<p>D is a junior. She took the SAT on March 14 (first time, no test prep). She has registered for 3 SAT subjects for May 2. (She needs 3 for one school where she will apply.) She has selected Math2, Physics & USH. She will also take the APUSH on May 8. She currently takes Pre Calc/Trig Honors, Physics (not AP) and APUSH. She planned on leaving the June & October test dates open to retake the SAT.</p>
<p>Now, however, she is reconsidering her plan. She is worried about studying for the 3 SAT 2s for May as she has a sport and works this Spring. She also wonders if 3 is too many for one sitting. In the fall, she doesn't have a sport though she will still work until early October.</p>
<p>So......should she consider only taking USH on May 2 since she will be taking the AP test on May 9 and presumably will be studying already and then take the Math2 & Physics in June after she finishes the entire course at school? That would leave only the October test date for a retake of the SAT.</p>
<p>Or, should she consider taking the SAT again in May and try for all 3 SAT subjects on the June date. She'll get her March score in less than a week which might inform her a bit more but she assumes she'll want to improve on her SAT scores. She also believes she will do some test practices for the SAT which should improve her score. She won't take any prep class.</p>
<p>Some kids have more endurance than others, but 3 at a time is a lot. I like your Plan A - take US History in May and the other two in June. My kids’ experience was that they were very well-prepared for the math exam (I don’t think that either of them studied for it at all), and my daughter, who took US History, also found that studying for the AP test prepared her well enough for the SAT II. Physics was a different story. The physics teacher told the kids that his class did not cover all the material on the SATII and suggested that anyone taking that test get the prep book. My son spent 3 intensive nights going through the book and did very well on the test, but he takes to physics like a duck takes to water, so YMMV.</p>
<p>Here’s my prejudice - I think that endless re-taking of the SAT’s is a waste of valuable Saturday morning sleep time. Twice is surely torture enough. If after getting her scores back she feels that she needs to retake she will have all summer to prep for it. Another possibility is for her to walk in cold to the ACT and see how she does. Some kids like the ACT better.</p>
<p>Agree with everything MarinMom said. The subject tests take stamina too, and many students have posted on CC about significant score drops on their third subject test of a single sitting. I would split up the SAT IIs over May and June, then see where she stands with all scores before scheduling Fall retakes (October and November are options for many colleges’ ED deadlines). And will re-emphasize the point that your high school curriculum may not cover the test; geek_son also had to self-prep for a subject test, and didn’t find that out until the last minute.</p>
<p>As MarinMom pointed out, the ACT is another option if she finds that she needs to use a Fall SAT sitting for a subject retake. The ACT sittings begin in September and don’t fall on the same weekends as the SAT sittings.</p>
<p>If I had it to do over again, I wouldn’t have pressed geek_son to take the SAT I a third time; two sittings (plus subject tests and ACT :p) were plenty.</p>
<p>I’m not a parent–just a high school junior </p>
<p>But I can tell you that taking 3 at once is veryyyy tiring. Especially if they’re completely different tests. (Not Math I, then Math II…etc) I took USH and Math II on the same day and I was exhuasted by the time I got to the second test. It’s an hour for each test but it’s extremely intense. At least if you want to finish the test. </p>
<p>She should save at least Math II for June because it never hurts to learn more math. And Math II covers quite a bit of trig so waiting to finish PreCalc/Trig is a good idea. </p>
<p>I agree about trying the ACT if she’s kinda short on time. If she does well on it, no point taking the SAT again. If not, she can still take the Oct SAT (most popular test date for seniors anyways). And even the Nov SAT is not too late for EA/ED schools. Most RD schools will take Dec and Jan SATs as well (although it’s not really recommended)</p>
<p>This is all good advice that I will share with D. If she just goes with APUSH for May, do we need to make the change with college board now (and pay the fee) or just not complete the other two tests on the test date. Would we be refunded?</p>
<p>Also, any advice on prep books for math2 and physics? I think she will try to do a bit of self study before the tests.</p>
<p>With the new score choice option, she could go ahead and take all three at once, see her results and then re-take one or two if necessary in the fall ?</p>
<p>^^ beware that some schools want all your scores anyway with score choice. YMMV.</p>
