If you decide to retake the SAT, ACT, or any other standardized tests, pinpoint your weaknesses and study before taking the test again. You can buy books from collegeboard.com, take test prep courses, and even check out books from the library!!   I hope this helps.  'fly-thought: ''Never make the same mistake twice!!''  And ...

Some schools prefer one over the other [in SC they prefer the SAT, but in IL they prefer the ACT, for example], but most accept both. The SAT and the ACT test you on different things as well.. I'm not sure what the exact difference is, because I only took the SAT, but I think the SAT is aimed more towards reading/writing and critical thinking, and ...

Should I take the SAT and ACT?

I think the ACT Writing Test is optional (http://www.actstudent.org/writing/index.html). Most colleges are still deciding how to use the SAT Writing and ACT Writing. Part of the issue is that it's so new so they don't have a history of data to compare against.

Do certain types of students do better on one than the other? It seems like most schools take the SAT so why would I take the ACT? Am I missing something?