Frequently Asked Questions
Questions about SAT and Subject Tests Scores
- How do admission officers use my SAT scores?
- Can the SAT really show how well I'll do in my first year of college?
- How are Subject Tests scored?
- How do admission officers use my Subject Tests scores?
- How is my essay scored?
- What's considered a "good" score?
- What's the average score?
- I have the same critical reading and math scores but the percentiles are different. Is something wrong?
- I checked my scores online and the percentile is different from when I took the test. Is this a mistake?
- Do you report only the best scores?
Questions about Sending Scores
- I rush reported my scores but the college hasn't received the report. What happened?
- I'm undecided about where I want my score reports sent. When do I have to make a final decision?
- How do I send scores to colleges and scholarship programs?
How do admission officers use my SAT scores?
Your SAT scores can tell admission officers how you compare with other students who took the test. All scores are reported on the 200-to-800 scale. For example, if your scores are about 500 on each section, which is the mean (average) score, college admission staff would know you scored about as well as half of the students who took the test.
Because no single score can tell everything about how you tested, percentiles and score ranges are also included on the score reports sent to colleges. Admission officers use these tools to evaluate the scores. Remember, your scores are not the only information colleges use in their admission decisions. They may also consider your high school record, essays, recommendations, interviews, and extracurricular activities.
Can the SAT really show how well I'll do in my first year of college?
The SAT does almost as good a job of predicting how you will do in your first year of college as your overall high school grade point average (GPA). Many factors, including personal motivation, influence your college grades. Knowing your SAT scores and high school GPA helps the college make a decision about how likely it is that you'll do well at the school.
How are Subject Tests scored?
Subject Test scores are reported on a scale from 200 to 800. Subject Test subscores are reported on a scale from 20 to 80. Your scores tell college admission staff how you did compared with other students who took the test. See Understanding Your Scores for more information.
How do admission officers use my Subject Tests scores?
College admission officers can use Subject Test scores to help determine how well prepared you are for different college programs, place you in freshman or higher-level course work, and advise you on course selection.
Subject Test scores can help you demonstrate your academic achievements. Many colleges that do not require Subject Tests will still look at your scores to learn more about your academic background.
How is my essay scored?
The essay will be scored by experienced and trained high school and college teachers. Each essay will be scored by two people who won't know each other's score. They won't know the student's identity or school either. Each reader will give the essay a score from 1 to 6 (6 is the highest score) based on the following scoring guide. See How the Essay is Scored for more information.
What's considered a "good" score?
Generally speaking, scoring close to the mean (average)—about 500 on critical reading, 500 on mathematics, and 500 on writing—tells you that you scored as well as about half of the students who took the test. Each institution will have its own range of scores that it considers a good fit for its students. Because no single score can tell everything about how you performed on the test, the score reports sent to colleges also include percentiles and score ranges.
What's the average score?
Average scores are based upon the most recent SAT scores of all students of a particular graduating class. See Average Scores for a list of average scores for the SAT Reasoning Test and Subject Tests.
I have the same critical reading and mathematics scores but the percentiles are different. Is something wrong?
Percentiles allow you to compare your score with the most recent scores of college-bound seniors in the previous year who took the test at any time during high school. The scores for each section stand alone, and percentiles on different sections will differ depending on how the entire group of test-takers performed on them. If your percentile is 95, that means you scored higher than 95 percent of the seniors in the prior year who took the test. The more students there are who received lower scores, the higher your percentile will be. For example, a score of 700 on both the critical reading and mathematics sections can yield a critical reading percentile of 95 and a mathematics percentile of 93 because more students who tested had lower scaled scores for the critical reading section than for the mathematics section.
I checked my scores online and the percentile is different from when I took the test. Is this a mistake?
Percentiles are based upon a comparison of your score to the most recent college-bound seniors who took the same test. From year to year your percentile can change slightly depending on the scores of the group to which your score is being compared.
Do you report only the best scores?
Your score report is cumulative, meaning it contains your most recent score plus scores from up to six SAT and six Subject Test administrations. Most colleges only look at your highest scores.
I rush reported my scores but the college hasn't received the report. What happened?
Check with your college before you order rush reports. Depending on how colleges receive score reports, some may not process your scores until their next scheduled delivery of scores.
I'm undecided about where I want my score reports sent. When do I have to make a final decision?
Your registration fee covers four reports. If you are undecided about where to send your scores, you can add or change your score recipients online until 11:59 PM (EST) on the Monday one week after your scheduled test date. If you registered by mail, you also have the option to use the Correction Form that is enclosed with your Admission Ticket to make these changes. You have up until the day of the test to submit the Correction Form to add or change score recipients. Additional score reports can be ordered at any time, for a fee, using the online Score Sender service.
How do I send scores to colleges and scholarship programs?
When you register for the SAT, you get four score reports included in the test fee. You may also choose four additional schools or scholarship programs for an additional fee for each report.
After your test has been scored, you can send additional score reports at any time, for an additional fee per score report, by using the online Score Sender service.
