Hey everyone,

I’ve received a few emails about Score Choice — a new policy implemented with the SAT this year — and I’d like to briefly describe what it is, the pros and cons of signing up for it, and my recommendation.

In total: Score Choice lets you choose which SAT test dates you let colleges see. I doubt that whether you sign up for score choice or not will affect your admissions outcome. My overall recommendation is that you sign up for Score Choice but only take the SAT at most three times.

What is Score Choice?

Score Choice simply allows you to pick which SATs colleges see. For example, let’s say your scores looked like this:

March SAT: 600 Verbal, 600 Math, 500 Writing
May SAT: 700 Verbal, 700 Math, 700 Writing

You did WAY better in May on all three sections. So why would you show colleges March? With score choice, you have the option to show them ONLY the May test. So you have CHOSEN to show only the May Scores.

Why is it being implemented?

The CollegeBoard has a lot of nonsense on their website to answer this question. The real reason is this: more students are starting to sign up for the ACT. The CollegeBoard is thus losing business. One of the main reasons that students have been gearing towards the ACT is that the ACT has ALWAYS been score optional. So, the CollegeBoard is probably making this change to stay competitive with the ACT and to reduce the amount of students opting for the ACT over the SAT.

Why is there a debate about it?

Previously, you could only take the SAT at MOST three times. This is because, if you took the test four times, colleges would stop taking only your highest scores from each section and simply take the average of your scores.

For example, let’s say your scores look like this:

March: 200 Verbal, 200 Math, 700 Writing
May: 200 Verbal, 700 Math, 200 Writing
June: 700 Verbal, 200 Math, 200 Writing

Then colleges would see your combined best score as: 700 Verbal, 700 Math, 700 Writing

However, if you took the test FOUR times and instead got:

March: 200 Verbal, 200 Math, 700 Writing
May: 200 Verbal, 700 Math, 200 Writing
June: 700 Verbal, 200 Math, 200 Writing
October: 800 Verbal, 200 Math, 200 Writing

Your average scores would be: 480 Verbal, 330 Math, 330 Writing — not NEARLY as good as just sticking with the three tests.

Ok, but so what?

So, now with score choice, you could, in theory, take the test 4, 5, 6, or even 7 times but ONLY show schools your best 3 scores. This gives you more opportunities to ace the test.

The big focus of the debate is that score choice benefits students who pay for really exclusive tutors and take the test over and over again until their scores are sky high. Trust me, these kids are out there: some tutors in New York make $300 per hour and promise score improvements. It’s wild.

But are colleges ok with that? Does everyone accept score choice?

THIS IS IMP: Not every college has accepted score choice. Some schools, such as Stanford, will still require that you send ALL scores, meaning that, if you apply to Stanford, you can ONLY take the test three times.

However, other schools, like Harvard, have accepted score choice. So if you’re shooting for Harvard, knock yourself out and take the test fifteen times, if you want.

And still other schools haven’t decided. Right now, it’s a little bit of a mess.

Ok…So given that some schools will accept it, and some schools won’t, how does this affect me? What should I sign up for?

My recommendation is this:

Sign up for score choice, but only take the test three times. This is your safest bet. If you apply to schools that accept it, then great; you have the option to send them only your best scores. But if you apply to schools that don’t accept it, you’ll still be safe: they will just take your highest score from each section.

Practically speaking, I don’t think the new policy will affect any one of you. None of my students should need to take the test more than three times to see an improvement, as most see an improvement on the first test, and nearly all will see an improvement by the second test taken.

Great. Do you have a list of schools that have accepted it and aren’t accepting it?

I’m working on it! Once it’s ready, I’ll post it to the blog at scholarsforstudents.com and email it out.

Awesome. Oh Andy, you are so good at explaining things.

Yes, and so humble.

Hope that helps everyone! Let me know if you have more questions,
Andy