Hello! I’m a rising junior and I’m registering for my first SAT - I’m aiming for a high score (1550+) but also want to get it out of the way asap (definitely before senior year). Do you think the August SAT is too early? I am also planning on taking the October PSAT (should it happen fingers crossed). Thank you!
Maybe you could just wait? There are thousands of rising seniors who really need those August spots. Besides, if you qualify for National Merit, you need an SAT after October, so you’ll be taking it again anyway. Just my thoughts on the matter, as someone who works with a lot of teens who are losing sleep over not being able to get scores for their own National Merit qualifications and for other merit scholarships.
I just looked up the requirements for the SAT for NMS and it doesn’t say that it has to be after October - where did you find this? I found that you have to have a score from August 2018 to December 2020 that matches your PSAT score.
Also, can a bad SAT essay score hurt you? Should you take the SAT essay?
August SATs are only for priority registrants if they are not full already.
Anyone can sign up for August now, if there is a seat left. Your August score, if high enough, would confirm your NMSF score. We know kids who took the August SAT as prep for the Oct SAT.
Now, whether you should take a seat when so many kids going into their senior year haven’t gotten a chance to test yet, is another matter. I would think that most everyone needing that score still has already signed up, but I suppose it depends on where you live as to how aware of the the testing issue the population is. Where we live, I’m sure lots of kids aren’t even aware registration has opened.
A bad score won’t hurt you. You just don’t send it. There used to be a few schools that required all your scores to be sent, but I don’t know if any do anymore. You can google this just to make sure.
This is not true. And concerning if you are providing this information to “lots of teens”.
For 2020:
“ AUTHORIZED TEST ADMINISTRATIONS
Only scores earned on administrations of the SAT or ACT from August 2017 through December 2019 will be considered by NMSC. NMSC will not accept scores from a test administration taken earlier than August 2017 or later than December 2019.”
Your score needs to be between the first administration of the year before you took the PSAT to the following December. August Sophomore year to December Senior year.
It’s been roughly +/- 1 year as long as I’ve been following it.
Many of us with rising Juniors have discussed this over the last year and are having our students prep for both this fall. I’m debating between October and November for the SAT, but if you are prepped, or have time to prep, August should be fine. It may even be better if you have a heavy courseload and free time due to cancelled summer activities.
It would be nice to have it out of the way if you do well.
Yes, the August SAT the summer before your junior year is on the early side, but so what? Nothing wrong with being a little early, but just be prepared.
The March SAT in the Spring of your junior year is always an excellent time, since the PSAT is taken in October and then May and June are usually focusing on AP exams and finals.
Whatever fits your schedule.
No, August is not too early. As long as you feel you are ready and you can find a testing seat, go for it.
SAT registration for August/September/October is now open to everyone, as the priority registration period for those rescheduling from the spring has now passed. Some places in New York are reportedly having an issue with all fall 2020 seats being full and students not being permitted to travel too far from their area to take the exam, but that isn’t happening everywhere.
Georgetown, Yale, and Carnegie Mellon were, I believe, among the few holdouts in terms of requiring you to submit all scores. Things are constantly changing these days, so do your own research.
Not a lot of colleges ask for the SAT essay. Again, you have to do your research to see what the colleges of interest to you require. DD was given the option, when we registered her, to keep my credit card number on file. Doing so in turn gives her the option to add the essay portion of the test at the last minute, which would give her more time to research what her colleges want, see how well she does on them in practice this summer, see how she feels at the end of a grueling hours-long test, and have more time to make that decision.
I stand corrected. My apologies. Our counselors have always told me you needed to validate with an SAT AFTER the PSAT. I guess I should have looked it up myself. I would stand by my point that maybe the student, and others like him or her, should consider waiting so that seniors (particularly low-income students who do not have the advantages that many others do) can have a chance at those spots.
Would getting a bad score on the SAT essay hurt if I’m applying to schools that don’t require it?
@kuma16 What was your PSAT10 score?
I took the PSAT/NMSQT last October and got 1420. I took a practice SAT test from the blue book a month ago and got a 1560
No, I think it is not too early. I am also a rising junior. I planned to take SAT in August. However the test is cancelled in my region. Then I switch to take June ACT.