For schools with less than 10% admit rates, what is generally considered a competitive SAT score?
2200 and above? 2300 and above?
If you scored a 2260 on the first try, would you retake it or would you be done- if a top tier school was your goal?
I would retake it (but only once, no sense in being a damn fool about it) if you are aiming for <10% admit schools. It might be enought to get you in anyway, but retakes are common enough that it doesn’t hurt to be on the safe side.
You’re not going to get in on the basis of an SAT score. The deciding parts of your application will be everything else.
I wouldn’t retake a 2260.
I’m going to post basically the same thing all of these threads get. There are two scenarios where you should retake a high SAT score.
The first is if one of your scores is exceptionally low compared to the others. That means that you have a 2260 with an 800/800/660, etc. The other case is if your scores are all good relatively speaking, but your math score is below a 760 and you’re applying to top STEM programs. This might be a 2300 with an 800 CR/700 M/800 W, or anything similar.
A 2350+ should almost never be retaken (it’s usually not even worth it for the extra points on the math section – just show your math skills through the SAT2s), and a 2250+ should usually never be retaken. These two scenarios apply to very few people, and if you have an even split (720+ for each section) you really have nothing to worry about.
Appreciate the responses. Yes- this is only one piece of the big puzzle but all the other important parts are already there (good EC’s, leadership positions, top grades, great recs, excellents essays etc- just like so many others that will be applying at these schools)
In this particular situation, the scores are all 720 or better with 2 sections above 750. Not applying for competitive STEM programs. There isn’t much room to go up but lots of room to go down and not sure it’s worth risking a lower score in an effort to get all 3 sections above a 750. However, have been told that the schools with lowest admit rates want all 3 sections 750 and above - and that admission chances will be diminished with one section slightly below a 750. Seems hard to believe that this will be the deal breaker???
750+ on each portion of the test.
If Writing is the section below 750, I don’t think you need to retake, because that’s the section colleges usually care less about.
Having one section below a 750 definitely isn’t a deal breaker; I know many people (including myself) who have gotten into schools with a section below 750. If you’re a junior, I don’t really think it would be the most productive use of time for you to retake (unless you have consistently scored better on practice tests and feel like you can easily get higher) .
What if your writing section is very low compared to your other sections? Is retaking worth it just to improve writing? I have a 1470/1600 Cr+M but only a 610 writing. How bad does this look for top business schools?
I actually also have a 2260 SAT score (740/780/740), and since I’m looking at a few competitive colleges, my college guidance counselor told me to take it one more time to see if I could just do a little better.
I wouldn’t @paraguas
@Preprep Hey, that’s a pretty good breakdown!
I mean I have 800/800/690 and I’m a junior but I’m not retaking it. I think it’s stupid to take it again. Once you surpass a threshold, everyone’s the same; that’s when it depends on ECs and Essays. If you’re that desperate to retake it, odds are you’ll do worse on a section and they’ll know you wanted better.