A rundown on standardized test scores

Let’s talk about standardized tests. In pop culture and general American discourse, they’re one of the most prominent symbols for the college admissions process. This is understandable: the SAT and ACT are a widely-shared experience compared to, say, the University of Chicago’s notoriously quirky essay prompts. However, I would contend that test scores are also one of the most misunderstood aspects of college admissions. In this section, I’m going to cover three main topics related to the SAT and ACT:

1. How do admissions officers evaluate test scores?
2. Are my scores “good enough” to submit?
3. Miscellaneous tips

How do admissions officers evaluate test scores?

When a college says they use a holistic admissions process, they mean holistic. Apologies if I’m bursting anyone’s bubble, but perfect test scores are far from a golden ticket into any school your heart desires. I combed through (admittedly incomplete) Naviance data and found an acceptance rate of just 20.8% for Parkway West students applying to T20s with a 36 ACT composite score. Granted, that’s higher than the overall acceptance rates, typically ranging from 5% to 15%, at these selective institutions. However, this group of top-scorers also tended to boast exceptional GPAs and presumably all the other bells and whistles (impressive extracurricular accomplishments, essays, etc.) that make for a compelling application. Keep in mind that admissions officers at ultra-competitive schools reject thousands of applicants with strong stats every year. Your numbers can certainly help, but they alone aren’t going to get you in.

So how do test scores fit into the bigger picture? If you haven’t already, I recommend that you read this section as a primer on the rating system employed by many elite colleges. Documents from the Harvard affirmative action trial outlined their admissions office’s reading procedures for the 2018-19 cycle. According to the manual, test scores are considered in determining a student’s academic rating, one component of their overall rating. Here is Harvard’s description of the 1-5 academic rating scale:

1. A potential major academic contributor; Summa potential. Genuine scholar; near perfect scores and grades (in most cases combined with unusual creativity and possible evidence of original scholarship, often substantiated by our faculty or other academic mentors). Possible national or international level recognition in academic competitions.

2. Magna potential. Excellent student with top grades and

a. SAT and SAT Subject tests*: mid-700 scores and up

b. 33+ ACT

c. Possible local, regional or national level recognition in academic competitions

3. Solid academic potential; Cum laude potential. Very good student with excellent grades and

a. SAT and SAT Subject tests*: mid-600 through low-700 scores

b. 29 to 32 ACT

4. Adequate preparation. Respectable grades and

a. SAT and SAT Subject tests*: low-to mid-600 scores

b. 26 to 29 ACT

5. Marginal potential. Modest grades and

a. SAT and SAT Subject tests*: 500 scores

b. 25 and below ACT

*Seeing as the College Board is no longer administering SAT Subject Tests, I doubt these scores will be important for future applicants.

You might be wondering how many applicants receive each rating.

1: 0.5%

2: 42.3%

3: 40.6%

4: 12.4%

5: 4.2%

Don’t let the “near perfect scores” line in the criteria for a 1 fool you. 1’s are reserved for the prodigies that win the most prestigious academic competitions on Earth and conduct research so genuinely remarkable it even grabs the attention of Harvard faculty. For the rest of us, a 2 is the best we could hope for in the academics category. I’ll add that this is by no means a death sentence for your chances at Harvard or any comparable school. In fact, only 4.3% of Harvard admits landed a 1 for academics.

The ACT threshold for a 2 is a composite score of 33 or above. Of course, this doesn’t mean a 33 is identical to a 36 in Harvard’s eyes or that meeting a score cutoff guarantees you a specific rating. Better test scores may lower the bar in terms of your grades and course rigor, but your transcript is inevitably going to be given more weight. Plus it’s worth the reminder that your academic rating is just one part, albeit an incredibly important part, of your overall rating.

For a hypothetical, let’s say it’s fall of your senior year and you already have a great, but not perfect, SAT or ACT score under your belt — more on how to figure that out in a moment. You could pour your time into additional test prep, or you could devote that energy to polishing the rest of your application, writing your essays, etc. In my opinion, the latter is likely to yield a higher return on investment.

