<p>I've already taken the SATs twice, and I think I want to take them a third time. If I already have an alright score and I (hopefully) improve or at least match my current scores on the third test session, would it look bad to take the SATs three times? I'm looking to apply to NYU and UM as my top choices.</p>
<p>No, three times is not too many.</p>
<p>I have seen some discussion on these boards about four times being frowned upon by colleges, but 3 isn't 4.</p>
<p>I do have to ask if you really feel that taking the SATs another time is the best use of your time and energy. I know that sitting for the SATs is a huge undertaking these days - 4 hours of testing, not to mention all the worry, stress, preparation, etc., one does beforehand. If you don't expect your score to go up significantly, it may not be worth it. Your SAT scores are only one part of your application, after all.</p>
<p>I've also heard that three is the maximum you should take; or at least, that was the opinion of my guidance councillor. According to him, three times is fine because it's "one for each of the three components of the test." </p>
<p>The one exception to this is if you somehow took the old SATs (and not as a part of Johns Hopkins Young Achievement). Then I'd say two of the old and two of the new are fine. I don't know if this happens anymore (a former bf did this but he was a HS graduate in 2006, so this is probably outdated), but that's a general rule of thumb.</p>
<p>From the college reps I've talked to they don't care...but eventually you're going to waste your money.</p>
<p>personally I took it 3 times. From some school reps, they said 3 times is fine; however, Harvard came out and said you can take it as many times as you want, they dont care.</p>
<p>i knew a girl who took them like 8 times... a lot during her sophmore/junior year... she applied to tons of good out of state schools. and guess what, she was stuck with her state school. which is not bad... but she got no scholarships, nothing. besides, third times the charm :)</p>
<p>i took it 3 times (one time each during soph, junior, and senior year). i don't think it hurt me, but then again my scores improved ~150 points overall each time. either way, 3 seems persistent, 4 seems obsessive, but i could be biased.</p>
<p>4 seems too much. I'm planning on taking it 3 times. 2 in junior year and 1 senior fall.</p>
<p>Wait until you see what you get the first time, and then consider taking it again if you are unhappy. Usually after two times, any wrongs will have righted themselves. If you are truly unhappy with your score, and know that you can do better, and have some way of proving this to yourself empirically before wasting $80 (try a practice test) then possibly take it a third time. </p>
<p>Do not take it 4 times, do not PLAN on taking it a second time until you have your results fro the first time.</p>
<p>Could I still take it again if I've taken it twice this year, but I took the old one once in 9th grade?</p>
<p>There's nothing saying you can't</p>
<p>i think taking sat 3 times is reasonable, but not more (in my opinion). And brassmonkey is right: you can take as many times as you want.</p>
<p>IMO, two should be fine.</p>
<p>Until you are improving your score by more than 50 points in your 3rd attempt; I think it will hurt you more.</p>
<p>I have asked about this at the Exploring College Options meeting in May 2007 when admission officers from Duke, Georgetown, Harvard, Penn, and Stanford spoke in my town. </p>
<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showpost.php?p=4198038&postcount=1%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showpost.php?p=4198038&postcount=1</a> </p>
<p>It is not a problem to retake the SAT if you have reasonable grounds to think that you will raise your score significantly. "You can take it ten times if you want," as the Harvard admission officer said. Of course you should devote time and effort to other aspects of your application too.</p>
<p>i disagree, if you know u have another shot at it, you may just relax enough during the test to do the best you possibly can. I guess it varies from person to person though.</p>
<p>i've taken it twice. i took it cold and got an 1840. then I studied up a bit (no classes or anything, just going over the Collegeboard book) and got an 1800. the only good thing is that my superscore came out to be 1900, so i guess it wasn't a total waste.</p>
<p>maybe i'll have better luck with the act?</p>
<p>I think if you plan on taking it a few times, I think you should span the test dates over a wide period of time. Like take it once first semester junior year, then again second semester junior year, and finally first semester junior year. That way potentially you'll take the test from three different educational perspectives (and I think the curves are nicer in the fall than the spring). In my experience I took my SATs in the schedule described above and my scores were: 2010, 2010, and 2290.</p>
<p>I'm taking the SAT during my freshman year--will this limit me to only two testings during my junior year?</p>