College-Bound and Hopeless

Some say 8, some say 6. I applied to 9. Make sure that you have one or two backups that you’re absolutely sure will admit you. The rest can be a mix of “match” schools (ones you’re fairly sure about) and “reach” schools (pretty far off).

Make absolutely sure that you are excited about each college you’re applying to, including your backups. Don’t apply to a school you’re not sure about or don’t like. If you don’t think you have enough information, contact the admissions office. Ask for students who might be able to answer questions, e-mail faculty, do whatever you need to do to learn more about that college. 

We apologize for the recent lack of posts. Many of us, myself included, are in the process of moving to college.

Ben

It’s hard to generalize about superscoring. That said, I will proceed to generalize about it.

It seems that colleges more often superscore the SAT than the ACT. But first, a short explanation of superscoring…

[Superscoring is the practice of pulling the highest score in each SECTION of the test, and creating an independent composite score.

For example: Student X took the SAT in June and received a 600 in Math, 570 in Reading, and 690 in Writing for a total score of 1860 in that sitting. He retook the test in September and received a 620 in Math, 520 in Reading, and 720 in Writing for a composite score of 1860 for the second sitting. If a college superscored the SAT, then student X’s composite would be 1910.]

Here’s an outside blog post that explains superscoring in the context of the ACT, and also includes a list of colleges that superscored the ACT in 2008. If you do use this list, make sure to contact or reasearch each college you’re interested in to confirm that their policy has not changed.

As for the SAT, the College Board publishes this PDF, which includes an exhaustive list of colleges and their score policies. While this information is published directly by the College Board, it is still a good idea to confirm score policies on a college’s website or through e-mail contact.

I’m not 100% on the second part of your question. As I understand it, the highest composite would be your superscore, and the superscore would take precedent over any single sitting.

I do know that taking the SAT more than a three times is generally considered frivolous.

On that note, students rarely improve upon a 2nd SAT sitting (statistically speaking). The College Board includes with your scores the average improvement of students in your score range taking the SAT a 2nd and 3rd time. This information can give you insight into the value of retaking the SAT.

Sorry for the delay!

-Ben

Hello Anon. I am very sorry for the delay! I have a couple questions waiting to be answered but we’re all busy packing for college and such! Please be patient and hang in there!

-Dulce

I was sort of in that situation myself really, and I’m now looking forward to attending a small private school. Don’t be discouraged to believe that just because a school is a private school that their standards are too unattainable. Your goal is to let them know you want to attend, and you need to make yourself shine in order to be accepted. They don’t all want the top students in the country, but they do look for outstanding individuals. Do not let your grades define you. Wow them with essays, your extracurriculars, and letters of recommendations from your favorite teachers. 

Also, you’re entering your senior year, take this chance to improve yourself! You have one more semester to show colleges your ability to succeed. That sounded cheesy. Anyway, really, dedicate yourself this semester, and let the colleges know that you value your education despite the C’s you’ve gotten in the passed. Explain other ways in which you excel. If you make them see other sides of you besides what your transcript reflects, they will. But also, if they see an great improvement on your transcript (like, you pulling out lots of A’s this coming semester) that will look very good for you. One thing I love about small, private colleges is that they do look at the applications very carefully, and if they see a difference in the grades, they take note of that. That could also be a bad thing because if you start to slump in your last years, they’ll notice that too. One thing I’ve always kept in mind during my senior year is that colleges believe that a student’s senior year in high school will reflect their first year in college. 

So really, relax. The colleges you want to apply to will care more about your essays than your grades. Grades are important, but they do not stand alone when colleges decide whether or not to accept you. Keep your grades up this year, and kick ass on your essays. Also make sure to look at all the possible private colleges you could apply to. I found colleges by looking at the U.S. News college rankings. It’s intimidating to see the top ten, but remember that all of the colleges on there are exceptional, but not all require you to have a 4.0. 

Hope this helps.

— Katherine

P.S. Your SAT score was better than mine, so don’t worry about that. Private colleges are paying less attention to SAT scores now. 

I chose to take Math 2 and recommended the same to my friends because 
1. It demonstrates initiative. (whether or not this is true I’m not really sure, but it seems logical…)

2. Chances are, it will be on math that you are more fresh on, even if you don’t feel like your Pre-Calc class was that good. 

3. General rule of better having a B at a challenging thing than an A on an easy one. (Essentially the same as the first one..)

I’m assuming you’ve found the study guides on the College Board (all of them are here in this book). Review the Math 2 questions on the SAT site and take practice tests to check your proficiency. Also, SparkNotes has a Math 2 Book and “Test Center” which I found helpful. The account you have to create to use the test center is free, and tracks your progress in the practice tests.

I would recommend buying the SAT book if you are going to buy a book at all, although I didn’t use one for the subject tests. You would also save money by getting all the tests, and maybe get some clues as to which tests would be best for you since they’re all in there.

On that note, I recommend taking three subject tests, even if you only need two. I’ve heard that Columbia in particular (an many other schools) only consider your top two scores, although that isn’t confirmed. It’s wayyyy easier to sit three tests in a row instead of waiting months in between, and the year I took them (June 2010) they were only around $10-$15 if you decide to take another one on the day of. Remember, it’s super easy to drop or add subject tests, because the proctor pretty much just says “do one of the tests, now do another one, now do another one.” You’ll be billed later for the extra tests. (Make sure you verify this with your specific proctor.)

Thanks for writing in, and happy testing!! 

-Ben