Nervous about SAT scores - When should I submit them to my colleges?

Okay, guys. My mind's all over the place. So, I've taken the SAT and I'm not exactly sure when the ideal time to submit these scores is? Do I send them once I receive them or wait till I've submitted the entirety of my application? Also, should I send scores to every college I'm planning on applying to, or just the ones I'm confident about? Thanks for any advice you can share!

The timeline for sending your SAT scores depends on the colleges you're applying to and their respective application deadlines. The College Board can take around 10 days to process and deliver your scores to colleges after you request for them to be sent. To ensure that your scores are received on time, you'll want to send them at least two to four weeks before the application deadline of a given college.

As for whether to send scores to every college on your list or just the ones you're confident about, that decision depends on your SAT scores in relation to the middle 50% score range of previously accepted students at those colleges. If your scores are in this range (or above), it would be beneficial to send them. If your scores are significantly below this range, and the schools are test-optional, then withholding your scores might be the best route. Of course, if the schools require test scores, you have to send them regardless.

If some of your schools are indeed test-optional and you want guidance on how to navigate these policies, I'd check out this blog post from CollegeVine: https://blog.collegevine.com/does-test-optional-mean-test-optional/

Also, remember that some colleges allow you to self-report test scores on your application, which can save you some money, as official score reports have a fee. You would then send the official score only if you get accepted and decide to enroll.

You'll also want to look at the policy for superscoring at each of your schools. Some colleges consider your highest section scores across all dates you took the SAT. This policy can be an advantage if, for example, you did well on Math during your first attempt and then excelled in Reading during your second attempt. In that case, you would submit scores from both attempts and schools that superscore would put the highest section scores together to create a composite score that's higher than either of the ones you earned on a particular date.

I hope this overview helps clarify things and eases some stress. Good luck!