It may be a good time to take a deep breath, step back and let him be in charge…
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I am curious if there are schools that prefer to see ACT scores over SAT’s?
Nope. Colleges have no preference for one test over the other. If your son has an SAT score that he is happy with, there would be no reason to take the ACT. (Unless he really enjoys taking standardized tests 
)
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I have a weird child who took each 3 times and missed them when she went to college.
He told us this morning he got 1510 on his school SAT he took two weeks ago. Says he can do better on ACT in June…maybe he should be looking for a summer job taking standardized tests for fun and a little money…
And good on him for wanting to move forward with the ACT after that excellent score.
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One of his buddies scored 1540 so he wants to match it🤪
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I am looking at several SAT to ACT conversion tables and seeing different numbers. Some say 1510=34, others show 1510=33. Is there an official version of the conversion table that can provide a definite answer?
I am looking at several SAT to ACT conversion tables and seeing different numbers. Some say 1510=34, others show 1510=33. Is there an official version of the conversion table that can provide a definitive answer?
The ACT has a science section (actually data analysis) which is not on the SAT. He should at least familiarize himself with this type of question before he takes the ACT for the first time.
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Congrats to your son!
Not only is he an auto direct admit at Kelley (Indiana), that score puts him in the running for the ACE (honors) program within Kelley. Also it should result in merit money from IU that puts the total per year under $50k.
His score also puts him over the median SAT at Gies (Illinois), which is somewhere in the low to mid 1400s. Note that Illinois does not allow superscore. So that’s a great single sitting number!
If your son applies very early to IU, he will get a very early acceptance that you will be able to afford. Applying early to many schools means you won’t hear until December at the earliest. With Indiana you can have one in the bag in September or October.
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I understand a science section on ACT is, as you said, more about data crunching, probabilities and critical thinking than testing your knowledge of hard sciences.
Yes – but it can be disorienting to those who have never seen it before. Your son really should download an official released ACT test (its free) and at least take a quick look at that section. Otherwise, he is likely not to do as well on the ACT as a) he can and b) he would like and it is a wasted opportunity.
The math and english sections are similar enough to the SAT that he doesn’t need to review them if he doesn’t want to, since you said he doesn’t like practice tests.
Thank you and appreciate the info on IU. The parents are WAY more excited about the score than he is.
His score breakdown is R/W 770 and M 740. Could the ‘lower’ math score be an issue when applying to business schools?
Thank you, I will pass this on to him.
Here is the link to a free, downloadable, official test
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Not sure how accurate they are, but these are my thoughts:
The 770 on verbal is a really big deal. In my experience, it is hard to prep your way to that high of a score on verbal. The kids scoring in that range tend to be voracious readers. And that fits with the way you described your son. He should 100% list reading as an EC on the activities section of the Common App. He can describe genres of interest, etc. and what he finds most fascinting. His verbal score is confirmation of the time he puts into that EC.
The 740 on math puts him around the 95th percentile. I think this is probably great for everywhere except the quant heavy business programs (think MIT, Carnegie Mellon, etc.). My guess would be that a lot of the kids who score in that top 5% of the math portion peel off into STEM majors, not business. 740 is a low score for a computer science major at a competitive school, but probably not for business.
It is worth noting that a lot of business schools only require 1 or 2 semesters of calc and a semester of stats. If your son is taking Calc BC, he might not take additional math (other than stats) in college. Which makes me think an AO won’t be looking for perfect math scores.
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I was not aware IU had rolling admissions. Great info. With that early acceptance in hand, this student can be more selective with his additional apps.
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The Kelly School website says the portal is open as of August 1.
The Illinois-Gies page says it’s open on September 1. Does that mean you are applying direct admit to the B-school?
Now I am thinking he should apply at Pitt. I am a PennState grad, but willing to forgive him if he gets admitted with a nice scholarship.
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Pitt has moved more towards need. He’s competitive but I doubt he’d get one of the big, named scholarships.
Just a guess but he’s probably in the $10k range which would put COA around $40k. Look at some of this year’s Pitt threads for a better guess. I’d take Kelley or Gies. He’d probably get better merit from Ohio State.
Pitt business is small and direct admit though.
If he’s good with Gies or Kelley as a safety I’d play the merit game. SMU Cox, Richmond or Fordham Gabelli. Some of the state schools like South Carolina or UGA would work.
He could try Georgia Tech Scheller. It’s around $50k OOS but can be done in 3 years with enough AP credits. Add in internships or a co-op and it works out to 4 years total but 3 years cost. S20 took this route. Transferred to Industrial Engineering.
As for the SAT score he could quit today with a 1510. Spend the time on essays. Is his superscore higher? Good luck.
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