What Do SAT Scores Mean in College Admissions Data?
Much of the SAT data on this site and elsewhere on the web show SAT scores for the 25th and 75th percentile of students. But what exactly do these numbers mean? Consider a college profile that presents the following SAT scores for the 25th and 75th percentiles: • SAT Critical Reading: 500 / 610 • SAT Math: 520 / 620 • SAT Writing: 490 / 600 The lower number is for the 25th percentile of students who enrolled in (not just applied to) the college. For the school above, 25% of enrolled students received a math score of 520 or lower. The upper number is for the 75th percentile of students who enrolled in the college. For the above example, 75% of enrolled students got a math score of 620 or lower (looked at another way, 25% of students got above a 620). For the school above, if you have an SAT math score of 640, you would be in the top 25% of applicants for that one measure. If you have a math score of 500, you are in the bottom 25% of applicants for that measure. Understanding these numbe
