Most General Academic high school juniors will take the ACT or SAT two or three times to ensure they earn the score they need. There is no penalty for taking the test multiple times, and colleges only care about the highest score.
Note that most juniors will also take the PSAT in October for National Merit Scholarship qualification.
The SAT is generally offered to Houston-area students eight times a year:
- August
- October
- November
- December
- March
- April (all Houston ISD juniors in-class, automatically registered and paid)
- May
- June
Students need to register online at CollegeBoard.org at least four weeks in advance to avoid late-registration penalties and ensure availability. Most General Academic students will take the SAT in November, March, and May of their junior year.
The ACT is generally offered nationally seven times a year:
- September
- October
- December
- February
- April
- June
- July
Students need to reegister online at ACT.org at least five weeks in advance to avoid late-registration penalties and ensure availability. Most General Academic students will take the ACT in October, February, and April of their junior year.