What’s the Difference Between Super Scoring and Score Choice?

THIRD TIME (OR SECOND) IS THE CHARM: WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE THE SAT/ACT MORE THAN ONCE

All students want to present their best self on their college applications. They’ve worked hard to achieve the best grades possible, been involved in extracurricular activities, and secured glowing recommendations. These pieces of the application puzzle are relatively straightforward. But many students are confused by standardized testing. Should you take the SAT or the ACT? Should you take the test more than once? More than twice? What is super scoring and how can it help your application? What is Score Choice and how is it different from super scoring?

WHAT IS SUPER SCORING?

Super scoring can be super confusing. Colleges have differing policies, and sometimes even departments within a college can vary in their handling of standardized tests.

Super scoring means that a college will consider your highest composite score by taking your highest section scores from multiple tests. For example, let’s say that you take the SAT in October and score a 610 on the Reading & Writing sections and a 620 on the Math sections for a total score of 1230. You then take the SAT again in December and score a 660 on the Reading & Writing sections and a 600 on the Math sections for a total score of 1260. To super score, a college will take the 660 Reading & Writing score from the October test and the 620 Math score from the December test to create a new composite score of 1280 and will use that overall “super score” for the admissions process – and will not typically look at the subsection scores.

There is a variation of the super score that we’ll call ‘super score lite’. Some school policies say that they super score but do not create a new composite score, or that that they do not super score but that they will consider the highest subsection scores from multiple dates. These policies mean that a college will use the subsection scores in the admissions evaluation. Schools could use this additional level of detail to decide between two similar students if the decision is close. Sometimes, students apply for admission to specific colleges within a university, and either the EBRW (Evidence Based Reading & Writing) or Math score is most relevant to that department.

Not all colleges super score, and it is important that you research the policies of the schools in which you’re interested. For information about super scoring policies of popular colleges and universities, see Figure 1.

WHAT IS SCORE CHOICE?

Many schools will permit applicants to submit only the score reports that they wish for the school to see. Consider a student who has taken the ACT three times and achieved the following scores:

Test 1 – Composite score 32 (English 34, Math 34, Reading 35, Science 25)
Test 2 – Composite score 31 (English 30, Math 29, Reading 33, Science 33)
Test 3 – Composite score 31 (English 32, Math 31, Reading 32, Science 29)

If a school allows score choice, the student may decide to only send the scores from Test 1, as it is their highest overall score from a single sitting. If, on the other hand, the school super scores, the student would likely decide to send the reports from Test 1 and Test 2, since super scoring would allow them to use their Science score from Test 2, boosting their Composite to 34. When applying to the most elite schools, the difference between a 32 and a 34 is huge. Again, it is important to understand the policies of your chosen schools in order to make the best decisions about which scores to send. For more information about the score choice policies of popular colleges and universities, see Figure 1.

RETAKING THE SAT AND ACT

You should consider a number of factors when deciding whether to retake the SAT or ACT. Do you feel that your recent scores accurately reflect your abilities? What score will you need to be seriously considered at the colleges of your choice? How much preparation/study did you do before the recent tests? Were there other factors, such as anxiety or sickness, that you feel affected your other results?

Because of the obvious benefits of super scoring and score choice, it is in a student’s best interest to take the SAT/ACT at least twice. It’s all too easy for a student to simply have a single bad test day due to lack of sleep, stress, or other factors. Having a second official score ensures that one bad day or even one bad section of the test will not have undue influence on one’s college application. Research shows that students’ scores tend to increase when they take the test a second time, especially if the students receive specialized test prep tutoring. And those scores often continue to increase with a third sitting. Higher scores can turn a “reach” school into a “target” school. You may also find that you qualify for additional scholarship opportunities with a higher test score.

Though the data clearly indicates the benefits of taking the test more than once, it’s important to know when to stop. Most students see the biggest gains between their first and second tests with additional but less significant gains on a third attempt. Also, while many colleges allow you to send just the score reports you wish for them to see, some schools do require that you send in all score reports. In that situation, more than three sittings could potentially concern admissions officers. It is critical that you research the policies of your selected schools to understand their policies on super scoring and score choice. Students who undertake a guided study plan that focuses on content, strategy, and time management will be in the best position to achieve their highest possible score and should not need more than three sittings.