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How do SAT and ACT scores influence how people look at you through application?

I normally do well in school in terms of my own courses and earned high grades for those courses, but I'm not a strong standardized test-taker. I'm afraid that if colleges look at my SAT and ACT scores, I might not get accepted to a very selective college. #college #application

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Kate’s Answer

Hi Julie,


Great question. This may be a challenge with some schools, but many colleges will accept students with low standardized test scores and otherwise solid applications. Ironically, the more selective colleges are actually the ones that are most likely to have the resources to look over your entire application, rather than cutting out students with low test scores. If you go to any college information sessions or college fairs, you can ask the admissions counselors if they have an SAT/ACT cutoff. (Just be sure to read the school's website first, because they may already answer the question in the section for prospective students.) Of course, you should take the test(s) a couple times if you can, to see if you can improve your scores, but this will not be the only factor for most colleges looking at applications.


Good luck!


~Kate
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much! It'll really help me when I'll apply in the future. Julie
Thank you comment icon Good luck, Julie!! I hope you get into lots of great colleges! Kate Wallace
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Stephani’s Answer

I'm not sure about all schools, but I applied to nursing school early action, and even though my grades and extracurricular activities were pretty good, I did not do amazing on the SAT (I am horrible at math). I did take the ACT though, and did fantastic (there are more topics and a wider range of material to be tested on). I was initially denied and placed into the regular applicant pool (which made me wait several months to find out for sure), but when I sent my ACT scores, I received an acceptance letter within a week. So they changed their mind and accepted me early action despite my low SAT but high ACT scores. I honestly recommend taking both so it shows a wider variety of your knowledge base (worked for me!). It does depend on where you are looking for school though, some are stricter about numbers than others.
Thank you comment icon Thank you for the advice! I'm also taking the SAT Subject Test this year as well as my ACT. I hope that I could do well enough in those exams; they're a lot of pressure to handle in just one month. Julie
Thank you comment icon I think you should join <a href="https://plus.google.com/106534238428641399363/">test prep</a> classes which are speciallized in SAT/ACT preparation. Start 3-4 months before your actual exam date and I am sure you will be ready by then. Always feel confident about yourself. There is no one stopping you from achieving anyhting, just be positive and always think I can do it. Cheryl
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Melanie’s Answer

Hello! I would say it depends on the school. For me, I'm not the best multiple choice test taker. Therefore, I made sure to supplement my SAT scores with extra curricular activities in school. These activities included: student council, multiple sports teams, and volunteering. If you know you're not the best test taker, make sure your college applications are supplemented with a bunch of extra curricular activities that make you an "attractive" applicant. Also, if you're a good writer, make sure you pay special attention to the essay portion of the SAT. This gives you the chance to showcase who you are through writing and your thinking capabilities.

Hope this helps!
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