<p>I have a 3.8 GPA (at a top public school) with a 2020 SAT. However i am extremely lazy. I live in New Jersey and im looking for preferably larger schools in the northeast mainly and a little bit in the Southeast. What are some of the top schools that dont require SAT 2's or by not submitting them wouldnt hurt my chances?</p>
<p>A lot of schools don't require SAT II subject tests if you submit the ACT as an alternative. For example:
Yale: Standardized</a> Testing | Application to Yale College | Freshmen | Office of Undergraduate Admissions
Brown: <a href="https://emt.askadmissions.net/brown/aeresults.aspx?did=2&cid=2035&quser=standardized+tests+required+for+admission&submit=Go%5B/url%5D">https://emt.askadmissions.net/brown/aeresults.aspx?did=2&cid=2035&quser=standardized+tests+required+for+admission&submit=Go</a>
Penn: Penn</a> Admissions: Required Tests</p>
<p>Stanford recommends but does not require two SAT II subject tests:
FAQ</a> : Stanford University</p>
<p>The University of Chicago requires either SAT I or ACT, but does not require SAT II subject tests in either case:
University</a> of Chicago College Admissions | First Year Applicants</p>
<p>Same at WUSTL</p>
<p>Johns Hopkins is SAT/ACT optional and does not require SAT II tests:
Hopkins</a> Undergraduate Admissions :: Apply :: Standardized Test Requirements</p>
<p>Same for Bowdoin:
Frequently</a> Asked Questions (Bowdoin, Admissions)</p>
<p>In short, your options are almost unlimited. But being "lazy" is not a good reason to avoid SAT II tests. That admission alone should disqualify you from any of the foregoing schools.</p>
<p>Bclintonk: John Hopkins is SAT/ACT optional for transfers.</p>
<p>Bates is SAT/SAT II/ACT is optional and not considered in the app process:
Bates</a> College | Apply</p>
<p>UNC-CH does not require Subject Tests, though it is extremely competitive for out-of-state students.</p>
<p>The Service Academies, Notre Dame, William & Mary, Northwestern, Chicago, and Johns Hopkins all don't require SAT II's. There is a site called Compass that has the complete list. The list shows that only about 40 schools in the nation require SAT II's.</p>
<p>^ Good reference. The website is:</p>
<p>Compass:</a> Admissions Requirements</p>
<p>It actually shows only 26 schools where SAT IIs are absolutely required---and 9 of those are UCs. (Others are Caltech, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Harvard, Harvey Mudd, Haverford, MIT, NYU, Olin, Princeton, Rice, Washington & Lee, Webb Institute, and Williams). </p>
<p>Another 18 schools require SAT IIs if you submit the SAT I, but will accept the ACT as a substitute for BOTH SAT I and SAT II. </p>
<p>Another 25 schools recommend but do not require SAT IIs.</p>
<p>The vast majority of schools do not require SAT IIs.</p>
<p>That is a good reference and it helped a lot thank you. Id really prefer not to take the SAT 2's but after all it does open more options im considering just taking math level 1 and math level 2. How do colleges view SAT2 scores... they look for 700+ right?</p>
<p>My daughter was accepted at Carleton without SAT IIs. She had super SAT and ACT scores and 5's on her AP tests, so that was apparently enough.</p>
<p>^^ I'd say 700+ is generally a pretty good score on SAT II but it depends on context. If you have all 800s on SAT I, lots of AP classes and all 5s on AP tests, and a perfect GPA, then low 700s on SAT won't look so good. For most mere mortals, low 700s on SAT IIs look pretty good and will either confirm or upgrade the strength of the application. I think SAT IIs are more often a kind of verification point for schools, confirming that the high GPA really means something, for example, and that you've really learned something of substance in HS and are not just riding in on your "potential." As such, I suspect they're rarely decisive.</p>
<p>Not so sure about just doing two maths, though. Some colleges say you should just do your strongest subjects; others encourage one math and one something else, or one math/science and one humanities/social science. Harvard politely hints that applicants "may wish to convey the breadth of their academic interests by taking tests in different subjects," which means you'd better spread your three Harvard-required SAT IIs around if you want to be considered seriously for admission. Princeton says if you're applying in engineering you need one math, one physics or chemistry, and a third of your choice. Check with the colleges where you plan to apply.</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure that Colgate, Middlebury, Holy Cross all don't require SAT IIs.</p>
<p>I don't understand why colleges let people subsitute ACT+Writing for SAT I+SAT IIs. Maybe SAT+SATIIs is mch more preferred and better for admission? Because honestly, studying for ACT+Writing is a piece of cake compared to studying for both SAT I+2 SAT IIs...</p>
<p>^ In some parts of the country---most of the Midwest, much of the South, and the Rocky Mountain states-- ACT is dominant, and very few people even bother to take the SATs. On the East Coast and in California, the SAT is dominant and relatively few people bother to take the ACT. Most colleges in the ACT-dominant parts of the country prefer the ACT. Most colleges in the SAT-dominant parts of the country prefer the SAT. But Midwestern colleges don't want to shut out applicants from the East Coast who may never have taken the ACT, and Eastern colleges don't want to shut out applicants from the Midwest who may never have taken the SAT, so they accept the one as a substitute for the other. For the vast majority of colleges, it's as simple as that--ACT or SAT I, either works and that's all that's required.</p>
<p>Very few colleges require SAT II, but it's becoming increasingly common among top colleges, especially on the East Coast. But that's where it gets a little tricky. SAT I is basically an "aptitude" test, not an "achievement" test; the goal (or so they say) is to measure your reasoning ability, not how much you know. The ACT is both an aptitude and an achievement test; it is explicitly designed to test how much you know in certain areas, like math (through trigonometry) and certain core areas of science. SAT II is a much more specific battery of achievement tests in particular subjects. ACT in a way tests more than SAT I, but less than SAT I + SAT II. So where do you draw the line on substitutability? A lot of schools, not wanting to shut out applicants from the Midwest, South, and Mountain West, have said, "OK, close enough: we'll accept ACT as a substitute for SAT I and SAT II." A few--Harvard and Princeton among them---have said otherwise, basically concluding, I think, that they'll get enough strong applicants even if it means forcing some Midwesterners, Southerners, and Mountain Westerners into taking SAT IIs in addition to their ACT.</p>