As one admissions officer at a T5 put it, “standardized tests are a checkmark at best. Everyone looks at scores a little differently, and there are a lot of exceptions. Most of the time, [an SAT score of] 1580 vs. 1540 probably wouldn’t even register in committee. Don’t get hung up on it, just do the best you can.”

Are my scores “good enough” to submit?

This question became a hot topic for my class as schools announced test-optional policies, which appears will be the case again for 2021-22. In other words, applicants are not required to submit test scores. (Meanwhile, test-blind schools such as the California Institute of Technology won’t consider scores at all.) Test-optional presents a conundrum for students who are able to test, but do not earn perfect or near-perfect scores. Do I include my scores or apply without them?

That’s where the Common Data Set (CDS) comes into play. The CDS is an annual report completed by higher education institutions with information about their school. For our purposes, Section C (first-time, first-year admissions) will be useful because it contains 25th and 75th percentile SAT and ACT scores for enrolled freshmen. As an aside, the CDS also states which parts of your application a school gives the most/least consideration to.

Northwestern University’s 2019-20 CDS, for example, reveals that their middle 50% SAT and ACT ranges were 1450-1540 and 33-35, respectively. Assuming the distribution isn’t skewed in one direction, that works out to median composite scores of 1495 and 34. As a note for future reports, be aware that test score ranges for test-optional cycles might be artificially inflated since low-scoring applicants could apply without scores.

The general consensus is that you should definitely report your scores if they are at or above that school’s 50th percentile. You report scores on an individual basis, so you could choose to submit a score to College X but not College Y. If your scores are below the 25th percentile, most sources that I’ve come across would advise against sending them. (For the sake of transparency, I should mention that I have seen an argument for adding scores just shy of this benchmark.) Then there’s the gray area: the scores that are within the middle 50% range, but on the lower end.

I won’t lie to you and pretend I have the magic answer. The potential value of standardized tests to demonstrate academic fit is different for every applicant. Did you attend a high school with an unorthodox grading system or curricular setup? If you’re from Parkway West, the answer is no. Does your transcript showcase stellar grades and a challenging course load? If so, a test score is going to affect your evaluation differently than someone with an otherwise “borderline” academic profile. Like with every other facet of your application, even admissions officers from the same school won’t always view test scores the same way. I wish I could give you a simple, universally-applicable answer, but the fact of the matter is that we’re talking about an inexact science. You know your circumstances better than I do.

Miscellaneous tips

• If you plan on submitting test scores, check that school’s admissions website to find out how they accept test scores. Some require an official score report up front from the College Board or ACT, while others allow you to self-report scores on your application and verify them upon enrollment.
• If you have taken the SAT or ACT multiple times, some schools “superscore” your results, meaning they will take your highest individual section scores and recalculate your composite score. You can usually find this information on the school’s admissions website.
• If you have taken both the SAT and ACT, this concordance table will tell you which score is “better.”
• If you weren’t able to take the SAT or ACT due to test center closures, health and safety concerns, etc., I would discuss this in the additional information section of the Common Application rather than the COVID-19 section. It could come off as distasteful to list standardized tests in a section primarily intended for “illness and loss, housing and employment disruptions and shifting family obligations.”
• At public schools, the middle 50% score range may differ between in-state and out-of-state applicants. For example, last year’s SAT range at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was 1310-1500 for North Carolinians and 1370-1540 for out-of-state students.
• Some scholarships, honors programs, etc. may require test scores even if general admissions are test-optional. See this section with my advice for staying organized.

Finally, and most importantly, standardized tests are a deeply flawed measurement of one’s talents and ability to create positive change in the world. For starters, there is a mountain of data regarding socioeconomic inequities in SAT and ACT scores. Besides, judging your worth using a single number is beyond reductionist for something as complex as a human being. Take a deep breath. A few hours on a Saturday morning aren’t going to make or break your entire future.