1560
20 on essay
Aiming for top 10-15 colleges
No. Sheesh.
To elaborate, you run the real risk of doing worse. 40% of already high scorers will. Getting s few more points will not help you in the slightest. Your Ivy dreams will not depend on getting a 1600, but rather, having a solid application.
I agree. 1560+ is already very competitive for top 10-15 schools so I think you’re good test score-wise. Focus on building up other parts of your application (extracurriculars, transcript, teacher relationships) and you’ll have a very good shot at the schools you’re thinking about.
@Lindagaf What would you consider the cutoff score for a first test to consider good enough for not retaking?
There is no one answer to that @bamamom2021 . It depends on which schools this particular student is aiming for. I can only tell you that something like 7000 kids (not sure, but a low number) in the country will get a score of 1560 on the SAT. I’m a test prep tutor and have never seen a student score a perfect 24 on the writing. 20 is a great writing score.
This person’s score are extremely high. If this student is applying to tippy tops, most likely all test scores will be required. The chances of doing worse on a retake are high. At this level, all it takes is one more wrong answer to slip down into a lower percentile, The risk is simply not worth it. The student might be perceived as an obsessive test taker. That’s a negative, for sure. Highly selective schools don’t care about an extra ten points on an already high SAT.
@Lindagaf I asked because I knew you were a tutor and we are struggling with this decision for my DS20. He was one and done in fall of this year (junior) but we are thinking he try it again in summer/fall of senior year before sending of applications. He scored 1530 and we are trying to figure out if the advice changes at a different level. I just see so many people say don’t retake but was curious where that cutoff is, especially for those in the top 3-5% of class. Where is the tipping point of this is a good enough score or since it was only one time try again.
Has something changed on the essay scoring? The maximum on each section is 8. What is the breakout of each section? Just curious (7,7,6?)
@bamamom2021 , your son’s score is in the 99th percentile. As long as he can handle the possibility that his score might go down, he can try. I think it’s not the best strategy at tippy top colleges, because they usually want all scores. As I said, at that level, it’s going to be one more wrong answer that will bump the score into a lower level.
In general, if a student is aiming really high, 1530 is a very good score. I guess maybe 1520 would be the lowest I’d like to see, in an ideal world, for top 20 schools?
I believe there are some colleges which will give full ride scholarships for the very highest of high scores. I don’t know what that cutoff is, but Alabama might be one of those schools, if that is your son’s plan. You can google “yolasite full tuition” if you want more info about that.
7,6,7 @jym626
@Lindagaf Thank you for your help, I appreciate it
My son just scored a 1500 (780 verbal and 720 math). Given superscoring he wants to take it again.
He tested at the 760-780 level in math sonexpects thst would go up considerbsly but had pre tested below on his verbal so unclear how the net total would work out assuming it goes up. (He said he just ran out of energy by the math section time)
Does retaking make sense?
With a 1560, I wouldn’t take it again unless you were confident that you could get a superscore of 1600 or thereabouts. A 1560 is very good and certainly won’t hurt you, but a 1600 does pop off the page more and will impress an admissions officer more (whether it should is another question). It is important to remember that admissions officers are not uniform and some may find a 1600 no more impressive than a 1560. But I would wager that most would, and that it is extremely likely that at least one is who reviewing your application at some school would.
With regards to other posters above, here is what I generally recommend to my students:
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Shoot for a school’s 75th percentile on both sections. People who score in this range get in at significantly higher rates. Some would say that the relationship isn’t that causal, but I’m pretty skeptical of this, especially at the most selective schools.
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There is a hierarchy of goals. 1300<650 or greater on both sections<1400<700 or greater on both sections<1500<750 or greater on both section<1550. Beyond a 1550, things become less important, though differences still matter to some extent. 800s always pop off the page more, especially on EBRW.
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If one score is significantly lower than the other, try to improve that score a lot. Big disparities don’t look good.
We are struggling with this as well.
With no prep D20 got 800 math and 720 EBRW. Her breakdown was 39 writing 33 reading. She missed 1 question on reading and 7 on writing. 5 were grammar based. So i think with study she could improve in writing. But there is a chance the 800 will slip. And 1520 is a great score. So hard to say.
@VickiSoCal I assume you mean 39 reading and 33 writing.
Most scores care about superscore, so I wouldn’t worry too much about slippage. Besides, 800s aren’t accidents. She may slip some, but it would probably be to like a 770 or something. I would definitely recommend she retake. There is a clear area that needs targeting. That area is not too bad to learn. And, she can improve a lot by targeting that one area. Just make sure she stays sharp on the reading, because that part of the score is not locked in.
750 EBRW is a good goal. 1520 is a good overall score, but a 720 on EBRW would be viewed as a weakness at the most selective schools.
You should be confident in your daughter. Based on her score, I assume she is quite bright and motivated. Let her show off her abilities and impress colleges.
@TheSATTeacher yeah, I meant 39 reading 33 writing. She is bright but does have dysgraphia. Reality is her SAT score is a perfect snapshot of her unprepared brain. Math>reading>>writing so the test works.
You want to move up from the 99th percentile to where exactly?
I might be in the minority but I’d advise my kids to concentrate on some other aspect of their applications.
@VickiSoCal I see. Still, generally speaking at least, the thing with the writing section is that there are a lot of grammar rules that students aren’t too familiar with from school. Of all the sections, it is least continuous with what students see in the classroom. Consequently, for many really strong students the writing section is the part of the test that needs the most prep. Learning the rules on the writing section through and through often makes a big difference. The writing section is really just a matter of understanding those rules along with a few basic compositional principles.