Terrible SAT performer, any hope??

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WestCoastRefugee

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May 19, 2023
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So here's the deal. My DS and the SAT just don't mix. We've tried it all, strategies, test prep you name it. He does very well in school, A's and B's in everything (mostly A's) and even has a B+ in Pre-Calc and Chemistry. His SAT scores are pretty ugly. Just got the May 6th score and he was a 1080. March test was 1070...that's 3 in a row with almost the same score. We are just at a loss of what to do...I know Annapolis doesn't have a "minimum" score, but I don't know if that really rings true or not. Great ECA's, Eagle Scout, Athlete, great LOR's, work experience you name it. Should we still apply and hope for the prep school, or is this just a lost cause? Also, if you just never are able to score well, will a year at another college with good academic performance override the bad SAT scores? DS will be a rising senior next year.
 
You never know what will happen unless the application is submitted. The SAT (or ACT - has he tried that one? Some students do significantly better on one over the other) is only one part of the whole. The Academy will offer prep school or the foundation program are for applicants that have almost everything that that want, but feel that a year of prep will round out the applicant. If they say no, then he can look at the year of college and reapplication.
And since my son is at CGA, I can put in a plug that they are test optional :).....
 
There may not be a published minimum, but they do have to include the SAT score in the preliminary application to receive a candidate number and access to the application. If he gets past that then he probably has at least the minimum but my guess would be barely. He should reach out to admissions and talk through his stats. We have found they are very helpful. Has he tried the ACT? Maybe the different test would bring a different result. And I get the frustration, we did paid test prep too for my DS when he decided to apply to USNA and he did 10 points worse; sometimes their score is their score.

Even if USNA considers his application with that score, he could have a difficult time with the nomination process depending on how competitive your district is. I think it is fairly common to use a standard metric like SAT scores to narrow down candidates before they get down to super specific criteria and interviews. (at least in our state)

Also, you mentioned he is an athlete. Is he D1 level good? If so (that isn't a cure all but it certainly can help smooth out some of the bumps) and he should reach out to the coach.

Good luck!
 
Is his heart set on USNA? Or is he open to other service academies? USCGA dropped the requirement for test scores during covid and has kept them optional. For the class of 2027, they said about 15% of applicants did not include test scores in their application. If an applicant does not submit test scores, then USCGA relies very heavily on the academic classes. Calc, Chem, and Physics at AP level or at least honors. Just throwing that out there as an option if your son wants to serve but is open to other academies.
 
Try the ACT.

ALSO, highly recommend an online tutor. They can zero in on his issue. Could be a strategy problem, vs comprehension. My own was scoring lower in English than he should have been. Turns out, he wasn’t understanding something. His tutor discovered his problem, helped him, and he raised his score significantly and quickly to where it should be based upon his grades.

There are different price points. He used Wyzant for a few sessions. But there are others.
 
@WestCoastRefugee Like others have recommended try the ACT.

Is it a time issue for your son? Is it a lack of knowledge or not remembering the material? If there were no time restrictions could he get more problems correct? Are there areas where he has no idea of the right answer? Does he get it down to two answers but can't determine which of the two is correct? Does he think more than one answer may be right?

You can find old tests to practice with on both the SAT and ACT sites and on reddit. Has he tried taking a practice test under normal testing procedures/restrictions, then having someone else grade it, then going back and attempting to answer all incorrect problems again and also going over all correct answers that were guesses or were not 100% confident the answer was the right answer? Has he tried keeping a notebook of questions/problems he has gotten wrong and why? Does he know why the wrong answer is wrong and the right answer is right? Has he looked to see if he is getting the same type of questions/problems wrong? Going over every question on the test together, dissecting it, and knowing why the right answer is right and the wrong answers are wrong can take longer than the original taking of the test.

Sometimes it is just a matter of shoring up weaknesses in knowledge base, eliminating careless mistakes, learning to recognize how the SAT/ACT words things, and teaching your brain to take the test.
 
I had some pretty rough standardized testing scores and got sent to NAPS… I don’t regret it one bit. Now I’m heading off to plebe summer in just a month. Something that I recognized is that a lot of extracurricular activities, good grades in school, and dedication may make up for having poor test scores. Admissions loves well-rounded students!!
 
usna27 said:
I had some pretty rough standardized testing scores and got sent to NAPS… I don’t regret it one bit. Now I’m heading off to plebe summer in just a month. Something that I recognized is that a lot of extracurricular activities, good grades in school, and dedication may make up for having poor test scores. Admissions loves well-rounded students!!
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Thanks for this insight. I did not attend college, much less a SA so it's quite difficult to for me to help him navigate this process. The only thing that even remotely helps is that I was enlisted, so we have the military aspect pretty squared away. Honestly, at this point we believe NAPS would be a perfect fit.
 
