<p>I took the SAT this June and received a 2260:
800 M, 680 CR, 780W.</p>
<p>I don't know what happened with Critical Reading... I'll find out in a few days. Nevertheless, should I retake the SAT (with intent of primarily raising the Critical Reading score), or keep my old score? I'm not sure if the 680 CR score would be sufficient for most competitive schools (HYPS).</p>
<p>If I retake it, I'm also concerned that I might do worse in Writing, as well as the possibility of colleges not looking favorably on someone who's retaking a 2260.</p>
<p>Right now, I'm interested in top Ivies, as well as Stanford/MIT/Chicago.</p>
<p>Thank You!</p>
<p>P.S. I'm an Asian male... which might set the bar higher?</p>
<p>So what I've gathered so far, from multiple sources is as follows:</p>
<ul>
<li>Some colleges do superscore, including competitive Ivies and the like.</li>
<li>Retaking the SAT for negligible point increases may be detrimental to your application.</li>
<li>There is some sort of threshold for the possible point increase per disadvantage (as shown above).</li>
<li>If you score over a 2250, increases in SAT score won't help that much... the rest of your application is more crucial.</li>
</ul>
<p>And a whole lot more...</p>
<p>What I'm taking from this is that the SAT basically places applicants in a certain echelon, in which 2250-2400 scoring students may be regarded similarly, where a 2280 vs. a 2320 doesn't make a whole lot of a difference.</p>
<p>Correct me if I'm wrong, or please feel to present alternative theories...</p>
<p>i would honestly not bother retaking -- thats such a great score that it really isn't worth the rist...just focus on your ECs, essays, recs, and making the rest of your application as great</p>
<p>Wow, zafara17, those are the exact same scores that I got! 680 CR, 780 W, 800 M! I didn't retake the SAT--I really think you're okay. I got into Swarthmore, and UChicago, among other liberal arts schools--didn't apply to any Ivies, Stanford, or MIT. But I bet that those scores are good enough to get your foot in the door, so to speak.</p>
<p>take it again - my writing score went up 120 pts (660 --> 780) with no studying. its worth a shot, and check with individual colleges, but it seems the general trend to superscore.</p>
<p>zephyravatar--you really think there's much difference between a 680 and a 710? Oh, certainly! With a 710 you can be competitive, it gets risky with 680. I mean, come on!</p>
<p>Obviously a few points aren't going to matter. But there is plenty of room for improvement between 680 and 800... worth retaking if you believe the first test didn't accurately reflect your ability.</p>
<p>680 is also below the "average" score of people accepted at most Ivies. Below average never looks good.</p>
<p>My general FAQ about retakes is below. Of course, the only sensible reason to retake is if you think you can score SIGNIFICANTLY higher (above the error of estimation range around the previous score) the next time you take the test. </p>
<p>ONE-TIME TEST-TAKING </p>
<p>Colleges have given up trying to distinguish one-time test-takers from two-time or three-time or even four-time test-takers, because that wasn't useful information to the colleges. There are a number of reasons for that. </p>
<p>1) The colleges have utterly no way of knowing who spends all his free time practicing taking standardized tests and who takes them "cold." </p>
<p>2) The colleges are well aware that students who have actually taken the tests sometimes cancel scores, so they have little incentive to give students bonus consideration if the students submit only one test score. </p>
<p>3) The colleges are aware that students who take the admission tests at middle-school age, who are numerous, do not have their earlier test scores submitted by default. </p>
<p>5) Colleges are in the business of helping students learn, and they don't mind students taking efforts to improve their scores. They know that students prepare for tests. </p>
<p>
<p>These arguments make sense to Mr. Fitzsimmons [dean of admission at Harvard], who said, “People are going to prepare anyway, so they might as well study chemistry or biology.” He added that “the idea of putting more emphasis on the subject tests is of great interest” to his group.
<p>so now there is less reason than ever to suppose that colleges care how many times you take the test, because the colleges have no way to know how many times you took the test officially. </p>
<p>Colleges treat applicants uniformly now by considering their highest scores, period. </p>
<p>Most schools consider all 700+ scores pretty similar, so basically never retake with a 700. With a 680, a retake wouldn't hurt you, but I also wouldn't say you <em>need</em> it. If you really are confident that you can score higher, and you have the time and the money for it, then by all means, go for it. I got a 660 CR the first time a took the SAT, and most people advised me to retake it. I was pretty confident that I could've raised my score with a bit of studying (didn't study the first time), but my other scores were fine and I felt like I had better things to do with my time, so I decided not to retake. Basically, it's a close call, and it's really just about what you want to spend your time doing.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the advice-- I think I'm gonna wait until I receive a more detailed score report, then go from there. Retaking still remains a viable option.</p>
<p>Yeah, to sum it up, I'd say retake if you can confidently get like 750+ or at least increase your scores significantly, but come on, your score's already high enough! Don't stress it too much, haha.</p>
<p>I'm basically in the same boat here: 800 on Math and Writing, but 680 Reading. I've been waffling for about a week whether or not I should retake. This thread is now making me lean towards "Don't give College Board another dime."</p>
<p>I'm hoping that 800s on SAT II could override a lower Reading score.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I'm basically in the same boat here: 800 on Math and Writing, but 680 Reading. I've been waffling for about a week whether or not I should retake. This thread is now making me lean towards "Don't give College Board another dime."</p>
<p>I'm hoping that 800s on SAT II could override a lower Reading score.
<p>I would consider it, just to improve the critical reading if you don't feel comfortable with that score. But congratulations, those scores are great. I was in the same situation because the first time I got a 670 on CR, but I took it a second time and I got a 720. Too bad my math didn't improve that much (only 10 points and it was very low in the first place). I don't know how much better a 700 would be compared to a 680. I'm assuming not that much. But if you think you can get a 730+ it might be beneficial.</p>
<p>OP: You need to get your SAT1 CR to above 730 in order to have a good shot at top Ivies + S + M.
You could have let it go if CR and W were to switch but CR score is very important to the top Ivies.</p>