Endless hours of preparation for your SAT are luckily over, and now it’s time to think of the next step. How will colleges know your results? Should you send it by mail, electronically, provide a copy of your online score report, or request the College Board to do it?
Below we shall tell you about forwarding the SAT results officially and having them delivered to the college you want to enter.
Guaranteed, Quick, and Free Online Delivery
We believe you don’t have to make multiple SAT attempts, though sometimes this is a good strategic plan. Nonetheless, every time one registers for an SAT through the College Board account, he/she becomes automatically eligible for sending future results to four colleges –– on behalf of the College Board. And this is done at no extra cost –– you only pay $26 for registration. (Check the next paragraph to find out the functionality of the College Board account). Find the names of the colleges in the list and be sure they will get the scores right after release. Moreover, you can change colleges before the exam in case the plans suddenly change.
College Board Account –– SAT Results at Your Hands
These days having a College Board account is essential for students who seriously focus on their college and career. After you register on the College Board website, you can register for the SAT exam online. Don’t worry if you have to stop your registration halfway; the system will keep the answers to proceed any time soon. Moreover, your basic data like first, last names, email, and numbers will be completed automatically. This will help to minimize typos.
You can choose the most appropriate test date (SATs are available seven times a year) and then opt for the nearest test center. Registration will be confirmed right upon completion of the online form. Then your SAT admission ticket is ready.
Please note that mail registration is available for all dates but September.
Sometimes Paid Option Is More Reliable
There is one thing that needs to be considered before opting for sending your future results to colleges. These results are yet to come. Whether you have passed the whole sequence from PSAT8/9 to SAT, or this is the very first test you will take from the College Board, you can not be 100% sure of the final score. And, since the College Board allows choosing which results to send or never send them at all, why not take it? Yes, this will cost you $12 per a report, but it seems to be worth it.
There are also two other options of sending SAT results: by mail or phone. Print, complete and send a PDF form to order result delivery by mail. Or call the College Board Customer Service. Note that mail delivery may take longer than you expect. And, after colleges receive your results, processing them takes around nine days. So, double-check the deadlines and schedule sending in advance.
Do You Have an SAT Fee Waiver?
Once you own an SAT Fee Waiver, you can have SAT reports delivered for free to as many colleges as you want. And it doesn’t matter whether you apply for this service before or after the SAT results release. All you need is to enter a 12-digit code of a waiver, describe the reason for waiver qualification, and mention your school counselor –– if you register online. For mail registration, students complete a waiver card and state the same data on an SAT registration form. Be sure to complete both documents correctly; otherwise, they will be returned, and you can miss your test dates.
The basic requirement for an SAT Fee Waiver is that you have to come from a low-income family. And be an 11th or 12th-grade student. A list of statements on the College Board site helps to check if a student is eligible for a fee waiver. If you have already attempted PSAT or SAT using your waiver benefits, a special menu with possible options will be shown online.
When You Need to Send Reports Urgently
If it turns out that you need to send results to more colleges, but they will soon stop accepting applications, don’t worry. The College Board offers a rush order option. For the price of $31, it will deliver your report typically within a couple of business days. Still, the organization claims that colleges can receive rush reports during the four days latest. Again, check weekends and official holidays –– sometimes every day counts.
Feel free to request rush reports online, by phone, or by mail. The latter option will require the form to be printed out, correctly completed, signed, and mailed. Make sure not only to fill in all the details correctly but also to sign the form. Even if it arrives on time, the form is not valid without a signature, and time can be lost. Though you do not commit to sending unknown results (like with the four free reports), it is essential to remember that, once ordered, rush reports cannot be cancelled.
Choose Which Scores to Send
Luckily, through online access, you can decide which results to send to colleges. In your College Board account, all the PSAT and SAT results are stored for your convenience. You can choose the best score and send it to the colleges to maximize your chances of entering it. Provided the payment is realized, this will require a couple of clicks. The only thing is that you cannot combine the results of sections attempted on different test dates. For example, last month, your EBRW score was 600, and Math’ was 700. And this month, the EBRW was 650, and Math was 650 too. You can’t report the ‘better’ 650 + 700 option as these results were obtained on two different dates.
Still, you should always check the policy of every institution about the SAT scores required. Though many colleges and universities accept the scores the applicant chooses to show them (obviously, the best result), others don’t. Some rules oblige you to deliver scores of every SAT you attempted, irrespective of what scores you got. Some admission processes include ‘poor’ SAT results when rating students; other officers may use them for information and refer to their files in case of issues.
Sending Older Reports
Life circumstances may change after you take an SAT. Whether students have family, health, or money issues that result in his/her failure to enter a college, SAT scores are archived accordingly in the College Board database. So, if a student took his test a year ago, he/she can retrieve and report it at a standard fee. But if for some reason, your report is older than five years, it will cost $31 only to retrieve it. On top of that, a standard score order fee of $12 applies. Also, older scores will be accompanied by a note about being ‘less valid’ in representing a student’s current academic performance.
Older scores orders can only be requested by mail or phone. If you consider calling, note that this option is payable ($15 per call), so you need to prepare the following data in advance:
- Name
- Address
- Registration number
- Test date
- Credit card number and its expiry date
If you attempted PSAT/NMSQT for a scholarship, be ready to provide the scholarship program code of the college you intend to send a report to. Rush reports are also applicable for older scores, and the rush order fee applies.
A Few Words About Scholarships
Since we mentioned scholarship in the previous section, we’ll briefly tell you how it works. SATs do not qualify you for any scholarship. The only test that lets you enter the National Merit Scholarship Program is PSAT/NMSQT. So, the scholarship authority will only search these test scores to find eligible students. However, the PSAT/NMSQT results are not applicable for entering a university or college since only 10th and 11th graders can attempt it. PSAT/NMSQT is an excellent chance to try what SAT looks like, though. High PSAT scores can also be a supportive argument for an admission officer.
To Sum It Up
The easiest and quickest way to send your SAT results to colleges is online through the College Board account. You can request your future scores to be forwarded to four colleges at no additional fee at registration. However, only $12 per report will allow you to choose the best results if you attempted SAT earlier. But check with the reporting policy of the institution you plan to enter, as it may obligate you to forward all the scores.
If you want to send a report urgently, there is a possibility to opt for the rush report. It will be delivered within several working days (typically one or two). You can even retrieve older reports that are five years old for an additional fee. Note that you will be eligible for scholarship application only with pre-SAT PSAT/NMSQT test results.
Good luck!
