@shinemf101 Thank you you did amazing too congrats!!! 
@shinemf101 And Ikr it was so ridiculous!! Like I was eligible for a fee waiver so I went and saw the lady in charge of them (some guidance counselor that wasn’t mine) and asked for one. At first, she said that they weren’t offered to freshmen only juniors and seniors despite the contradictory statement on the CollegeBoard website. I had to literally go over there and show her the thing on my phone for god’s sake! And even then afterwards she pulled me into her office and went on and on over how much of a bad decision it would be to take the test, how I would get a score that would prevent me from getting into any good college, that I couldn’t possible be smart enough for an SAT at my age and on and on and on. She was horrendously rude! Jokes on her though while she was berating me for everything under the sun she failed to realize that I’d already signed up to take it!! :)) :)) But honestly I didn’t expect someone to outright be that rude, especially not a guidance counselor! I mean their job is to support students and push them towards reaching their goals not demean them!! But yeah, lol that’s my story! :))
onlyworthypotato. Sorry to hear this. This GLC is not supportive at all. Maybe you should let your GLC know and the school principal should be informed of this situation. Good luck to you and Keep believing in yourself!!
@onlyworthypotato Wow, that’s a terrible guidance counselor. I can’t believe she would downright say that you’re not smart enough to take the test! And pretty much anyone can take the test, no matter how old they are. I had a similar experience with my test proctor, and she asked me (since I’m a freshman), whether I was had special permission to take the test and I said that I didn’t, and I wanted to take it and signed up on my own. She eyed me skeptically like she thought I couldn’t do it.
I’m glad she didn’t discourage you though. I guess some people just don’t really believe in freshmen.
Hi @gkdudtlffj Many of the students here seem to be first generation and/or in a position where they don’t have the type of guidance and support that other students may have at home (e.g., educated/motivated parents with the financial, language or other means to provide support). After providing support to my kids on tests and summer programs, I try to pass on any experience we’ve learned in the hopes that it can help such students during this college readiness process.
Having completed some SAT subject tests, I try to pass on info that has helped my kids.
My daughter declined the SSTP program for another program this summer. Hope you’re having a great summer.
@onlyworthypotato hi, i don’t know who to contact on this thread, but i was wondering if you or anyone else here could give a bit of advice.
i got a 660 on this test (my second try) and i was really upset with the score.
the thing is… i’m going abroad for a break and was wondering if i should give that up and take the august test instead.
would that be a wise choice? :((
@clone89 @shinemf101 Thank you guys for your support! It feels nice to know that there are other people out there who know how I feel when these sorts of things happen! I’m just happy that she isn’t my guidance counselor thank god!! 
@rhsstudent123 Here’s my two cents dude! So it’s perfectly understandable to want a better score for yourself but just one thing, don’t be too hard on yourself! If you honestly tried your best then you should be proud that it came to fruition. And as a side note, subject tests aren’t a measure of how good a student you are, or how smart you are in a certain subject, despite what the CollegeBoard may advertise. The true trick to the Biology SAT is to know the material and most importantly the way it will be asked. If you haven’t had the time during the school year to study properly now’s your chance. I think that if you feel that with study you can pull yourself to a better score then go for it. I myself went from a 530 to scoring a 760 on this test! If you really want it, you’ll push yourself hard enough to get it. For study, I truly recommend Barron’s (and by that I mean get the book, it’s super helpful to highlight and take notes and everything in there). Not only was it a short read (I went through 2 sections a day and finished the book in about a week) but it is detail oriented to the point that you will know probably anything under the sun that could possibly be tested. Everything Barron’s went over, no matter how minute, truly did help. The best part is, both practice test scores I got were a 760 showing that they were accurate. After you go through Barron’s (but before you leave) check the official CollegeBoard book for SAT Biology it has an additional two practice tests to go through for review. Make sure after each practice test mark the subject areas under which you struggled and go back and take notes on them and what you missed more specifically. I filled an entire notebook chock full of useful information this way. When you write things down you remember them no matter what. Final tip, get a good night’s rest the night before and the day before the test don’t take a practice test or heavily review. You won’t have time to absorb the information after. Just take the time to look through your notes, making sure to not cram. Set out everything (ID card, admission ticket, pencils) the night before to grab before leaving. Good luck and I’m sure you’ll nail it this time if you choose to!
