Interpreting SAT scores and percentiles

Yo peeps! Could someone explain this whole SAT scores and percentile system? I mean how's the score correlated to the percentile and how does it matter in our college applications?

Sure, happy to help simplify this. We all know that on the SAT, you receive a score out of 1600. But another important aspect is the percentile ranking, which tells you what percentage of test takers you scored better than. Let's say you scored a 1300, and this score is in the 85th percentile. That means you did better than 85% of the students who took the test and that 15% of students did better than you.

As for the significance in college applications, percentile rankings can give you a sense of how your score stacks up relative to other applicants. Specifically, colleges often report the 25th and 75th percentile scores of their incoming classes. For example, if a school’s 25th percentile score is a 1200, it means that 25% of incoming students scored at or below a 1200, while 75% scored above it. To aim for the most competitiveness, you would ideally want to have an SAT score in the 75th percentile or higher of the college's range.

However, please keep in mind that your SAT score is just one factor that colleges consider in their admissions process. Grades, course rigor, extracurricular activities, essays, and others are also extremely important. In fact, there are several notable colleges such as Dartmouth and Harvard that have again started mandating SAT/ACT scores, but many other selective institutions, including Columbia University, Stanford University, and the University of Chicago, continue to remain test-optional for the 2024-2025 application cycle. Consider the context and adjust your focus accordingly!