<p>DS took the SAT the first time in March. Respectable scores, but he's taking it again for sure, with more prep this time.</p>
<p>If he's only going to take it once more, would you recommend June or October? He's already taking calculus and AP english, so I don't think the coursework next year would help him much.</p>
<p>Theoretically he could consider a 3rd sitting, but if that were the case I'd want him to take it in May when the answer service is available, and there's no way he'd saddle up for the SAT in the middle of AP exams.</p>
<p>Opinions?</p>
<p>FWIW, scores were m-740, cr-680, w-660 (i hear there was a rough curve on the march math test. he missed 2 questions....)</p>
<p>Is your son a jr? My son is & had similar scores. He's retaking in June (I think). He wanted to re-take in May, but I encouraged him to give himself more time to prep (taking the online College Board course--he never took a formal prep course before).</p>
<p>Not to be test crazy, but if things don't work out in June, then they still have a window to try again....</p>
<p>Yes, he's a junior.
It stinks that the answer service doesn't seem to be available for the June test, only the May.
Anyway, school is out before the june test, so that's our plan, too. If he's really close to some magic number (whatever THAT might be, these days...) he could retake in the fall.</p>
<p>I'm thinking of getting him the Barron's 2400 book. So many test prep books are not focused on getting really high scores, just acceptable ones. I hear the Barron's is more focused on squeezing out the best possible score.</p>
<p>That's interesting re: the Barron's book. I don't know if you've read the CC SAT thread--but Xiggi (a long term poster) has some excellent advice. He recommends using the College Board books which have the actual tests in them & reviewing both your correct & incorrect answers for the 'reasons why' for both. The blue book is really good.</p>
<p>Any ideas on how to encourage effective prep for the essay? It's like pulling teeth to get son to practice his essays & since it's a fairly new addition to the SAT, I don't think the advice out there re: this is as foolproof as for the other sections. Also--if you don't mind--wondered what you meant about 'answer service'?</p>
<p>My son took the SAT in May after a March sitting and the scores were virtually identical. He mostly wanted to improve his writing score. He wrote a much better essay, but didn't do as well on the multiple choice and ended up with exactly the same score. His math score went up 10 points. The curve is brutal on the math SAT1. No room for carelessness there. I think May or June is tight, but doable if the kid really does the review work. Fall of senior year is pretty hectic, I was glad my son didn't feel pressured to take the SATs then.</p>
<p>Consider whether or not he will need SAT subject tests. June is an ideal time to take them in whatever course work is being completed then. A number of my daughter's senior friends had to scramble this fall to take subject tests they should have taken as juniors.</p>
<p>My girls were diappointed in their scores and are retaking in June-Sub tests in May and ACT in April. My thought on the fall test date is that if scores still aren't quite there there is not much wiggle room to fit in another test date for EA much less prepare </p>
<p>Kids do get sick of testing but really they have a choice: suck it up and do it if they want to try for the scores they need to be competitive for school X or, set their sights lower which an equally valid course of action.</p>
<p>I suggest that you talk it over w/ your S, make sure he knows the ramifications of a spring vis a vis a fall test date and let him make the decision. Good Luck</p>