My SAT (May 7) score is below my expected score. What Shold I do?Answered
Hi, everybody. I'm a Turkish international rising senior. While I was studying SAT, I got 1550+ from all of practice tests. But for test day. I had to go 350+ mil because there is no place at my home city. Even though I was nailing practice test, I got so unlucky on test day. I got carsick. And when I entered test center, I was so excited, I had to use bathroom but teacher didn't let to use bathroom. It was a trauma for me, and my sat score is a disaster (1200). And I don't know what to do right now. I will probably not able to take SAT again because the closest test center is so far away. If I point out my situation on my admission, would it help?
Earn karma by helping others:
4 answers
Hi @Bahadir!
If taking the SAT in-person isn't reasonable for you, then I'd first recommend checking out test-blind and test-optional schools. You can get started with a list here: https://blog.collegevine.com/test-optional-colleges-2021-2022/
Test-blind schools, like the UCs, would be better in your case. Standardized test scores weigh more heavily for international applicants (since admissions officers are less familiar with their extracurriculars), and students who submit scores still have an advantage at test-optional schools.
The only other options I could think of would be to retake the test (which I don't think is reasonable) or indicate your predicament in the "additional information" part of your application. There's no guarantee that would help, though, unless your grades or IB scores are stellar enough to make colleges confident in your academic abilities.
Good luck! Let me know if you have any other questions.
Hi!
I'm exactly on the same situation as you. I am an international student from Brasil, and I took the may SAT too. My practice test scores were all 1500+, but my real score was way below that. I had to travel a day to get to the test center and spend a night on a hotel.
I don't know if that will help you, but, right now, I'm currently searching for Universities that are test-optional, or, Universities where my score would be enough! I'm also trying to rise my GPA and I'm putting more effort in my extracurriculars, so, both of there things can "cover up" my SAT scores.
Good Luck!
Pretty unfortunate thing that happened to you. You can certainly point out the situation. Going 350+ miles just for giving a 3-hour test shows your dedication and seriousness towards college admissions. You also have the option of applying test-optional, but check beforehand which universities allow you to do so.
College Board plans to move the SAT to a digital format. I'm not sure when the next test date is, but as long as you can get your scores back in time to submit to colleges (most times they'll let you submit scores after you submit your application) you'll be fine.
Good luck!!
Your chance of acceptance
Your chancing factors
Community Guidelines
To keep this community safe and supportive:
- Be kind and respectful!
- Keep posts relevant to college admissions and high school.
- Don’t ask “chance-me” questions. Use CollegeVine’s chancing instead!