What’s considered the cutoff for a “good” SAT score these days?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son got a 1380 and that is considered 92nd percentile nationally.

He had a 4.1 WGPA. Was still waitlisted at Virginia Tech and Clemson for business.

I think for competitive stem programs, you need at least a 1450 if you you’re going to submit it.

Where did he go?

His choices were Pitt, South Carolina, Indiana (Kelley auto admit), JMU honors and WM transfer/2nd semester admit.

[Anonymous]

97% of kids won't get a 1500 or above. Keep it in perspective. Responses here are very skewed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:97% of kids won't get a 1500 or above. Keep it in perspective. Responses here are very skewed.

Correct but 75 thousand kids will each year, hence the challenge for being admitted to highly ranked schools. Just so many more kids going to college today. Not to mention that the SAT has been dumbed down and there are a plethora of tools available to help kids prepare.

[Anonymous]

My ds got a 1390 (no tutor, just Khan academy and two tries) and did well and got into one top 30 and several top 50 schools. We did not aim for very high or do test optional.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pre-covid, a 1500/34 was generally regarded as good enough for anywhere. I think that's more or less true today for the most selective colleges.

To be clear, such a score is "good enough" for the top schools in the sense that you won't be rejected due to your score. But the vast, vast majority of applicants to the top schools with scores like this or better--and near-perfect GPAs and rigor--will nonetheless be rejected. These scores get your application read, rather than simply discarded. But it's still a longshot.

[Anonymous]

There are only about 20 schools where the median SAT score is greater than 1500.

[Anonymous]

For T25, 1500.

[Anonymous]

1500+ scores- more helpful at large state flagships such as UGA, which requires scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1520+ cutoff for top selective schools if not recruited athlete or from underserved community - for T20

Which is a 34 ACT, correct?

[Anonymous]

OP honestly this is just pure insanity the SAT score requirement these days. It’s gone off the rails. What used to be a good score, now isn’t. It’s too much time and money to study for those top scores. Just remember for your kid, in the end, education is really what you make of it. Not what you get on the SAT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1520+ cutoff for top selective schools if not recruited athlete or from underserved community - for T20

Which is a 34 ACT, correct?

34 ACT is a 1500 SAT, which is a good baseline for the top schools.

[Anonymous]

Another thing to remember - test scores for admits to T20s in recent years have soared - why? Because the only kids submitting were the ones that did very well, so the "average" score results for admitted students was highly skewed. As more schools require standardized test scores again, those numbers should come back down over time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The math is fuzzy. You need to be near the top of your high school average no matter what. Unfortunately that means if you are at one of those high schools where 100 seniors score 1500+ then you are SOL.

Yup 1520 of flat out rejected to GT with 1 B on transcript. 14 APs plus MV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The math is fuzzy. You need to be near the top of your high school average no matter what. Unfortunately that means if you are at one of those high schools where 100 seniors score 1500+ then you are SOL.

Yup 1520 of flat out rejected to GT with 1 B on transcript. 14 APs plus MV.

What about ECs and awards?

[Anonymous]

I think it depends on your high school. If you are at TJ or Blair or a W school you have to have a great score because everyone else does. Sort of sucks. Baby’s very first rat race!