This is probably a dumb question, but is there any harm in sending scores now to schools that require them before filling out an application? S24 will be working on his common application this month, but then has a pretty tight deadline for one of his first schools and I’m wondering if he should just go ahead and send test scores now. I guess I’m just wondering what happens on the other end when they get these random test scores and cannot match them to an application? I feel like back in the dark ages when I applied to college, I already knew all the schools I was applying to, and had my SAT score sent directly there when I sat for the test. But everything has changed now with test optional, common application, etc.
Personally I would wait. One of my D’s schools “lost” the early score report and we had to pay to have them resent. They found them a couple of weeks after they got the second report.
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I would also wait, and double check each school’s website to see if they require official scores, or accept self-reported test scores on the app (at the schools where one is applying with test scores)…save the $ if you can.
Also make sure you know the test score deadline if an official score report is required…does it have to be in by the app deadline? Or is there a grace period/later deadline?
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Agreement with others: wait.
Most schools these days will take self reported scores, which they then only require confirmation of if you enroll. At that point, they will specify as to whether they need the scores sent from the College Board (which you can just log on and send off), or they’ll accept scores if they are recorded on the student’s high school transcript by their registrar.
Check each college’s website for their own requirements, and follow their instructions.
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Once we were sure that all standardized testing was completed, both my kids sent scores to all of their target schools in August of their respective senior years with no issues.
Our thought process was that it was easier to send them all at once at the beginning and check that task “completed” rather than keeping track of this step separately for each school as applications were submitted, keeping track of which schools needed an official score report vs. self-reported, etc. It’s a small thing but in the chaos of application season, any step that can be completed early was a plus for us. Obviously one still needs to check individual school portals once applications are submitted to make sure all the boxes are checked and everything has been received.
The (minor) downside was that scores were sent to some schools that the kids didn’t end up applying to because they were accepted to their ED school prior to the regular round so some applications were never sent. But we viewed that cost as so minimal relative to the cost of the whole college admission process that it wasn’t a factor for us. If finances are super tight, the answer might be different.
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We ended up sending scores to all. We had a good SAT score that hit merit levels at every school, and we ended up using the free score reports for the retake later this month to send both the old score and the new one. All of the schools super scored, but on the couple of schools I checked today, while they were test optional, they required an official score report for merit consideration, so be aware of that possibility as well.
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Can you share which schools require official score reports for merit? Thanks!
Note the free score report will only send that day’s test scores, not any previous ones.
For example, you have to send a test score for automatic merit at Alabama. And it has to be an official report.
The free score reports require that you send the score from the test for which you registered (so you can not use the free report and opt out of sending the score from that administration) but I could and did add the prior test as well.
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Does Alabama superscore? I can’t find that anywhere on their website. This one of his schools.
They superscore for admissions, not for automatic merit scholarships.
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D23 sent scores to her whole application list early in senior year(she was done testing at the start of junior year). The college counseling office at her private high school encourages this, if testing is done and there aren’t concerns about spending the extra money.
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Last year my D sent official scores in Sept or Oct to the 4 schools on her list that required official scores even though she didn’t apply to any of those schools until Dec/Jan. It wasn’t a problem at all. (She took advantage of self reporting through Common App to all the others).
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Is that new? My S22 sent previous scores with the test day’s scores, but that was 2 years ago. We could select which scores to send. Perhaps it has changed now.
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