I’m hoping this is the correct forum for my question. Our state cut a deal last year with the SAT. It is now a graduation requirement to take the SAT. Fine, but I assumed it was at the discretion of the student to keep or omit the SAT when sending in transcripts to colleges for admission and academic scholarships. We have since learned that my child’s school will keep it on. WHAT? So, my child has studied for the ACT, got a great score, but that a not so great SAT score is next to it on their high school transcript? Can anyone address this?
Can the school do this? Can they say my child took the test, but not show the score?
My main question is:What does this look like to selective college admission official? My child is not happy, and depending on this SAT score, it could totally wreek havoc on their college choices and where they are applying. Ivies are out, and state schools are in, what other choice do we have?
Our school put the SAT scores on the transcripts. We asked that it be removed from our kid’s transcript…and they did so.
Have you asked at your school?
Regardless…sometimes kids take these tests more than once. Schools usually look at the best score…not the worst.
We are back from break tomorrow. Child is going in again to talk with counselor and school administrator. They take the test on Wednesday. 
My daughter’s SAT score was 1200. She asked that her ACT be submitted instead, slightly better, and SAT be left of the transcript. School said o.k. She applied to elite schools. Barnard. U. of Chicago. NYU. She got into all of those schools.
After she paid her deposit at Barnard she logged into a portal where they asked for more information. In that portal they had a form where test scores could be entered or updated. And there, right in front of my D’s eyes, straight from my D’s school file … were those SAT scores that she thought had been withheld from the college.
How did the college get them? We’ll never know. My guess is that they had been pulled off the transcripts sent with the initial application, but left on the midyear transcripts that were sent in February. But that’s just a guess.
But my point is that if you want to go to an elite school, my d’s SAT was about as sucky as can be. And yet she had great success in applying to elite colleges.
Colleges look at the highest scores, not the lowest. That’s why they will super-score.
And although I don’t know, this being CC, I am guessing that the SAT score you are stressing about is probably a heckuva lot higher than my daughter’s.
The colleges will take the higher of the ACT or SAT scores. No worries.
I agree that this is unfair. I read somewhere that a group of parents in Illinois are suing to have this rule changed. But unitl then, yes, ask for the SAT score to be taken off the transcript.
I would put the request in writing and get the school’s agreement to leave it off in writing as well
There are schools that require all standardized test scores. You may have to release this to the schools even if it is not on the transcript.
I actually question the notion that this is “unfair” in any case. Obviously there is a perceived benefit to the applicant to be able to withhold information from the college…but on the other hand, a college has an arguable right to want full disclosure of relevant information about its applicants – and it is also arguably unfair to other applicants if some are able to withhold information that are disclosed for others.
That is, if the high school guidance counselor has 2 students applying to Ivy U, and student 1 has an SAT score of 1300, an an ACT of 32, and asks the gc to withhold the SAT; and student 2 has an SAT score of 1400 and an ACT of 30, and doesn’t ask for any special favors from the GC – then how is it fair to student 2 to allow student 1 to hide their lower SAT score?
I realize that there is a lot of this sort of gamesmanship in college applications, including students who retake SAT & ACT multiple times with intense prep and tutoring to raise scores, competing against students who simply do not have the financial resources to for the prep sessions and multiple retakes. So that’s the system we have: an unfair one that benefits students with greater resources and greater understanding of their options.
But the unfairness resides in the ability of a student to choose to withhold pertinent data, not in the practice of a given school to eliminate that option.
Why does anyone worry about this? Thousand of students every year take the ACT, and then are forced to take the SAT for NMF consideration or other reasons. You’ll have to take each college at their word that they will consider your highest score. If not, there is nothing you can do about it anyway.
We requested the removal of the standardized test scores from the transcript because at one point…DD was considering applying to test optional schools. School granted the request.
At the end of the day…she applied to schools that required the scores.
No time to study for a test that is permanently on your transcript. We found out last week we don’t have a choice, which we had with the ACT. Kids take the state forced test in 2 days. Awesome.
Did your child just find out that she would have to sit for this exam?
I know that in NYC all juniors will be taking the SAT in school (the NYC DOE is paying for the exam). This was announced during last school year giving them months to prepare for the exam.
What would be the consequence if your daughter did not sit for the in-school exam and took the SAT at a later date (on you)?
Students should be able to apply to test-optional schools- without scores!!! http://fairtest.org/university/optional
My kids didn’t study for SAT’s. But it is important to read a little about test-taking strategies on the website. Whether a wrong answer makes a difference, how to prioritize time and so on.
Once more…schools look at the best scores…not the worst. Lots of kids take multiple tests…and dombetter one time or another or on one test or another.
I think you think that the colleges will look at the lower score only. They don’t.
Here’s the way I think about it. Colleges recognize that there are lots of ways that a low score is a fluke (kid isn’t feeling well that day, broke up with a girlfriend the night before, made an error on filling in the answer sheet, etc.) A high score on the other hand is earned. You don’t end up with a high score as a fluke. So they are willing to overlook low scores and just count the high ones.
Is the requirement simply that he take the test or that it be taken at a certain time? Can you take it march of senior year, after all decisions are rendered?
I apologize for not being clear. We live in IL, and for as long as I can remember, everyone prepped and took the ACT. Unless you had goals of attending a selective school. For the last 10 years, the state board of education paid for every Junior to take the test. Great! We also didn’t have to have it on our transcripts if we so chose. Then, our lawmakers wouldn’t play nice with each other and for the last 2 years, we have been without a state budget. No more free ACT test. Enter the SAT. Yes, we knew the school was going to require the juniors to take the SAT to graduate. BUT, what was not communicated was that it was going to be a part of their transcripts. Not even great. My son figured this out over spring break. If he didn’t, I would have never known. His friends, my friends, his counselor, our associate principal did not know. So, now it’s Monday, the 2nd, and guess what, yep, you better cram for that SAT because there is no way out of this SAT on Wednesday. My son is disappointed. He decided after a sketchy 8th grade that he wanted to see how far he could go academically. He has studied his butt off and has done well. I personally think he wants to get as close to a “perfect” transcript as he can. Meaning a high GPA, extra curriculars and of course, the almighty college entrance exam. Which for us, was the ACT. Until last week.
Postmodern, you are a genius! I was excited until I talked to my son. He had already posed this question and the answer from his counselor was a firm no. “All juniors must take the SAT their Jr. year in order to waive finals your senior year, if you have a certain GPA”. I don’t understand this, we always had to take our finals in high school, but that is another subject. I can tell you, my son studies like I never did. Meaning, he actually does it.
Thank you all for taking the time to respond. I am aware of the lawsuit and now so is our school. I hope it passes in time to help out this years’ juniors. We are working with good people who want the best for their students. Not sure our State Board of Education actually thought this through. The boy will take the test tomorrow and do his best. Thanks again! Grateful to have this community of people to turn to in this process!