<p>(Long time CC lurker)</p>
<p>Hey guys, so I got my Jan scores yesterday, and I've been struggling to decide if I should retake my SAT or not.</p>
<p>I got:</p>
<p>800 Critical Reading
800 Math
680 Writing (66 MC and 10 Essay)</p>
<p>I got lucky for the CR+M, and I don't think I'll be that lucky in the retake. So the question is, should I retake just for the WR?</p>
<p>(I'm gonna apply to Rice, Carnegie Mellon, Northwestern, JHU, etc.)</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>bump10char?</p>
<p>yes. do retake.</p>
<p>thanks!
but what if my CR+M scores go down? What would the colleges think?</p>
<p>well, most superscore, so it should not be a problem.</p>
<p>Yeah, I think it’d good that you retake it, just to try to bump it to 700+. It doesn’t matter much if your CR or M goes down unless they both go down significantly. (Let’s say, a 650 or lower in each section would be considered a significant drop.)</p>
<p>And I agree with thepotato’s point. Most colleges superscore so a small drop isn’t an issue.</p>
<p>I think it depends on where you are applying and what you are applying for. If you are looking at schools like Georgetown which only accept Critical Reading and Math, then I think it would be a waste of time, money, and energy to retake. Also, if you applying to an engineering program or intend to major in physics or something related, then I would say that 680 certainly suffices. </p>
<p>Good luck with your decision! It really comes down to how YOU feel about the score; I think the stats of Ivy Leaguers and acceptees prove that SAT scores above a certain range pretty much qualify applicants for consideration, but do not determine acceptance or rejection. Make sure that you are not too focused on tests and have other strong parts of your application to back up your strong scores.</p>
<p>You should retake. It’s pretty easy to raise your writing score. I spent a month doing exercises out of a comp. book and my writing score went up from a 56(Oct. PSAT) to a 780(78 MC 9 Essay) in January.</p>
<p>thanks guys!
Would October be a good time to do the retake? (I’m a junior btw)</p>
<p>As long as your schedule allows for studying, yes.</p>
<p>You’re probably aiming for a 2300+ superscore.</p>
<p>In my opinion, if you’re that close and intelligent enough to get 800’s in CR and M, your doing yourself a favor by retaking it.</p>
<p>BTW, I’m planning to ED Hopkins for ChemE, and the 2008-2009 common data set says for SAT writing that “No college policy as of now”. Does that mean JHU doesn’t look at the writing component?
Anyway, even if JHU doesn’t look at writing, I’m still planning to retake in October, because they superscore.</p>
<p>violin325, which comp books do you recommend? (I saw some “SAT II Writing” books, but I’m not sure if they’re ok)</p>
<p>Again, thanks everyone!</p>
<p>I agree with travelbug. Not taking it again shows were your priorities are. Schools know that the Writing score is subjective and unreliable; an MIT study after the first year showed that the longer the essay, the better the score, no matter the content! Scoring the essay has evolved as a result of the criticism, though. There are clearly some schools that do look at it, to break ties or to compare the writing style to other writing samples submitted. Not taking the test again shows you know this and have confidence in yourself.</p>
<p>SAT II Writing books are okay. I used Warriner’s English Grammar and Composition.</p>