Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums High School when to take SAT Subject tests

Bostonian, if I am remembering correctly, you have a DS who is very strong in Math and Science, so I would definitely prioritize there. I am assuming that you are considering so many subject tests partly to get a couple of perfect 800s. It would seem that AP classes would increase the likelihood of reaching a perfect score at any one random testing so perhaps wait until your DS has had the corresponding courses. I bought a Barron's book with "all" (actually just most) the subject tests. You should probably use that to gauge where your DS is strongest and whether AP courses are helpful to reach his scoring goal. Of course, it may be like the ACT, where the top score can be elusive once you reached the point of possible perfect score: DD had a perfect 36 in ACT Reading and DS had a perfect 36 in ACT Science when they practiced right before the exam but both fell short in those specific sections on the actual test. In our experience, the old SAT I was more stable score-wise so maybe the SAT subject tests are more like the old SAT I. On French, I would judge based on your DS' actual command of the language. DD took a quick look at the Spanish test and was surprised at how easy it was and she was only mid-way through her second year; of course, I hear that there are a lot of perfect and near perfect scores on the foreign languages tests so I personally would prefer to wait until the third year.