Do colleges look at the percentile score or the score itself for admission?

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1

<p>Do colleges look at the percentile score or the score itself for admission?</p>

2

<p>Score itself. The curve, rather than the percentile, is the main determinant of the difficulty of the test. The curve is set up to make an 800 on almost any test reflect an equal level of ability. For example, Math II is substantially more difficult than Math I, but if you get an 800 in both, you’re in the 99+th percentile for Math I and only the 90th percentile for Math II because Math I is generally only used to apply to state schools, so only state-school oriented people are taking it. The percentile most accurately reflects the ability of students taking the test.</p>

3

<p>it’s different when you compare different subjects, though.</p>

<p>a 800 on math 2 is 90th percentile. but a 90th percentile on english lit is a 730.</p>