Should I even bother taking the SAT again?

Test Preparation
1

<p>Hi. I'm a junior in high school and I've taken the SAT twice. My first sitting I got 2180; Wr: 790, Math: 750, and CR: 640. The second time I took it, I was hoping to raise my score in Critical Reading. I felt pretty good about my test, walking out of the testing center. I knew for sure that I had done worse in math, but I thought CR had been easier this time around and Writing, my usual strong point, went well. I was extremely disappointed to get my results back; I got a 2010. Wr: 760, Math: 670, CR: 580. Like I said, Math wasn't a surprise to me. However, writing is my best subject and although I got a 12 on the essay, it wasn't enough to pull up my multiple choice score. And so much for the confidence I felt about the CR section... </p>

<p>I guess my main question is, should I even bother taking the SAT again? Obviously, I want a better score, but I feel like if I take it again, my score might get even worse. I tried to study for the last one, but I've been so busy with school, whereas with my first SAT, I had all summer to study. I really want a score that will guarantee me in UC programs (I want to go to UCLA), and could be potentially appealing to Ivy Leagues (if possible). I also heard that some colleges look at all of the SAT tests you take, so would it just ruin my chances if I take ANOTHER test and do badly on that as well? Any suggestions? Possibly SAT score ranges I should target for if I want to get into good UCs and attempt Ivy Leagues?</p>

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<p>A 2180 is a freaking great score :). People seem to lose perspective on this site. HOWEVER I’d say sure. Take it again; I took it a third time and just brought up my score by 120 points. Most schools only care about your top scores, and three times is still an acceptable number of times to take the test. If you do worse, don’t worry about it. If your schools have score choice, you don’t even have to send in the worse scores.</p>