<p>Hello ! My dad spoke to someone in the admissions office, and he was told that I am only allowed to submit either the SAT or the ACT, but not both. D: I'm not sure if it's true? If so, which should I submit?
SAT: 2240 superscored
ACT: 33 (both times), but the thing is that the first time i got 33E, 33R, 36M, 28S
the second time I got 32E, 33R, 32M, 35S</p>
<p>So, my science improved greatly the second time; however, my math score was higher the first. Gaaahh, I wish they just superscored the ACT. :/ Do you know if they'll still look at the breakdown for each test? I retook in on Saturday, but sending those in would just be taking a risk !</p>
<p>Well the good news for you is that Columbia is one of the schools that super-scores the ACT and there is no reason why you can’t send both. In fact, I am pretty sure Columbia would rather have both tests you’ve taken then just one. I don’t know where your dad got his information from but it sounds pretty counterintuitive to what the Columbia admissions rep at my high school said to me a couple of weeks ago.</p>
<p>There must have been a miscommunication between your dad and Columbia, because his information is wrong. The following is from the Columbia website (which is the best place to find all pertinent Columbia admissions information):</p>
<p>"Standardized tests are required for admission according to the following guidelines; all test scores must be submitted directly to Columbia by the testing agency. Please note that Columbia requires that students submit scores from all test dates.</p>
<p>SAT
The SAT consists of three sections, each graded on an 800-point scale; if you take the test more than once, you will be evaluated on the highest score you receive in any individual section.</p>
<p>ACT
You may alternatively take the ACT Assessment, graded on a 36-point scale; if you take the test more than once, you will be evaluated on the highest composite score you receive. The writing component offered by the ACT Assessment is mandatory for candidates for Columbia.</p>
<p>SAT Subject Tests
In addition to either the SAT or ACT, you must also take two SAT Subject Tests. For Columbia College, you may take any two; for Columbia Engineering, you must take any mathematics test and either Physics or Chemistry. Students must submit all SAT Subject Test scores from all test dates."</p>
<p>Christy12 and BorneoQueen, please note the following language from the Columbia website:</p>
<p>"Columbia has always expected applicants to report all required standardized testing for which they have sat and will continue to do so for 2011-2012.The application review process for Columbia College and The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science is rooted in the belief that students are dynamic, multi-faceted individuals who cannot be defined by any single factor to determine their suitability for admission. When evaluating applicants, we consider only the highest testing results reported from individual sections of the SAT (or the highest Composite on the ACT), and the two highest required SAT Subject Tests, always seeking to give students the greatest opportunity to showcase their academic talents and hoping to make the testing experience as stress-free as possible. We encourage applicants to take those examinations no more than twice, but we do not penalize applicants for exceeding that recommendation.</p>
<p>Students should officially submit all scores from all sittings of the SAT and SAT Subject Tests. Students may submit only their highest ACT composite score officially and self-report other ACT scores by adding them to the Additional Information section of the application. While the College Board sends a cumulative record of all testing for one fee, the ACT requires separate fees for each test date; we do not want ACT takers to incur greater costs, so applicants may officially report only their highest ACT Composite (with subscores) and self-report all other ACT scores."</p>
<p>Perhaps I’m the only one here who understands plain English. The website I quoted states the Columbia requirements very clearly. If you take both the SAT and the ACT, you must submit both. I don’t make any judgment as to whether this is the correct policy, but it is the policy. Perhaps there’s a clueless administrator answering the phone, but I would always trust the website over a stressed administrator. If you want to risk your admission over a misguided phone answerer, go nuts.</p>
<p>If a student took both the ACT w/writing AND the SAT, s/he does not need to submit both. S/he only needs to submit ONE of them, since Columbia requires either the SAT or ACT w/writing. (“Columbia has always expected applicants to report all required standardized testing”-meaning either the ACT w/writing & 2 SAT subject tests, or the SAT w/writing & 2 SAT subject tests)</p>
<p>What is most surprising to me is that this question has been asked in numerous threads over the last three years, and this is the only thread I’ve seen where the language of the website is questioned. I suggest that Columbia restate the language of its policy on its website, and seek to use proverbial words of one syllable. If anyone with any authority at Columbia is reading this, please do so.</p>