<p>Hi! I am an International student aspiring to study at a top notch Liberal Arts College. So far I have taken the SAT twice, and have the 3rd highest score among my classmates who took the SAT (1st test: 2030 & 2nd test: 2050 ) - the average reported in my school, among test takers is 1550- I am aware that despite it being a good score, it might not be good enough for some highly selective colleges, and I am having a hard time deciding weather to take it again in December, or just concentrate on polishing my Essays and hope that my GPA, class rank, AP courses, Subject tests etc.. are good enough to make me a deserving applicant to be considered for admission.</p>
<p>Many of my friends have told me to relax because Colleges evaluate your score differently depending on where you come from. I have always thought it was just a rumor, but yesterday I found this chart on College Board: (not sure if the link will work, but if not, it can be easily Googled)</p>
<p>SAT® Percentile Ranks for 2013 College-Bound Seniors
Critical Reading, Mathematics, and Writing Percentile Ranks by Gender and Ethnic Groups</p>
<p>And I realized that College Board in fact, separates SAT scores into several ethnic groups. Furthermore, if you take a close look, what's considered an "average" Math score for an Asian Student, is above what's considered an average score for a Latin American Student or for an African American Student, so it made me wonder if this factor is actually taken into account while evaluating an application? Why else would they publish such detailed results? </p>
<p>Will a score of 2000 for example, be viewed the same whether you come from India, Korea, Nicaragua or the USA ? Or do Colleges compare your score within your ethnic group before making a decision?</p>
<p>Thank you for the input!</p>