What Is A Good SAT Score?

A good SAT score is what? And how does one come about?

These 2 questions are frequently posed by our students. However, depending on whom you question, the responses can be very different.

In this article, we define a good SAT score for 2022 using recent industry statistics.

However, we won’t abandon you there.

We also provide information about what constitutes a good SAT score for you specifically. Additionally, we provide six doable steps for achieving that target score.

Students who take the effort to determine their own ideal SAT scores have a higher chance of being accepted into top colleges.

The Guide for Achieving a Good SAT Score

These two queries are frequently posed by students taking the SAT for the first time:

A good SAT score is what?
What should I do to improve my SAT score?

It can be challenging to respond to that first query. After all, the word “good” is a relative one. Additionally, aren’t all SATs technically unique?

Yes and again.

Determining what a “good SAT score” actually means is crucial for this reason. For this, there are two definitions.

Our Two Criteria for a Good SAT Score:

With sectional scores and percentile rankings, everything that is “above average” is considered “good.”
Anything that would make a college application appear competitive is “good.”

Criterias for a Good SAT Score

1. Above Average

Let us start with “Above Average”, according to this notion, an excellent SAT score for 2022 may be anything higher than 1060. This was the typical 2021 graduating class national composite SAT score.

Based on the same data published by the CollegeBoard in its 2021 annual report, a good SAT Reading and Writing score might be anything above 533, while a good SAT Math score may be over 528.

2. Good

According to this concept, a “good SAT score” is the one that is appropriate for your given your college objectives, as we like to say. This is probably close to the SAT scores of applicants who were accepted into collages.

Don’t overlook the main justification for taking the SAT which is : college admission!

A student’s “good” SAT score in the context of college admissions may differ greatly from another student’s. It all depends on where you apply and the typical SAT scores of applicants who get accepted.
A “excellent” SAT score is one that is likely higher than the 90th percentile if a student hopes to enroll in a highly selective university like Princeton University, for instance.

On their websites, several colleges provide the score ranges and percentiles of successful applicants (although some are not public with this information).

The “Middle 50,” or the 25th and 75th percentile of SAT scores for accepted students, is the most common way to achieve this. Do not mix this with SAT score report percentiles!

Consider range when looking for SAT scores for applicants who are very competitive.

For instance, successful Vanderbilt applicants frequently have SAT Reading and Writing scores between 710 and 760. The SAT Reading and Writing score range for accepted Barnard College candidates is 670 to 750.

Those intervals are actually important. Yes, in these situations, the greater your score, the better. However, students who scored at the lower end of these ranges were still admitted.

For scholarship consideration, several colleges set cutoffs for test scores and/or GPA. Review these specifications in advance to determine the acceptable ranges of scores for applicants.

What about colleges whose websites don't specifically list the typical SAT scores of accepted applicants?

There is a solution!. Additionally, several universities make available a Common Data Set, which includes information on test results of candidates who were accepted.

The 25th and 75th percentiles of SAT scores, as well as the proportion of 2019-2020 freshmen with particular SAT score ranges, are included in Princeton University’s CDS, for instance.

This information leads us to the following conclusions about what a competitive SAT score for a Princeton applicant might be:

Reading and Writing: 710-770
Math: 750-800
Composite: 1470 – 1560

What It All Means in Terms of Questions?

How many SAT questions must you correctly answer in order to achieve an above-average score (according to our initial criterion of a good SAT score)?

Every SAT exam is “equated” for difficulty, according to the College Board.

It is challenging to convert the 2020 average SAT scores into the total number of correct questions because no two SATs are comparable.

What is considered as A Bad SAT Result?

Is it possible to receive a low SAT score? Sort of.

When it comes to what the College Board refers to as college and job readiness, a “poor” SAT score frequently falls short. The majority of the time, these results fall short of the mean.

They might also fall short of the College Board’s set standards for college readiness, particularly in the areas of content. These benchmark results differ per grade (from 8th grade to 11th grade).

We’ll concentrate on the benchmark scores for college and career readiness in this post.

Evidence-Based Reading and Writing: 480
Math: 530

Students’ scores will have a green checkbox next to them if they satisfy these standards. A student has not achieved a benchmark for a particular unit if they have a yellow circle with an exclamation point next to it.

