SAT vs ACT vs SAT II vs etc

[LoneWolf121188]

At my school, sophmores are required to take the PSAT and juniors are required to take the PSAT and the SAT. However, they do not offer the SAT II or ACT. Does it matter? Am I missing out on something? Should I look for a way to take it?

[Stewie]

PSAT - Just a practice SAT, means nothing
SAT - Counts for college, should be taken once or twice
ACT - Has equal weight as SAT in most colleges eye; should also take this one once or twice. I found it to be easier than the SAT and therefore did a lot better on it
SAT II - Subject-based tests which most schools don't require (things like Ivy-league and UC schools do); definetly challenging, you should study up before taking these

[man_utd]

SAT II are subject tests-roughly on the level of an AP exam.

ACT has a harder math section, and an easier english section. If math is your thing you will probably do better on the ACT.

[m3x1c4nj3w]

hmm.. that's really weird. most if not all colleges require at least 2 SAT II's to apply. I know the UC system in California takes the combined scores of the SAT + 2xSAT II's to get a "total" score.

[m3x1c4nj3w]

PSAT - Just a practice SAT, means nothing
SAT - Counts for college, should be taken once or twice
ACT - Has equal weight as SAT in most colleges eye; should also take this one once or twice. I found it to be easier than the SAT and therefore did a lot better on it
SAT II - Subject-based tests which most schools don't require (things like Ivy-league and UC schools do); definetly pretty hard, you should study up before taking these

The SAT II's are kind of a joke around here in my school. Depends on what subjects you're taking adn which ones you like. Most common ones that people take is Chemistry, foreign language (spanish, french, etc) and math (i htink they cover up to pre-calculus level math)

[Stewie]

hmm.. that's really weird. most if not all colleges require at least 2 SAT II's to apply. I know the UC system in California takes the combined scores of the SAT + 2xSAT II's to get a "total" score.

I've found there's actually more colleges that DONT require the SAT IIs vs. those that do. And those that do, you need to take 3 SAT IIs, otherwise you're not really taking the whole test (this holds true for all UCs and a lot of private colleges). There's an english and a math and then a third based on a subject of your choice (of course limited to what they offer) required for UCs etc.

[m3x1c4nj3w]

There is a reason why UC's require the 3 SAT II's. UC is one of the finest public education systems in the US.

[Stewie]

That's your opinion. Thanks for sharing.

[Nephewkp]

When I was applying for college, the only school that I applied to that required it was MIT (of course that was the only elitist school that I applied to). I ended up going to UIUC though because the engineering was just as good and at half the cost. Depending on what you want to do and where you go will determine if you have to take SAT II's. If I didn't plan on applying to MIT, I wouldn't have bothered with them.

-N

[mage_x]

What's UC?

[m3x1c4nj3w]

university of california.

[man_utd]

Well technically it isn't the UC it's the giant system of colleges they have UCLA, UCSB, etc. They are also the reason that the SAT has the writing section.

[dark_15]

Most colleges accept ACT or SAT for admission. You can get both, but I didn't and got accepted to UF (University of Findlay) just fine on only my ACT score.

[darksparkz]

All colleges in the US accept the ACT, other then like 2 or 3 that's still debating on it.

For the higher end colleges, they require both ACT and SAT, some just require ACT and your fine.

In my school, the PSAT is also a way of applying for scholarships. Some colleges/programs look at your PSAT score and determine what kind of scholarships you get.

[Stewie]

All colleges in the US accept the ACT, other then like 2 or 3 that's still debating on it.

For the higher end colleges, they require both ACT and SAT, some just require ACT and your fine.

In my school, the PSAT is also a way of applying for scholarships. Some colleges/programs look at your PSAT score and determine what kind of scholarships you get.

Strange...I've never heard of that being done before.

I wish they would have done that at my school...I killed that test.

[techun]

psat! i friggen loved that

(havent taken sat or anything else)
i got the highest in my grade, i think like 98% 97% and 94%

[kayson]

Ivy leagues accept either act or sat and require two or three sat IIs (usually math and one or two of your choice). PSAT is the qualifying test for the national merit scholarship. All schools do it. If you take the PSAT as a junior and your score is past a certain point, you become a semi-finalist. Then you send in an application to become a finalist (90% of semi-finalists become finalists). Then about half of the finalists receive money. There are 2500 $2500 scholarships from the national merit organization, a bunch from corporations, and then certain universities will give you scholarships if you go to that school. For example, ASU gives a full tuition waiver to national merit finalists. I know this for a fact because Im a semi-finalist and they sent a little info packet with the application.

As far as I know, most in state schools don't require SAT IIs. Ivy league schools definitely do no matter what. I'm not sure about UC schools. I'm pretty sure they don't require 3 SAT IIs for in state applicants.

