<p>Sorry, I just joined and I'm not sure where to post this but I have a question. If I'm ranked number 2 out of 747 students in my school but my SAT score is low (right now I stand at around 1700), would I still be able to get into colleges, such as UF or UM with any financial aid? I don't have any leadership positions as of right now but I have joined over 8 clubs.</p>
<p>I think SAT is considered above Class Rank and clubs in most colleges. You should try taking the SAT like ASAP and try for a better score if you’re worried.</p>
<p>Honestly, scoring a 1700 isn’t too hard to do. Seeing that you are a top 2 student in your class would only show them that your school isn’t up to par.</p>
<p>I think it shows that your school isn’t very challenging.</p>
<p>Wait, really? Even though I took 6 AP classes as a sophomore?</p>
<p>So far, I have a 4.0 GPA and a 5.3 GPA (weighted or unweighted? not sure, but I do have straight As)</p>
<p>Some people just aren’t that good at taking tests like the SAT. I know a lot of people who are very smart and have high grades, but don’t have that high of an SAT score. Maybe you could try the ACT? I liked the way the ACT was written MUCH more than the SAT :)</p>
<p>^ Yes, the ACT is much different.</p>
<p>The ACT requires more academic knowledge with more difficult but more straight-forwardly worded questions, while the SAT is more of a reasoning test that purposely tries to trip you up with its wording. Try the ACT. :)</p>
<p>That awkward moment when the Salutatorian has a 1700.</p>
<p>you will not get into a school with an average SAT of 2050+ with a 1700 SAT. if you want a decent shot at getting into such a school, try to improve your scores (either by retaking the SAT or trying the ACT). take some practice tests if you didn’t prepare the first time, etc.</p>
<p>otherwise settle for schools with <1900 average SATs.</p>
<p>Having a perfect GPA and low SAT score shows that your school isn’t challenging.</p>
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<p>If you can get straight As in school but can’t get above 600 in each section, it means that getting those As didn’t teach you very much/wasn’t very difficult to do. At least that’s how colleges will evaluate it.</p>
<p>Perhaps try the ACT.</p>
<p>UF and UM, are Florida schools that mostly care about your FCRAP (FCAT) scores. Seeing that you have a good class rank and GPA, you’re fine.</p>
<p>^UM is private. They will care about the SAT more than a Florida state test.</p>
<p>@alwaysleah What would be an ideal ACT then?</p>
<p>30+ for UM <a href=“BigFuture College Search”>BigFuture College Search;
<p>As high as possible…I agree that 30+ is a good mark to aim for. If you want merit aid, you might want 32+</p>
<p>Also, as far as ECs go, 8 clubs is counterproductive. Get really involved in 3-4 and get leadership in 1-2. Joining 8 things really isn’t useful.</p>
<p>sorry to break it to you, but I think that means your school isn’t really challenging. having a 4.0 just means you’re doing well in your classes, which may or may not be comparatively easy to more rigorous high schools.</p>
<p>Meh, I have a somewhat jaded view of FL schools. What it means for OP (how admission will see it) is that he’s a hard worker but a bad test taker. Sometimes that’ll work in your favor.</p>
<p>The UF websight contains very useful stats which would give you a good idea of your chances. You can see how your weighted gpa and your SAT scores, and a combination of the two, stack up against the scores of their most recent admitted class. I remember that it was a little hard to find at first, but it is a wealth of good information.</p>
<p>I would also take a look at FSU. You certainly have a shot at UF, but would have a better shot at FSU. </p>
<p>In any case, keep taking the SAT. Since UF superscores, you have little to lose, and even a small increase in your SAT score might make the difference between getting in or not.</p>
<p>My son increased his SAT score the second time he took the exam by about 110 points, with zero studying. So if you work hard over the summer doing practice tests, you should be able to at least do that. </p>
<p>As for financial aid, UF is rather inexpensive. University of Miami is super expensive, and they seem to give the most aid to people with very high SAT scores.</p>
<p>As for your rather low SAT scores (given that you are so highly ranked), I would be interested in learning how well you did on your AP tests. If you didn’t do well on your AP scores, that would tend to reinforce the possiblity that your grades are inflated. In other words, if you get an “A” in AP American History, but only get a “2” on the exam, that would indicate that your “A” is suspect. However, if you can point to some good AP scores, you could stress those in your application, especially if they are in your intended field of study.</p>
<p>Also, you may want to consider some “SAT optional” schools. There are some well known schools on that list. There are a lot of people out there who have great applications (except for their SAT scores), and some colleges don’t care about SAT scores. </p>
<p>Finally, it has been my general impression that high grades tend to be more important than SAT scores.</p>
<p>By the way, if it makes you feel any better, I only got a 1200 SAT score (there was no writing section back then), but still managed to attend some very big name schools. You don’t have to be the first guy they take. Being the 11,000th guy they take is just as good.</p>
<p>But I would say that the ball is in your court. You would seem to have the ability to get a higher SAT score. My recommendation to you would be to bust your butt this summer, and make it happen.</p>
<p>Thanks a bunch for the advices everybody!!</p>
<p>I might consider taking the ACT in case the SAT isn’t working well with me. :/</p>
<p>So far, I only improved my score from a 1700 to around a 1790.</p>