SAT score cancellation dispute

<p>My son took the test after taking a prep course. he did very well, lifting his previous grad by 700 points. Unfortunately, ETS has decided to cancel his scores due to the dramatic increase from his previous result. Has anyone appealed such a decision before? we are preparing paperwork to show he successfully took a prep class. We are not sure if there is anything else we should provide. Anyone have any experience?</p>

<p>Did your son take the November Sat? If so, when did you receive the notice that his scores were cancelled?</p>

<p>The testing company should be giving your son an opportunity to “validate” his score.
This might mean taking the SAT again under more controlled conditions.
If he achieves a score approximating his previous 700-point improvement, the company should treat the initial score as valid.</p>

<p>He took the October 6 exam and we received a certified letter dated November 30th which was postmarked December 6th.</p>

<p>A 700-point increase is an incredible improvement.
Typically, such point-increases are only seen in students for whom English is a second language. After test prep, such students perform much better on the SAT. If your son is a native English speaker, I would also think that the improvement was rather suspicious.</p>

<p>We’re not hearing the entire story here. As far as I know, ETS doesn’t cancel test scores without conducting some sort of investigation.</p>

<p>ETS should have given your son an opportunity to validate his score…unless the company found glaring “irregularities” in the case. I don’t have any inside knowledge of how ETS conducts its investigations. You should definitely communicate with the company to get this issue resolved. Your son should be offering to retake the test under more controlled conditions.</p>

<p>They did give us the opportunity to validate his results. We have contacted the firm that provided the prep class and will provide documentation that he successfully completed the class. Anyone have suggestions on other ways to validate his results, short of taking the test again?</p>

<p>Did they give you some sort of options?, for example a retake, refund or simply cancellation?</p>

<p>yes, those are the options I believe after we attempt to validate.</p>

<p>Why all the consternation? Your son posted a huge score increase. Good for him.
As a matter of due diligence, ETS has investigated the incident and is apparently giving him the option to take the test again. Quite simply, he should retake the test.</p>

<p>If his previous score was legitimate, the score for his retake may climb even higher.</p>

<p>I don’t understand why you (or ETS?) feel the need to contact the prep company to obtain supporting materials. Successfully completing a prep class really means nothing in terms of proving the legitimacy of an SAT score.</p>