<p>Hi, parents. I'm posting in this subforum because I'm afraid the others would give me unhelpful commentary. I'm a fall 2009 transfer with an extremely lopsided SAT Math and Verbal score. Will they toss my application after reading this --</p>
<p>College GPA: 4.0 (~55 credit hours by the time I transfer)
SAT: 800 Verbal, 750 Writing, and **440 Math<a href="1990/2400%20overall">/b</a></p>
<p>Applying to:
Rice (Political Science)
Vanderbilt (Political Science)
Washington University in St. Louis (ArtSci - Political Science)</p>
<p>Should I retake the SAT to boost the math score? I'm afraid I would SCORE LOWER ON THE MATH! I also cannot afford to retake ($$). I've heard that the SAT is not weighted as heavily for transfers. I'm ambivalent since math is a point of weakness for me and I doubt I would be able to improve (I can only take the January 2009 one and obviously I'm ill-prepared). I understand the dismal score will elicit gasps from the committees and cast doubt upon my academic strengths; however, I've researched the degree requirements at each school and there is no core math requirement (it won't prevent me from graduating with a high GPA). Therefore, does having a 440 Math = immediate rejection?</p>
<p>Parents, are you familiar with any success stories of lopsided SAT scores? Thank you! :/</p>
<p>I have quite a bit of familiarity with transfer admissions, but obviously am not actually an admissions decision-maker. There are no “right” answers, but here are some thoughts:</p>
<ol>
<li>SAT scores matter less for junior transfer than for freshman admissions or sophomore transfer.</li>
<li>It doesn’t seem to make sense for you to re-take since you are afraid you might even do worse on the math.</li>
<li>However, if you want to give re-take a try, you could go ahead now and submit your current scores. Only send the new scores if you do better.</li>
</ol>
<p>IMO, a strong application wrt GPA, prof recs and essays can go a long way to mitigate that math score. BTW, do you need to do any kind of statistics or economics coursework for your major? Have you done any such courses at your current school and how did you do in them? What type of science/quantitative courses have you taken and how did you do? Do the schools where you wish to transfer have distribution requirements for science/quantitative credits and how will you propose to fulfill those?</p>
<p>Where (or to what kind of school) are you transferring from? Some schools don’t require SAT/ACT scores if you come in with an AA/AS degree or over 30 credits. I don’t know if this is the case with the schools you mentioned, but if you’re looking to add others, this might be a consideration.</p>
<p>I’m not coming in with an AA/AS degree. I’ll be a second-semester sophomore transfer.</p>
<p>I’m taking Microecon and Macroecon next semester, although they’re not required for a Political Science degree at any school. At these schools, I can fulfill quantitative requirements with Logic and other non-“math” courses. My current courseload is filled with foreign languages (Arabic and Russian) and upper-level political science courses.</p>
<p>Take a look at the Transfer Students forum, at the top is a sticky thread: Transfer Admissions 101. As jmmom said, your SAT scores and HS record will take a back seat to what you’ve done in college when you transfer as a junior.</p>