SAT Retake Advice

Test Preparation
1

<p>Hello all,</p>

<p>I am currently a junior in high school and I am planning to apply to top universities (HYPSM, etc.) I took the SAT on December 1, 2012 for the first time and scored fairly well.</p>

<p>My 12/1/12 scores: 2290; breakdown: (800 writing, 780 math, 710 critical reading).</p>

<p>I have a strong, but not elite GPA (3.88 unweighted), rigorous courseload, solid extracurriculars including biomedical research at UPenn, UCSB, and Rockefeller University. </p>

<p>I am also a double legacy at Harvard (one of my top choice schools). </p>

<p>Will my scores (namely my crtical reading score) offset otherwise good chances of admission? Also, do schools honor the whole superscore idea? I wouldn't want to harm my writing or math scores if I were to not do as well on a retake. And I wouldn't want to look "grade-obsessed" either. What's my best move?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>The only reason to retake the test would be to increase your critical reading score, which is the hardest one to improve. It is already high enough that it won’t really hurt your chances, and boosting it up to even 800 won’t really make a difference. I suggest using your time on something else like your extracurricular activities.</p>

3

<p>Thanks so much!</p>