A “poor” SAT score is one that falls below 480 on the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section and 530 on the Math section. But keep in mind three things:

1. Each college will have different requirements for applicants who are accepted, including SAT scores.

2. 530 on SAT When compared to the 2020 average SAT scores, math is really above average (on sectional scores).

3. With the advice we’re about to discuss, you can take the proper actions to raise your SAT score.

Six Steps to Get a Good SAT Score:

1. Take A Practice Test

Without knowing where you are starting, it can be challenging to determine your destination.

You can find out where your skills are at this time by taking a diagnostic SAT practice test. In fact, we require this of all of our students as soon as they enroll in a PrepMaven SAT test preparation course.

Setting realistic goals requires having access to a standard set of SAT scores. And setting realistic goals is essential to achieving your desired SAT score.

2. Confirm that the SAT is the best exam for you.

You heard correctly.

Depending on the outcomes of your diagnostic SAT, the SAT may not be the right test for you. The second standardized test used for college admissions, the ACT, is more appropriate for some students.

Both examinations are accepted by colleges equally, but it’s crucial to prepare for the one that will result in the highest possible score.

3. Create a list of major colleges.

You might not know for sure where you want to submit your college application.

That’s alright!

The summer or fall of their senior year of high school is when the majority of students finalize their college lists.

A broad college list, however, is crucial if you want to understand what a good SAT score looks like for you specifically. You can use this list to determine approximate SAT score ranges for competitive entry, which we discuss in the following step.

If you are unable to identify specific universities, consider tiers instead:

Tier 1: Ivy League Universities (Harvard, Princeton, Yale, etc.)
Tier 2: Highly Selective Institutions
Tier 3: Extremely Strict Schools
Tier 4: Selected Institutions
Moderately Selected Schools, Tier 5
Tier 6: Moderately Selected Institutions, etc.

We advise selecting at least two schools for each of the following three tiers of schools (a total of six schools):

Safety programs (you’ll probably be accepted, you know)
competing institutions (odds are neutral)
Reach out to schools (reach out to get accepted)
Of course, as SAT test preparation progresses, students will want to add more colleges to their list. To move on to the next stage, however, a basic list of at least six schools will be sufficient for the time being.

4. Look into the ranges for college scores.

Once you’ve created a list of general colleges (at least six schools), it’s time to research the typical SAT scores of those who were accepted to those schools. A few tools are at your disposal for this:

the actual college webpage.
The newest Common Data Set for that university (if possible)

5. Determine your desired SAT score.

Preparing for the SAT without a desired score is like sailing without a rudder. A desired SAT score is necessary for two reasons:

Having objectives
Setting a schedule for your test preparation

We recommend that you: before deciding on your desired SAT score.

Consider taking a diagnostic SAT practice exam.
Create a generic list of colleges.
The difference between a good score and a mediocre score on the SAT can be made up by having a specific goal score. Why? Your chances of success in life increase if your objectives are:

specific, realistic, and time-bound
In fact, students are less likely to succeed in their endeavors if they don’t select a goal SAT score at the outset of their test preparation.

Seek Excellent SAT Tutoring

One of the ways to improve your score in SAT in general, is to seek proffesional assistance from an experienced SAT tutor or from a well-established educational institute. We at Apostrophe Educational Center will help to not only pass the SAT exam, but also to get a high score.

Overview the preparatory course for the SAT exam at APOSTROPHE

A program that covers all the necessary SAT subjects to help you get the highest score in the SAT exam. Through the program, your skills in mathematics and English will be enhanced through using articles, grammar, and vocabulary lessons as well as Mathematical problems. In addition, specific strategies are taught to help you to use your strengths in the test. Students are also trained on how to use their time wisely and increase their practice in order to build confidence before taking the real exam

For more information regarding the course, please do not hesitate to visit our website OR contact our representatives using the link below.

To Inquire About Our SAT Preperation Course

SAT EXAM DATES FOR 2022/2023

As an SAT Examinee, you must have knowledge about SAT Exam dates, so you can plan your schedule based on the date you intend to set for the SAT exam. Planning will help in managing time for studying and preparing properly for the SAT Exam. Down below is a link that shows the SAT Exam Dates for the Acadmic year of 2022/2023.