With the exception of students who are being heavily recruited for sports, most students take the SAT and/or ACT during their junior year. The student’s extracurricular schedule and expected course load usually help determine which month is the best for taking the test. If possible, it’s better to avoid prepping for the SAT or ACT when extracurriculars are at their peak. On the other hand, waiting until spring is not advisable if a student has a substantial course load. Though it’s not written in stone, we generally encourage students to take the SAT or ACT for the first time by February of their junior year.
Both the College Board and ACT, Inc. release three of their tests to the public every year. When it’s practical, we generally encourage students to take the SAT or ACT for the first time on one of the released test dates. The versions of the SAT administered in October, March, and May are released, while versions of the ACT administered in December, April, and June are released.
Why do we prefer students to take tests on a released test date? (1) For released tests, students can receive a full copy of their test booklet and answer key back. Therefore if a student wants to take a test again, they can review every question that they missed on their actual test, and (2) The College Board and ACT, Inc. tend to stick more to the standard mold on released tests since the public will see them. As a result, the released tests are a little more predictable.
We generally recommend that students start with one of our SAT Advantage or ACT Advantage Courses and then, if necessary, supplement the course with private tutoring afterwards to focus on any areas of weakness. Standardized test prep is a subject in and of itself, so the strategies that are needed for these tests are well suited to a classroom environment. Once a student has a solid foundation, private tutoring can be employed to focus on weaker areas.
That being said, we do also offer private tutoring for the entire process, so if our course schedules don’t work for you or if you would simply prefer one-on-one tutoring, that option is also available.
For the October, March, and May SAT, the College Board offers the Question-and-Answer Service (QAS). The QAS is a test-disclosure service that includes a booklet copy of the test with a table of correct answers and scoring information. In addition, the report lists the type and level of difficulty of each question, along with what your answer was, and whether it was correct, incorrect or omitted. If you want to take a test again, this service gives you the luxury of reviewing every question that you missed on the actual test.
For all other test dates (November, December, June, and August) the Student Answer Service (SAS) is available. The SAS is a computer-generated report containing the questions you answered correctly, incorrectly, or omitted, along with information about the type of test questions and level of difficulty for each question. Note that the actual test questions and answers are not included in the SAS.
You can sign up for the QAS or SAS when you register to take the SAT. If you didn’t order the service with your registration, there are three ways you can order it. You can order online by visiting My SAT and selecting Order Verification within My Scores. The services can also be requested via phone by calling Customer Service at 866-756-7346 (US and Canada) or 212-713-7789 (International). You can also order by downloading and submitting the SAT Answer Verification Services Order Form here under Question-and-Answer Service.
If you ordered the service prior to taking the test, materials are typically mailed within 6-7 weeks following the test date. However, if you request the service after the scores have been released for the test, it will likely take an additional 3-4 weeks to receive your materials.
For the December, April, and June ACT, the ACT offers the Test Information Release (TIR). The TIR includes a list of your answers, a copy of the multiple-choice test questions used to determine your score, the answer key, and scoring instructions. (If you took the Writing Test, you will also receive a copy of the writing prompt, the scoring rubric, and the scores assigned to your essay by two readers.) If you want to take a test again, this service gives you the luxury of reviewing every question that you missed on the actual test.
You can order the TIR when you register, or during the three-month period after your test date. If you didn’t order the service with your registration, you can download the Test Information Release Order Form here. Your request must be postmarked no later than three months after the test date.
Materials are normally mailed about four weeks after you receive your score report. If you place an order after the score reports have been issued, expect your materials to arrive 3-5 weeks following the placement of your request.
Subject Tests are hour-long, content-based tests that allow students to showcase achievement in specific subject areas. There are currently 20 different Subject Tests that span the fields of English, history, foreign languages, mathematics and science. While not all colleges require Subject Tests, some colleges do require or recommend that students take them. Every college is different, so you’ll want to check the application requirements of the colleges to which you are planning to apply. Most colleges that require Subject Tests require two (Georgetown is one of the only exceptions, strongly recommending three.) Many colleges that require Subject Tests will accept the ACT in place of both the SAT and the SAT Subject Tests.
Note that the SAT Subject Tests are offered on the same dates as the SAT (except March), so students cannot take both the Subject Tests and the SAT in the same month. Students may take up to three SAT Subject Tests on any given date. However, students should exercise caution when taking multiple Subject Tests on the same date since all of the scores from a given test date must be reported together to colleges and cannot be separated.
