I say test early and often. We had guidance counselors recommend against it. Their argument was that the ACT/SAT was designed for the brain of a spring junior. However, testing early gave us more options, such as choosing the ACT over performance on the SAT. It allowed more time for retesting. There wasn’t too much of a downside other than the cost of the test.
That said, reaching out to coaches is an entirely separate issue. One does not need test in hand before starting communications. When filling out the recruiting questionnaires, you can leave the test score spot blank or put down the PSAT score. Personally, I would worry more about starting to reach out to coaches than when to test right now. Reaching out and staying in touch on a periodic basis (at this point, every other month is okay) is so much work that the test issue pales by comparison.
Good advice and understood about testing early, the advantages of testing multiple times, getting it out of the way, etc. I think most of on this board understand this.
I was more trying to get at what @gointhruaphase said Personally, I would worry more about starting to reach out to coaches than when to test right now.
The OP’s son has a 4.0 and rigorous class load so assuming his times are good, the coaches will pick up on that even without test scores in hand.
I agree that those two things are independent, and it’s best to be on the coaches radar. They will keep track of a Jr athlete who is in the bubble, knowing times are likely to drop in season.
As for those few schools that have a hard target for the SAT… you’d be surprised how many 4.0 kids don’t make it.
Specific schools have specific test targets for athletes pre-reads, both in terms of GPA and SAT/ACT. For instance John Hopkins seeks 1520 SAT for recruits, except for their D1 lacrosse team.
There is no particular logic/predictability as to the requirements of each school, but the requirements are clear and worth noting
Test score requirements (and even whether a test score is required at a TO school) can vary by coach within each school as well.
Separately, a number of posters have mentioned completing recruiting questionnaires. Just know that many coaches have no idea where those submissions go. So…if one does complete those, always follow up immediately with an email to the coach(es). Don’t fill out a recruiting questionnaire and wait for someone to contact you.
I was thinking this too. Everyone says to fill those questionaires out, but my son mostly didn’t, and never got a response to the ones he did. I think it’s a better use of time to reach out to coaches directly. If for dome reason they want the questionaire they will tell you.
From what I’ve been told, the purpose of the questionnaires for many programs is to provide reporting and compliance data, and sometimes to provide information to other departments or for other kinds of data processing. It’s not used by coaches as a source.
Our experience was different. My kid definitely got direct emails from coaches after filling out questionnaires before she had a chance to send the follow up emails. One wanted a phone call asap. So I’m guessing some coaches use it. But definitely send emails as those are more important.
Agreed. There were countless meetings at which we gave coaches unofficial transcripts and college CVs. We were then asked to fill out the questionnaire. The coach had no clue that we had already completed the questionnaire, so it is up for grabs how often coaches look at questionnaires…
How could it help in recruiting? It’s a filing cabinet. If the coach is looking for a midfielder with at least a 29 ACT, the questionnaires could help locate someone who fits the bill. For a recruit, however, it’s a low percentage recruiting tool. Nothing beats the gumshoe reaching out to the coach repeatedly, unofficially meeting with the coach, and being seen at showcases. If all you do is complete the questionnaire, do not expect to be recruited. That said, it is a good place to start. Complete it, get it off your plate and move onto the more important communications with the coach.