I am thinking of transferring out of state due to some family matters, but I see that the colleges I am trying to apply to even as a transfer require SAT/ACT scores to be submitted to them, I don’t understand why, I pretty much bombed the test in high school thinking that it wouldn’t be necessary if I am trying to transfer, now the problem is I have a good college GPA and math/science GPA, but a really low SAT/ACT score to transfer. Can anyone guide me? Should I retake or something? or should I just apply thinking they wouldn’t care much about it?
Google the Common Data Set for your schools and look at section D. It shows what is used for transfer admissions. If it says “Some” it usually means for students with less than two years of college. As to whether or not you can retake, do ask the schools. I don’t know of any that will accept an SAT/ACT taken by a college student since those tests were developed for HSers.
When transfering into junior year, majority of colleges do not use test scores for admission, In fact, they do not even consider your high school transcript with grades except to prove that you actually completed high school with the minimum course requirements needed of freshman admitted to the college. However, there are a number of colleges that still consider test scores and high school grades for junior transfers and that includes a number of high ranks.
If you are trying to transfer into sophomore year, you will find that the vast majority of colleges will still consider high school grades and test scores for admission. One reason for that is the abscence of much of a college record. You usually apply and are given a decision in your second semester freshman year and thus the only final college grades the new college gets are your first semester freshman grades. Also, there are colleges that follow a guideline that for sophomore trasnsfer admission, they give preference to those who would likely have been admitted as freshman.
Whether a college that does consider test scores for transfer admisison will accept a test taken after high school varies among the colleges and you have to research the issue for each college you are considering.
@drusba do you have any examples of schools that will accept an SAT/ACT taken in college? I keep asking if anyone has any evidence of such and no one has provided any.
^My impression has always been that majority that require test scores will accept tests taken in college. Some schools I know that accept test scores after high school include:
UChicago: requires test scores of all transfer applicants and they can be new scores; in fact, if existing test is more than five years old or you did not take one before, you must take a new one to apply.
Northwestern: requires test scores of applicants which can be recent tests and if you have not taken a test before, you must take one to apply.
Brown: requires test scores and they can be recent tests, because community college applants can often include those who never took the test, a test is not required of them but it strongy recommends that they take one to submit when applying.
Yale: makes transfer decisions in spring in any given year and accepts through the January SAT and Feburary ACT test of the same year for transfers .That one is actually clearly spelled out on Yale’s site http://admissions.yale.edu/standardized-testing-transfer-applicants.
Stanford: requires test scores of transfer applicants, has a March 15 application deadline and accepts through the January SAT and February ACT tests of the same year for that application. Stanford also clearly sets that out on its site: http://admission.stanford.edu/application/deadlines/
UIUC: test required of applicants to sophomore year but not junior year and test can be taken in college, except that only a test taken in high school can be used to meet certain course requirements in college (e.g., high SAT reading or ACT English score from a high school test, but not one taken in college, can be used to meet freshman writing course requirement when applying for transfer).
One I know of that requires tests but does not take tests taken in college is WUSTL