<p>I need advice on wether my daughter should take the SAT.
She took September ACT and scored a 34. Just got her PSAT score and she got a 204. I registered her for a January SAT few days ago, but after getting her PSAT score, she's very discouraged and doesn't think she can do well on the SATs. She will be applying to Ivies so her advisor suggested retaking ACT and trying for a 35.
What do you guys think? Take an SAT and try another ACT, just do another ACT or just stop and stay with a 34 on the ACT?</p>
<p>I’ve noticed that the PSAT score is not always an accurate representation of what the SAT score will be. Many of my friends have scored discouragingly low on the PSAT only to get a great SAT score. The SATs are fairly easy to prep for, so she should just study the sections she feels she didn’t do well on from the PSATs and at least give the SAT a try. I think she should do the SAT and another ACT because it’s really good to have all your bases covered; especially if she plans on applying Ivy.</p>
<p>With a 34 ACT she really shouldn’t have anything to worry about anyways. That is a very good score (equivalent to a 2250ish) and in the 99th percentile of all ACT test takers. You could try the SAT, but if your daughter doesn’t want to do it don’t make her. Some people respond differently to different styles of test and you don’t want to end up with a lower score on the SAT (that some competitive schools like Stanford will require you to report). I would play it safe, maybe retake the ACT to get a 35 or 36, but drop the January SAT.</p>
<p>How many times has she taken the ACT? I would advise her not only avoid taking it if it will be her 3+ try, but also to not take it at all. A 34 is great and enough, and now I suggest that she focuses on other parts of her applications. Ivies don’t really care if you make one point more after a 34. Also, there is no need for the SAT if she doesn’t want to take it. Hopefully she took the ACT WITH Writing, because Ivy League schools require that.</p>
<p>She took the ACT only once. And yes it was with writing.</p>
<p>She could stop right now unless you know that there is a scholarship that will award a higher dollar figure to a 35 or 36. We are an SAT household here, but I see absolutely no reason to take the SAT after scoring a 34 on the ACT.</p>
<p>If she would like to strengthen her application, she could take subject tests this spring.</p>
<p>Giving the ACT is a good option as most people say it is easier and the SAT equivalent for her PSAT score is 2040 which isn’t good enough for the ivies.</p>
<p>Is the science section of the ACT easy?</p>
<p>
@momworried:
I realize that’s what many people say, but that’s really not how admissions committees at top-tier colleges use the scores. A score of 35 or 36 is generally viewed as “maxing out” the reasoning test component of the application, so, in my opinion, that’s what a good standardized test-taker should aim for.</p>
<p>It is true, however, that a score of “34” combined with straight A’s, rigorous school curriculum, high scores on several AP/IB tests, multiple academic awards/honors, and strong leadership/community service activities, will place the student in the good-enough-to-admit pile. The problem is that top-tier schools don’t have enough slots to offer acceptances to all of the applicants in that pile. Competition is fierce at this level. Great standardized test scores are quite common. Admissions officers start looking for other compelling reasons to advocate for a student at adcom meetings. Did the student overcome significant medical/socioeconomic adversity? Did the student demonstrate an impressive level of creativity/initiative/leadership? Did the student show a profound level of commitment to his/her extracurricular activities?</p>
<p>That being said, if your daughter thinks she can perform better on the ACT with a modest amount of preparation, then I’d recommend retaking the ACT to improve upon the 34. For good test-takers, there’s minimal opportunity cost to trying to bump up the score into the 35-36 range,…and in my experience, students who score a first-sitting “34” on the ACT with minimal prep can easily improve to a 35 or 36 by putting in the right kind of work. My advice would be different if the your daughter invested lots of time/money/effort to score that “34.” In that case, she should probably just focus on other aspects of her application and enjoy the rest of high school. :-)</p>
<p>As another poster mentioned, your daughter should also look into taking the Subject tests. Several of the top-tier schools require scores from at least 2 different Subject tests. Check the admissions webpages for each school for details on the standardized testing requirements.</p>
<p>I’m sure your daughter will do very well in the college app process. Good luck!</p>
<p>I do think she should take it, with a little more studying she’ll score higher on the actual one. Having two good scores is always good.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for your responses. I’m happy to report that my daughter finally made up her mind. She will not be taking the SAT since she doesn’t think she can beat a 34 equivalent on the ACT. But she will try another ACT with some tutoring. She already has 2 subject tests done and will try to do 2 more in the spring. She’s in a very competitive magnet high school and is in a full IB diploma program. Currently has all As but probably will not be able to maintain it since she’s taking the most rigorous course load. She also has some national level awards and great leadership. That’s why I thought given all her other attributes another point on a standardized test will not make a big difference.</p>