Sending scores
SAT superscoring explained
A superscore is the best Math score and the best Reading and Writing score a student has achieved, taken from different test dates and added together. The university works it out, not College Board, and not every university does.
How it works, with numbers
| Sitting | Reading and Writing | Math | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| First sitting | 680 | 740 | 1420 |
| Second sitting | 730 | 720 | 1450 |
| Superscore | 730 | 740 | 1470 |
An illustration. The superscore of 1470 is higher than either sitting, even though Math fell on the second attempt.
Superscoring and Score Choice are different things
- Score Choice is the student’s decision. It is College Board’s free option to choose which test dates a university receives. It works by whole test date: a student cannot send the Math score from one day and the Reading and Writing score from another.
- Superscoring is the university’s decision. Having received scores from more than one date, a university that superscores takes the highest of each section. College Board does not calculate or send a superscore.
- Some universities ask for every score. Where a university requires all sittings, Score Choice does not apply, though many of those universities still superscore what they receive.
The practical rule: to be superscored, a university must receive every test date that contains one of your best section scores. Policies differ between universities and change from year to year, so read each admissions page for the current cycle.
What it changes about a resit
Where the universities on a student’s list superscore, a second sitting cannot lower the score they use, and it can be prepared for differently. A student with a settled 780 in Math and 680 in Reading and Writing can put nearly all the preparation into one half, accepting that the other may dip slightly on the day.
Two cautions. First, do not neglect the stronger section entirely if any university on the list takes a single-sitting total or asks for all scores. Second, superscoring rewards a planned second attempt, not a fifth. Gains tend to shrink with each further sitting, and time spent on a fourth is often better spent on the rest of the application.
This is why the test dates page counts backwards from a sitting that leaves room for one more. For students near the top of the scale, the 1400 to 1600 guide explains where the remaining marks in each section are.
Planning a section-focused resit
A resit aimed at one section is the most efficient preparation there is, provided the diagnosis is right. Altair Prep starts from the score report and the questions actually missed, and Lewis Watson, who teaches both halves of the test, builds the lessons around the weaker one while keeping the stronger one ticking over. Rates are on the fee sheet.
Common questions about superscoring
What is an SAT superscore?
It is the sum of a student's highest Reading and Writing section score and highest Math section score, taken from different test dates. A student with 680 and 740 on one date and 730 and 720 on another has a superscore of 1470. Universities that superscore calculate it themselves from the score reports they receive.
Does College Board send a superscore to universities?
No. College Board sends score reports by test date, each showing both section scores from that sitting. A university with a superscoring policy then combines the best sections itself. To benefit, a student has to send every test date that contains one of their highest section scores.
What is the difference between Score Choice and superscoring?
Score Choice is the student's choice of which test dates to send, and superscoring is what a university does with the dates it receives. Score Choice works only by whole test date, never by single section, and it does not override a university that requires all scores to be sent.
Is it worth retaking the SAT just to improve one section?
Often, yes, if the universities on the list superscore. In that case a second sitting can only raise the score they use, and the preparation can concentrate on the weaker section. Check each university's policy first, because one that looks at a single sitting or asks for all scores will see any drop in the other section.
Planning a resit?
Send Lewis the score report from the first sitting and the list of universities. The intro call and the trial lesson are both free.
Prefer email? Write to lewis@altairprep.com.
More from Altair Prep
- SAT test dates 2026–27Every sitting, deadline and when to start
- From 1400 to 1600Where the last 200 points actually are
- How many hours of tutoring?The usual patterns, by target
- From PSAT to SATWhat the score predicts
- The Digital SAT explainedFormat, adaptive modules, scoring
- FeesWhat one-to-one lessons cost