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SAT/ACT Scores and College Admissions
How much is your score really worth?
SAT and ACT scores do not determine college admission. That's the word from Marlyn McGrath Lewis, director of admissions for Harvard College in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Admissions officers rely on all the elements of your application to paint a picture of you. The biggest factor is your high school record, particularly your willingness to take and ability to succeed in demanding courses.
Standardized tests aren't the be-all and end-all of college admission, but they do play a role. Why else would families shell out thousands of dollars for private test-prep tutoring? Universities realize that not every student is a champion test-taker, but so far these exams are their best way of putting your application into perspective.
“Because they're a test taken by a large pool of people, they provide some external reality,” Lewis says. “In general, they help us understand the rest of the academic credentials.”
They also help admissions officers predict your likelihood of succeeding in college. Each university assigns its own degree of importance to standardized test scores, but a 36 on the ACT rarely makes up for a 2.0 GPA.
Most colleges don't have a cutoff score, but spaces are limited each year. Thus, the qualifications of other applicants can affect your chances of admittance. For instance, of students entering Stanford University in 2004, more than half had SAT scores of 700–800 on both the math and verbal sections. That same year at The Ohio State University, most incoming students scored in the 500–599 range on each section of the test.
But don't rule out schools whose average scores you don't meet.
“A student who has an A or B record might get some extra attention, assuming that everything else in the folder pushed us in the same direction,” Lewis says. Colleges aim for a well-rounded student body, so criteria such as minority affiliations, geographic residency, and alumni connections might work in your favor.
The bottom line is, your score won't get you in, but it could possibly keep you out of super-selective schools. If you've been losing sleep over your scores, then retake the test. If possible, arrange for an in-person college interview so you can emphasize why you're a good candidate.
For more information standardized test scores and college admissions, check out Frontline: Secrets of the SAT. This PBS documentary goes behind the scenes of the admissions process to prove that there's no formula for getting into college. It's both fascinating and useful.
Dalia Wheatt is from Cleveland, Ohio. She has worked as an editor, freelance writer, and Spanish teacher.
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