And at least for this year's applicants (incoming 2006 college freshmen), the writing portion of the SAT doesn't count for anything. It'll be included in the score, but they only look at your reading and math combined. When the recruiter from ASU's honors college called me all he wanted was reading and math combined.

If you're applying in state only, you probably don't need to worry about SAT IIs. I'd check the university's website for requirements just to be sure. And the SAT IIs are nowhere near as hard as the AP exams. The only math AP exam is the calculus one; the SAT II is Math IIC which only goes up to pre-calculus. And the chemistry and spanish sat IIs are much much easier than the ap exams. Definitely something to study for, though.

[LoneWolf121188]

When I was applying for college, the only school that I applied to that required it was MIT (of course that was the only elitist school that I applied to). I ended up going to UIUC though because the engineering was just as good and at half the cost. Depending on what you want to do and where you go will determine if you have to take SAT II's. If I didn't plan on applying to MIT, I wouldn't have bothered with them.

-N
Well, considering the fact that I am hoping to go to MIT...

Looks like I'll have to look into the SAT IIs and ACTs..

Scholarships are always good. Last year (sophmore) I scored somewhere around the 94 percentile (which doesn't mean 94% of the questions right though), though I didn't qualify for any scholarships cause I was only a sophmore. This year, however...

[Stewie]

As far as I know, most in state schools don't require SAT IIs. Ivy league schools definitely do no matter what. I'm not sure about UC schools. I'm pretty sure they don't require 3 SAT IIs for in state applicants.

3 SAT IIs are required for UCs no matter if you're in-state or out-of-state. Trust me, I know because I live in CA (or used to), and applied to a bunch of UCs and an in-state resident, and they were the only reason I took the SAT IIs (and the SAT IIs were the only reason I didn't get into a few UCs).

I also took 6 APs in HS and IMO, they are nothing like the SAT IIs (whoever said they were).

[Gautam]

Not to beat it in further, but MIT requires three SAT II's. Whether you take the ACT or SAT is your choice. Some say that if you don't do as well as you hoped on the SAT, you could take the ACT in conjunction, and given that you score better on that, give colleges a second perspective on your abilities. Most schools don't offer the SAT II themselves. You need to find a testing site close to you, which will usually end up being some high school anyways. One word of advice, no matter how smart you think you are, or how high your grades are, practice the SAT and SAT II's to death. These tests usually require very little raw knowledge and are more about test-taking skill...I can say this first hand as I scored far higher than many I'd consider more intelligent than myself, and definitely having higher grades than me.

[LoneWolf121188]

How well do the PSATs judge SAT performance? I do fairly well on the PSATs (94 percentile, though I certnainly don't answer 94% of the question correctly), should I be OK on the SATs?

Actually, I just looked on the MIT website, and it says they require only two SAT II for 2007 applicants:

For entry year 2006: SAT I (either the old version or the new version, available beginning March 2005) or the ACT (with or without the optional writing test). In addition, we require three SAT II Subject Tests: one in math (level 1 (Ic) or 2 (IIc)), one in science (physics, chemistry, or biology e/m), and the third in any area of your choosing.

For entry year 2007 and beyond: SAT I or the ACT with the writing test. In addition, we require two SAT II Subject Tests: one in math (level 1 (Ic) or 2 (IIc)), one in science (physics, chemistry, or biology e/m).

[Stewie]

How well do the PSATs judge SAT performance? I do fairly well on the PSATs (94 percentile, though I certnainly don't answer 94% of the question correctly), should I be OK on the SATs?

Actually, I just looked on the MIT website, and it says they require only two SAT II for 2007 applicants:




To be honest, PSATs aren't too hard. I scored somewhere in the 98th percentile, and even the 'tards at my school scored in the low 90s or high 80s. You should still do OK on the SAT though; just make sure you study up.

94th percentile doesn't mean you got 94% of the questions right. Technically, it means you scored better than 94% of the other test takers. I think this is skewed somehow though; nearly everyone I've talked to has scored 90 or better.

[Gautam]

How well do the PSATs judge SAT performance? I do fairly well on the PSATs (94 percentile, though I certnainly don't answer 94% of the question correctly), should I be OK on the SATs?

Actually, I just looked on the MIT website, and it says they require only two SAT II for 2007 applicants:



I think I was something like 96th percentile on the PSAT and 98th on the SAT. I don't know how well the PSAT gagues SAT performance. All I know is, I blew off the PSAT big time, but studied pretty hard for the SAT...and I know plenty that scored high 90's on the PSAT, but quite a bit lower on the SAT. Two SAT II's is interesting...guess they're slackening up in lieu of the new SAT I format...That's another thing, the SAT you'll be taking is supposedly nothing like the one from last year. Just don't assume you'll be "OK on the SAT" no matter how well you've been doing in school, or whatever. It's not a test to blow off, even though the subject matter is ridiculously easy, and it can very often mean the difference between getting in and not getting in, regardless of what they tell ya on TV.