<p>Yes, I agree with taking both. You might start out with the ACT; if you hit a 35 or higher, some say that’s good enough and don’t need to do any further. Several schools do not require an SAT subject test so if you get a great ACT score, that may be all you need. If finances are an issue, you might send your 4 free reports to your safety schools in Canada. Then you can select which scores you pay extra to send to exactly the schools you want to share those scores with. Some schools do require that you report all scores but many do not.</p>
<p>I would take the tests in junior year; it is unlikely for most students to do exceptionally well at the end of sophomore year. My son took ACT in February, SAT in March, retook ACT in April due to the calculator mishap, did SAT subject tests early May, and is now in AP week. He is taking Math 2 and Physics AP tests and those were the subject tests for SAT that he took as well. It has been intense but then, that’s junior year for you! He will work on his college essays this summer and be poised to take on a rigorous load senior year and send in his applications. We think that is a pretty good schedule. Hope that helps…</p>