<p>bca- no she would not get a refund, she would just leave after the first test. How about going in hoping to take 2 (not three) tests and have her decide after test 1. You’ve already paid for 2 and 3. When you register in June, you can register for 1 test and then she can take additional tests deciding right then and be billed later.</p>
<p>Good luck. My D took one last December and plans to take two in June. I agree that although some kids do well with 3 it is a lot. The ACT is a good option also.</p>
<p>I’d think about taking the US History and Math 2 this year. The science SAT Subject tests can get a bit dicey, because your school curriculum may not have covered all the topics that will be covered on the test. My D’s saved the science SAT subject tests for the fall of senior year and studied during the summer. </p>
<p>If she doesn’t like her Math score, she could also retake the Math 2 in the fall along with the science test.</p>
<p>Do you have SAT scores in hand and are you satisfied with them? If not, I’d think about taking the SAT Reasoning in the first weekend of June and the ACT on the second weekend of June.</p>
<p>I’d try to get the SAT reasoning testing done before senior year, if at all possible.</p>
<p>Don’t overdo the May tests; sports are exhausting and the brain is not functioning that well on a typical Saturday morning after a week of competition. As Marin Mom said, shift some of the burden to June or next fall. You will have a baseline SAT from March, and should expect a slight improvement on that with next fall’s retake. This should be enough information to form her college list of safeties and matches.</p>
<p>If she is planning to take AP Physics next year, she might consider saving that SAT II for next October or November. Are Physics and Math in her probable areas for a major?</p>
<p>Senior fall was the busiest, most stressful time my Ds experienced in high school! The work involved in researching colleges, getting college applications done, interviews scheduled, recommendations lined up is prodigious. Judging by the fact that your D will need 3 SAT Subject tests, that probably means that she’s applying to a number of high end schools in the fall.</p>
<p>We had hoped to leave the fall for a SAT retake if necessary. She doesn’t have any scores yet since the March test date was her first one. I have to believe she’ll want to take it once again no matter what her score. She did no prep and though I think she probably did well, I know she is prepared to do some sample tests before a retake in the fall.</p>
<p>So, that is why the plan was to get the SAT2s out of the way this spring. She is taking AP Physics next year but again she had hoped to get these tests out of the way. She will apply as an undecided major and really doesn’t know what she wants to study. She is an all around strong student who does well in math & science but I really can’t see either one as a major. The first two SAT2s were naturals with Math2 and USH since she is in APUSH and she chose physics over literature because she thought it might be easier for her. Any thoughts on this?</p>
<p>I think I might suggest she split the 3 tests between May and June as some people have suggested. 3 in one day seems tough. And, after the May 8th AP test her APUSH class will really be done. That class demands a lot of work! She could do the math and physics in June and leave the summer for studying for the SAT. (Of course she will have essays to write, maybe a few college visits left, work, etc.)</p>
<p>We aren’t really even considering the ACT though I guess her results on the March SAT might help informa any future decision. My older college age daughter didn’t even give the
ACT a thought though I know some kids have recently started to do so in this area.</p>
<p>Three SAT II’s in one day is maybe a little difficult, but not that hard. . . perfectly feasible, and potentially less disruptive than spreading them over two testing sessions.</p>
<p>My older child took three in a day and did ridiculously well. I suspect he just had tons of adrenalin flowing going into it because he knew it would be tough. I think drawing out the testing frays kids nerves.</p>
<p>Definitely agree with kids needing the sleep time. I’m just about to wake D for the ACT. She was at a track meet all day yesterday, and is exhausted… I hope this is the only time she needs to take it.</p>
<p>Good luck to your D Karen (and all other kids taking it) I know you are overseas but not sure where. My D is doing her last bit of prep and then getting a good night’s sleep.</p>
<p>My oldest (who admittedly thrives on bubble tests) couldn’t have done better on the three SATs he took on one day. We’ll see if the same holds true for S2! Since I don’t think he’s likely to apply anywhere that requires three, I figure he’ll be able to throw out the low score.</p>
<p>If you don’t mind wasting the money, I’d sign up for three and then if she’s feeling exhausted she can skip the last one. But I don’t think you’ll get penalized for retaking one if necessary. And many schools are fine with score choice and the subject tests are the perfect place to use it.</p>
How did she do?</p>