Score Choice Explained: Which SAT/ACT Scores to Send to Colleges

What Score Choice actually does

Score Choice is the College Board feature that lets you decide which SAT test dates' scores to send to colleges, rather than sending every SAT you have ever taken. The ACT works similarly: you select which test date's results to send on each report you order. In both cases, you generally send a complete sitting — all the sections from a given test date — not a mix of individual sections from different dates.

Score Choice is about controlling which sittings a college sees. It is a reporting decision you make when you order score reports, and it is optional. If you do not use it, you may end up sending more sittings than you intend, so understand your options before you order.

• SAT Score Choice: choose which SAT test dates to send
• ACT: choose which test date's scores to send on each report
• You send a whole sitting from a date, not cherry-picked sections
• Using Score Choice is optional and is set when you order reports

Score Choice is not superscoring

It is easy to confuse Score Choice with superscoring, but they are different. Score Choice is your decision about which test dates to send. Superscoring is something a college does after it receives your scores: it combines your highest section scores across multiple sittings into a new, higher composite.

This distinction matters for strategy. If a college superscores, sending more than one strong sitting can actually help, because the college will take your best section from each. If a college does not superscore and uses only your single best sitting, Score Choice lets you send just that one. The right move depends entirely on the college's stated policy.

• Score Choice = which sittings you choose to send
• Superscoring = how a college combines your best sections across sittings
• If a college superscores, sending multiple strong dates can raise the composite it uses
• If a college takes only your highest single sitting, send that date

The critical exception: 'all scores' policies

Some colleges require applicants to submit scores from every test sitting and do not allow Score Choice. Others explicitly recommend or require all scores. Because policies vary and change, you must check the official admissions or testing-policy page of each college on your list before deciding what to send.

If a college requires all scores, sending only your best sitting would not comply with its policy. Treat each college individually — never assume a single approach works everywhere. When in doubt, the college's own admissions office is the authoritative source.

• Some colleges require all scores from all sittings — Score Choice does not apply there
• Check each college's official testing-policy page individually
• Policies differ and can change year to year
• When unclear, contact the college's admissions office directly

How to decide what to send to each college

Build your decision college by college. For each one, find its current policy: does it superscore, take your single best sitting, or require all scores? That answer determines which sittings you report. Many test-optional colleges add another layer — you may choose whether to submit scores at all.

A simple way to organise this is a short checklist per college, noting its policy and your intended action. Keep in mind that once scores are part of an application, you generally cannot retract them, so decide before you order and send reports.

• For each college, record whether it superscores, takes a best sitting, or requires all scores
• Note any test-optional policy and decide whether to submit scores at all
• Map each college to the specific sitting(s) you will send
• Order and send reports only after the decision is made, since sent scores are hard to retract

Where to confirm the official rules

For how Score Choice works on the SAT side, the College Board's SAT Suite pages are authoritative. For the ACT, ACT's official site explains how you select and send score reports. For what each college requires, the college's own official admissions website is the final word.

Because testing policies shift — including superscoring and test-optional rules — verify everything on official sources close to when you apply rather than relying on older advice.