Hi-
I have a 2310 (800CR,770M) on the regular SAT, and a 4.0 cumulative GPA. I’m going to be taking Math II, Bio, and Lit this weekend, but have not been doing terribly well in practice tests (740 Math II, 660 Bio, 660 Lit). I hopefully should be able to break a 700 for Bio, but realistically will not be able to get up to the mid 700s in all sections. I’m looking to major in Econ, so none of these tests are directly related. How much are these scores likely to be weighed versus the other academic benchmarks?
@Alex99 I believe only one of the Cornell schools requires SAT2s for admission. Your 35 is fine (congrats, BTW). If you happen to not get absolutely great SAT2s, no one will care. Colleges know that one Saturday is … only one Saturday. Your 35 already says you meet every academic criteria required for success at their schools.
@Alex99 my daughter had a 35 ACT with less than wonderful subject level scores and she is finishing up her first year at an Ivy. I doubt very much that her scores had a negative effect on her evaluation.
I don’t think it matters that much either. My son is at UChicago and had a meh score on the Physics subject test. BUT you do need to show super strength in math somewhere in your app to show that you are ready for Economics as it is a very math driven major. I assume you are taking some strong math classes and perhaps have some nice AP Math scores to self-report on your apps.
But for people wondering, I talked to a college counselor who said that subject tests are really just a benchmark that you need to hit– for most schools that’d be a 700, for elite schools maybe 730-740. But either way it’s probably not going to make or break your application.
The only ivies that still require two subject tests are Dartmouth, Brown, and Cornell (and Brown accepts ACT in lieu of both SATs and subject tests).
Yale, Princeton, and Penn now recommend two but do not require subject tests. Columbia now does not even recommend subject tests but will consider them if you decide to submit them. Harvard has a schizophrenic policy which says subject tests are usually required but they are optional.
How important subject tests are has obviously changed from only a couple years ago when all the ivies required subject tests. There has been an obvious move away in the last two years from giving them real importance. There appears to be some acceptance going on that the new SAT, because it is designed to test things you actually learn in high school, reduces any need for subject tests. In any event, they probably still have some real weight at the ivies that still require them, but at Columbia they may have little weight and for others they can probably help but likely will not be used against you.
First of all, congrats @achils172 !!! That’s awesome, and if I may hazard a guess, you were using Barron’s practice tests?
To others:
Cornell requires 2 for Engineering and Arts&Sciences. (Required math for engi) 1 test, choose either math level for Architecture.
The other Cornell colleges have no such requirement.
And I would think that the other ivies, which “recommend” the tests, would prefer to see some scores. (As others have pointed out, they’re not all important, but it’s nice to have them support your academic background.) From what I understand and have heard about Harvard’s policy, basically if you can afford them you should take them. They just don’t want to penalize low income students for whom 2 extra tests-- the hassle, the time, the actual entrance fee-- are a burden.
That being said if you have an otherwise strong app, and time will be better spent focusing on essays, grades, etc. Don’t worry about subject tests. (Might as well take them though, if you have taken related classes.)
