Below is a general timeline for students taking the college admissions tests. This is a good guide for most cases, but your student should always take into account their academic, extracurricular, and personal schedule, as well as which standardized tests are required by the colleges on their application list when determining which dates to sign up for the test.
We strongly recommend that students take the SAT or ACT more than once. It doesn’t matter how much a student knows, if they are not mentally prepared on that morning, it can make a big difference in their score.
Students who take courses during their sophomore year that correspond to an SAT Subject Test, such as Biology or World History, should consider taking the SAT Subject Test directly following the course while the material is still fresh in their minds (see Resources).
Students should take the PSAT/NMSQT in the fall of their junior year. By the end of junior year, students should have taken the SAT or ACT and SAT Subject Tests at least once (see Resources).
When planning your test-taking schedule, keep in mind that the fall of your senior year will be your last chance to retake the SAT or ACT and to take any of the SAT Subject Tests (see Resources).
