Standardized test scores question -- which scores to send?

mathmomvt
Tue, 19 Oct 2010 13:09:06 +0000

I asked this on the college admissions forum, but it has been suggested that I may get better answers here.

My S is applying to computer science / game design programs at the following schools: MIT, RIT, WPI, RPI, Northeastern, Drexel, and maybe a couple of others. He is applying Early Action where available, no ED.

His test scores are (based on a single sitting of each test):

ACT 35
English 34
Math 34
Reading 36
Science 35
English/Writing 31 (Essay 8)

SAT 2170
CR 720
Math 770
Writing 680 (Essay 8)

SAT Subject Tests
Biology M 780
Chemistry 740 (taken before his last chemistry class which he is taking now)
Math Level2 770

Most of his schools require only the SAT or ACT with no subject tests, or will take the ACT in lieu of both the SAT and the SAT subject tests. His ACT is stronger than his SAT, but with a slight “weakness” (if you can call it that) in Math compared to his SAT Math and his SATII Math2 scores.

MIT is not on the common app, the rest are. MIT requires SAT or ACT/writing plus subject tests. I’m thinking to use score choice with the SAT (if MIT allows it) to send only the SATII subject scores, and send the ACT.

For the common app, I don’t think any of his schools require the subject scores for students submitting the ACT (S will double-check!) He has self-reported all his scores on the app, so I am thinking to officially send only the ACT scores.

Does that seem like a reasonable approach? Or should we also pay to send the SAT Subject scores to everyone too since they are strong. (Or is self-reporting them good enough, since they aren’t required?) Thanks in advance for your thoughts on this!

(To some extent I think this only really matters for MIT, which is of course a high reach, and possibly for scholarship consideration at the other schools.)

Thanks!