ChatterMom2 said:
@WestCoastRefugee Like others have recommended try the ACT.

Is it a time issue for your son? Is it a lack of knowledge or not remembering the material? If there were no time restrictions could he get more problems correct? Are there areas where he has no idea of the right answer? Does he get it down to two answers but can't determine which of the two is correct? Does he think more than one answer may be right?

You can find old tests to practice with on both the SAT and ACT sites and on reddit. Has he tried taking a practice test under normal testing procedures/restrictions, then having someone else grade it, then going back and attempting to answer all incorrect problems again and also going over all correct answers that were guesses or were not 100% confident the answer was the right answer? Has he tried keeping a notebook of questions/problems he has gotten wrong and why? Does he know why the wrong answer is wrong and the right answer is right? Has he looked to see if he is getting the same type of questions/problems wrong? Going over every question on the test together, dissecting it, and knowing why the right answer is right and the wrong answers are wrong can take longer than the original taking of the test.

Sometimes it is just a matter of shoring up weaknesses in knowledge base, eliminating careless mistakes, learning to recognize how the SAT/ACT words things, and teaching your brain to take the test.
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We are not quite sure where the disconnect is, and what is really bizarre is that he almost aced the writing and language part (only missed 3 out of 36). Reading was almost 30 points lower on percentile and Math lower than that. Subscores range from 98th percentile to 34th...so we are all over the place. The test prep we had was a little to be desired IMO, so we may look into another provider.
 
WestCoastRefugee said:
We are not quite sure where the disconnect is, and what is really bizarre is that he almost aced the writing and language part (only missed 3 out of 36). Reading was almost 30 points lower on percentile and Math lower than that. Subscores range from 98th percentile to 34th...so we are all over the place. The test prep we had was a little to be desired IMO, so we may look into another provider.
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Once you reach the point of being able to send and receive messages, I think it is 5 posts and a week to update, if you message me, if you are interested, I can send you some links to some resources (free ones) you may find useful.
 
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Another recommendation for ACT. It is different enough that he might excel. It also helps to just keep taking the SAT. The repetition can take away some of the nerves of the test and give him experience. My DS also got a online class that lasted alittle over a month before a SAT he was taking. It was like every Sunday and some practice tests. This class really helped to show him where he was deficient and work on those deficiencies. It cost like $400-$500 I think, but I saw it as a investment and it was worth it.
 
WestCoastRefugee said:
We are not quite sure where the disconnect is, and what is really bizarre is that he almost aced the writing and language part (only missed 3 out of 36). Reading was almost 30 points lower on percentile and Math lower than that. Subscores range from 98th percentile to 34th...so we are all over the place. The test prep we had was a little to be desired IMO, so we may look into another provider.
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Check out StudyPoint. My son (‘27) had a great experience, exceptional result on his first attempt, AND worked with a USNA grad as his tutor!
 
WestCoastRefugee said:
We are not quite sure where the disconnect is, and what is really bizarre is that he almost aced the writing and language part (only missed 3 out of 36). Reading was almost 30 points lower on percentile and Math lower than that. Subscores range from 98th percentile to 34th...so we are all over the place. The test prep we had was a little to be desired IMO, so we may look into another provider.
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I am not quire certain how writing and reading are merged into the verbal score, but it sounds like verbal is higher than math? One option is to focus only on math during one test. Then, focus on verbal the next and superscore. That way, mental fatigue shouldn't be a factor. Also, the SAT is going digital, which may help or hurt. It is likely to change the way some folks might score compared to paper version. It doesn't fully take effect until Jan, but there might be a digital one offered in fall?

Older posts on SAF say that USNA actually superscores between ACT and SAT. So, if ACT math and SAT verbal end up being the best, that is what they will accept. I do not know if that is still the case.

Good luck!
 
Try taking the ACT as others have suggested. Some tend to do better on one then the other. SA's look at a mismatch between h.s. grades/ranking vs. standardized test results as perhaps an indication the h.s. doesn't really have a challenging academic program. Using standardized test scores is one way they compare applicants regardless of where they went to h.s.
 
My oldest's experience with both tests - ACT is more of a time management test. Material isn't that hard from an academic perspective. But completing 60 math questions in 60 minutes takes focus and a disciplined approach not to get sidetracked. Try a couple of practice ACTs under real conditions and see if it suits you or not. If it doesn't, then pivot back to the SAT.

Did you order the SAT report that shows which questions you got right & wrong? Well worth the extra $15. Was very helpful for my current HS Jr. to focus his study efforts on his areas of weakness. If you know algebra/geometry cold and it shows in your results, don't waste time doing a lot of review there. Stay focused on improving the areas where you need to improve.

Tip on the verbal side - read a variety of things outside of regular school work. Particularly things that you might not be familiar with where you have to work on comprehension. Things like The New Yorker or The Economist.
 
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