@onlyworthypotato Hey I am going to be a senior. I have taken two SAT subject tests and gotten 730 bio and 730 math II. I took AP Bio this year and ended with a 97 in the class and a 5 on the AP. I have also always been accelerated in math and took both AB and BC and received great grades and 5s on the APs. I am wondering what your thoughts are on my subject tests. I have a 35 ACT and 1540 SAT as well. Should I retake both the subject tests?
Thanks
@mocktrialer5 Congrats on your great ACT and SAT I score! The answer depends on what schools are you targeting. I’m no expert, but 700+ seems to be sufficient for most schools. Given the 5 in AP bio that you have achieved (congrats on that too) and because I saw my kids spend less effort preparing for the Math 2 than for the Bio, if you’re going to retake one, I would lean towards the Math 2. But if you’re a bio person and don’t have to spend a lot of time memorizing random bio facts, bio might be the way to go. Again, all depends on where you are applying and whether you have the extra time to prep and take the test again.
@mocktrialer5 Hey so here’s my stance. You have already taken all the APs you can for math and biology. You’ve done amazing on them both. Not only that but you have stellar SAT and ACT scores (you should totally send both to wherever you apply will show that you not only are good with critical thinking {SAT} but also with hard sciences and advanced math {ACT}). Unless you’re going to be applying to a place that requires Subject tests (as in the Ivies) don’t retake. You already have amazing scores under your belt and two Subject tests (APs are harder btw) aren’t going to change anything for you. Now if you really want to spend the money and time during your senior year of all times then go for it. But it would probably be in your best interests to leave them well enough alone and focus on writing some killer essays to back up your killer scores. Best of luck with the admissions process and have a great senior year man!!
Thanks man! @onlyworthypotato
Thank you @ThinkOn
@ThinkOn Woah. Declined the SSTP program? Wow, I got alternate for that 
What program did she choose over SSTP and what grade is she in?
@gkdudtlffj She’s a rising Junior. The SSTP program seemed wonderful, and the type of research she was assigned to was right up her alley (biochemistry) and I’m sure she would have a wonderful experience there, but she opted to attend the UC Davis Young Scholars Program, attracted by the bay area and hopeful that she would be assigned to a lab where she would engage in bioinformatics and coding, which she was. She seems to be learning a lot through the lecture series they hold at the program and enjoys her lab. Hope this helps.
@ThinkOn If you don’t mind, since you seem to have a lot of experience with research programs with your daughter, what are some good research programs in SoCal?
@onlyworthypotato I don’t want to hijack this thread (anymore that is). Can you please start a thread on the Summer Programs, or PM me. Thanks.
@onlyworthypotato hi, hope your summer is going well. I’m preparing for the sat bio in august but i had a lingering question about the test…
is it better to skip questions i don’t know/am not sure of? is it better to do them?
thanks!
@ThinkOn i was wondering if you or onlyworthypotato could answer a question i have… thanks!
is it better to skip questions i don’t know/am not sure of? is it better to do them?
I’m taking the sat ii bio in august btw
@rhsstudent123 Hey dude! My summer is going pretty awesomely bummed that school is starting in just two weeks though… My strategy for questions that I didn’t know was skip…at first. What you’ve got to do is start by looking at the question then seeing if you can eliminate some of the answer choices. Cross them out on the test booklet if it helps (you are allowed to write on the test booklet just not the answer sheet). If you can’t narrow it down to one or two skip it and if you have time at the end come back to it and think about it some more. If you can narrow it down to two choices ONLY, only then should you guess. You’ll have a 50/50 chance of getting it right then. But any higher stakes than that, you don’t want to risk because it’ll most likely dock you points from the points that you have correct already. If you’re not sure this actually works! If you just don’t know the information, don’t bother. You’ll lose out on points easily that way.
Best of luck on your August test!! I’m sure you’ll do great! 