Should I retake the SAT?

I have a 1550 superscore and a 6/5/6 essay score. Is this good enough for universities like Stanford, MIT, and UPenn? I know Stanford requires the essay, but is my score high enough? Also, does anyone know of any good admission chances calculators? I don’t want to waste time applying for universities that I have no chance of getting into…

For each school of interest, check their Common Data Set sections C9 to C12 to see how your numbers compare to those of the last entering class.

I doubt a 1550 would rule out any college

I wouldn’t bother to retake the SAT. A 1550 would be sufficient to get you considered at any school and there’s always the chance that next time you score lower.

Most of the selective schools in America have “holistic” admissions, which means there is no set calculator where you can plug in GPA, test scores and a few other criteria to see if you’ll be admitted. The GPA and test scores are the first indicator the colleges look for to make sure you’re academically qualified and could handle the rigor of the college, but that’s really just the starting point for admissions. Selectives will be looking at all sorts of other things (some of which are known only to them), including extracurriculars and letters of recommendations.

1550 is fine, but not every school super scores. You should check with the schools that you are most interested in. That said, all those schools are insanely hard to get into regardless of your scores so make sure you have some matches and safeties on your list. And make sure you LIKE them and would not be devastated to attend.