The Myth Surrounding the SAT

“I got a 760 for the Math section, should I retake?” SAT scores are not very accurate. ETS (that’s the Educational Testing Service, the organization who creates the SAT) has conceded before that the SAT scores are not entirely accurate. Take my score for example. There’s a 1/3 chance that the 760 should read 790 or 730.

Why is this so? If you've learnt statistics, you may have read about sample size. We use sample size because we cannot possibly measure the whole group or population. In the same way the SAT cannot measure everything (like your vocabulary or your geometry knowledge) in one Saturday morning. What the test measures is essentially a sample size of what you know.

Therein lies the statistical error. Studies shown that the statistical error is about 30 points, so about 33% of scores are off by about 30 points. Which means that a 720 has a 33% chance of being a 690 or a 750. College admissions officers know about this, so they usually don't pay attention to a difference of 30 or 40 points. NEITHER SHOULD YOU.

“But I W-A-N-T a 2400!”

 
The chase for the perfect score has been around for awhile. Can perfect score guarantee admission? Again, it depends on the school. Although I cannot tell with complete accuracy which policy a particular school adopts, generally, perfect scores will give you a huge boost at state universities.

At most schools, however, as long as your score falls within the percentile range, you should start worrying about other parts of your application.