Testing Timeline

Three tests will be administered by CHS to all students (free of charge, during the school day, families do not need to sign up independently):

• 10th Grade - Pre-ACT in mid-October
• 11th Grade - Pre-SAT in mid-October
• 11th Grade - ACT in late-February/early-March

Other than these three, students and families will need to register to test on their own:  ACT Information, Test Dates and Deadlines, and Registration; SAT Test Dates and Deadlines; SAT Information and Registration.  If a student qualifies for free or reduced lunch, or certain other criteria, then they may qualify for a fee waiver for the ACT or SAT.  Please discuss this with your counselor, if you think you might qualify.

If your student has any testing accommodations via a 504 Plan or IEP, please work with the case manager to ensure those accommodations are applied for on these tests.  It is not guaranteed that the ACT or College Board (SAT) will permit the same accommodations on these tests.

Suggested Testing Timeline*

*This is a very individualized conversation for each student, and these are loose, minimum suggestions.

We know that your student will take the three tests from the timeline above (Pre-ACT, PSAT, and ACT).

Generally, and at a minimum, we encourage college-bound students to also prepare for and take the full SAT by the end of their junior year.  Because the SAT and ACT will have Math 3 content, we do recommend registering for the SAT after they've finished Math 3 (any time after the PSAT fall of 11th grade, for students who took Math 3 in 10th grade or earlier; or towards the end of the spring semester, for students taking Math 3 during 11th grade).

At this point, students will have, at a minimum, experience with the practice and full versions of each test (Pre-ACT, ACT, PSAT, and SAT).  We encourage most students to prepare for and take at least one of the tests for at least a second time.  Depending on your college admissions deadlines, you may take this test earlier in the fall of 12th grade, if considering any early notification application options, or into the winter, if applying to schools with later deadlines.

Some students may consider taking one or both tests for a 3rd time or more, although scores do tend to plateau after the first re-take.

So, at this point we have added these minimum, loose suggestions to the timeline above:

• 10th Grade - Pre-ACT in mid-October (given to all students)
• 11th Grade - Pre-SAT in mid-October (given to all students)
• 11th Grade - ACT in late-February/early-March (given to all students)
• 11th Grade - SAT by the end of the year (register independently, after the PSAT and completing or close to completing Math 3)
• 12th Grade - ACT and/or SAT for second time fall semester (register independently, base test date off of college application deadlines)

Again, some schools may also require SAT Subject Tests - this should be verified with individual schools, but if any schools you're considering require SAT Subject Tests, then it could be beneficial to take the tests soon after you've completed the recommended classes.