomena. Approximately one-third of SAT takers retake the SAT before finally submitting their college applications.

A high score is vital for college admissions. If you are considering retaking the SAT, here are some of the points to think about:


No guaranteed improvements.
On an average, studies have shown that 55 % of students who retake the SAT get a higher score, 35% score lesser while 10% end up with the same score.


The improvement obviously depends on the SAT score you achieved in your previous attempt and the amount of effort along with the way you have put in before the retake. If your percentile is extremely high, a retake may be futile as you’ll need to do a lot of extra studying and intelligent approach, else you may not see the score improve in the same proportion.


Have you evaluated yourself correctly?
Re-taking the SAT can do wonders, only if you have evaluated yourself correctly. Which basically means that you are aware of your strengths and weaknesses. If you don’t then the amount of input will always be greater than the optimum output that could have been possible. If you want to significantly make a difference in your re-take then this becomes a very important factor.
Do you have enough time?
The learning and improvement curve is not the same throughout. You would see that the curve starts demanding more time as you keep on improving.
Give yourself ample time to prepare again. You need to study, and thus, need plenty of time.
It’s not that simple!
Multiple SAT scores could be tricky. Not all colleges discard your previous attempts. A few colleges take the average of all attempts, while others could look at the most recent one. It is not your choice to pick and choose which scores to send. The colleges view all scores and decide accordingly. If you do not know how each college treats your SAT score, call or email the college authorities to find that information.


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