Does the SAT Even Matter?

<p>So much attention is paid on this board to SAT scores, with tons of threads dedicated to individual test questions, test days, etc.</p>

<p>Here's the thing: the SATs are only one small aspect of college admissions, especially with elite universities (to which the majority of students on this website aspire). </p>

<p>The dirty secret the College Board doesn't want you to know is that the SATs will not make or break you. If you fit within a certain range, (esp upper 1400s+), you're just like the other 20,000 people applying. The elite schools judge you from a much more balanced perspective, with special attention paid to ECs and essays.</p>

<p>My advice: Stop stressing so much! Take the test max 3 times, and whatever you get, you get. If you get a 1350, fine. 1600? Congratulations. Reading the accepted student threads at many of the elite schools, you'll find that many students with high SATs end up getting rejected/deferred, while students with lower SATs get accepted. It always happens. So just take a deep breath, relax, and know you did your best. Put attention where it matters: In your grades, your ECs, and your social life.</p>

<p>That was beautiful. </p>

<p>I'm just not sure how many people will listen. :)</p>

<p>eh, nice speech haha</p>

<p>you'll find that many students with high SATs end up getting rejected/deferred, while students with lower SATs get accepted. It always happens.""</p>

<p>but i dont think thats what happens</p>

<p>look at harvard :)</p>

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<p>Great advice for us seniors .... at this point what's done is done, no place to go but forward.</p>

<p>hell yea it matters</p>

<p>i love how everyone seems to love trumpeting all the ppl with high sat's that rejected from HYPMS. what ppl don't realize is that they are the exception rather than the rule. if harvard rejected all these high scorers, how are they gonna manage to have their 75th percentile SAT score at 1580?</p>

<p>Good point Khalid. It seems like people magnify these exceptions to make themselves feel better.
Now, if you are feeling bad/good about yourself because of your specific SAT score, that is a much bigger problem...</p>

<p>High SATs scores are a dime a dozen nowadays; however, since the SATs should be easy for someone ready to go to HYP, 15--s or I guess it is 23--s now are nearly a must have for admission.</p>

<p>I mean, com'on, if u think ur good enough for HYP, should the SATs be a breeze compared to your future workload?</p>

<p>*shouldn't</p>

<p>OMG so this post is used to make people feel better about their bad scores they got. NO ITS NOT RIGHT. Even if you got bad scores you must understand that the SATs will haunt u for the rest of you high school life and college life. Have you ever seen the colleges grading systenm? EC, GPA, and SATs are worth the most and in most colleges the same. The CB is being smart by "giving every student a free chance" in showing the universities their reasoning abilities. I say thats all BS. wait i dont mean to digress but i am saying that even though the CB makes the test very unfair, this will count for the rest of your education life. LIKE IT OR NOT, it will haunt you. jk jk, i dont mean to say "haunt" , but yea it counts a lot more than you think. AM I CONFUSING??? i think i am. but I am trying to say that it counts, hell ya it does.</p>

<p>This post is not to make people feel better about bad scores. Instead, I hoped to ease the fears of the many sophomores and juniors posting on this board. For the first time, they'll be taking a brand new SAT, and that's only a week away. It's important not to overly stress out.</p>

<p>And of course the SAT counts. However, it will not make or break you. Especially with elite admissions, numerous other facets of your application are more important.
By all means, work to get a good score. But don't think that a 1600 will get you where you want to go, and don't think a 1350 will break you. </p>

<p>As I said before, put attention where it matters: In your grades, your ECs, and your social life.</p>

<p>in my opinion, everyone should shoot for what they want. For examples, ivy league aspirers should all shoot for 1600. And if you don't get it? Maybe it just wasn't meant to be. Don't stress over it, just take your score and move on.</p>

<p>for me, i think that the SAT does matter, but just don<code>t stress over it. write down the goal you want to make, and then go for it. even if you don</code>t get that 1600, it<code>s okay. i mean, yale rejected 100 1600 scorers on the SAT last year. it just shows that the SAT isn</code>t e v e r y t h i n g , but it`s still something.</p>

<p>I think that beyond a certain point (1500ish) differences in SAT scores don't really matter all that much. (didn't stop me from retaking my 1510, though :)) However, I think that if you have an SAT III score of 3950+, it turns into a big plus on your application to schools outside of top 10 and remains a major distinguishing factor among the top 10.</p>

<p>This being a yes-no question (good use of fallacy!): The answer is yes.</p>

<p>i think that's right, a 1350 won't break you if you have excellent ECs
but if one has a 1350 (let's say 700V and 650M) with a 4.0 GPA and only 200hrs of ECs, then i think getting in to the HYPS are going to be stretching. However
if a person with the same stats is say, like the daughter of a senator, or is filthy rich, then HYPS are still good chance for them :)</p>

<p>the creator of this thread is trying to make himself feel better, thats y he created a thread with the renamed topic {by me} "Why does the SAT even matter" - "SATs does not matter". perhaps the creator od this thread got a bad SAT scores??!</p>

<p>I think it's a legitimate question (although, like you said, such questions are often prompted by bad scores). Although I doubt the veracity of the whole 1350 claim the OP made, I agree with Newby that ECs can definitely make up for an SAT on the lower end of the college's scale. In fact, Seven Nights received a likely letter from Duke (meaning he is in the top 2% of their applicants in their eyes), and he <em>only</em> (used with sarcasm) got a 1390.</p>

<p>The problem with this thread is that saying yes, means that SATs account for 100% of the admissions process and saying no means that it doesn't matter at all. If the OP had titled the thread, "How much do SATs matter?" then it would be a more valid discussion. In fact, according to his/her scale, ECs don't "even matter" and grades don't "even matter" because they're not the only thing that the adcomms consider.</p>

<p>exactly.....now i think this thread is just used to make the OP and ppl who said no, feel better about their bad scores. I say yes. they count both of them, the EC's and the SATs together. if you have all good EC over 200 hrs., then u get 1/3 of the application. GPA is another 1/3 and SAT is another 1/3. u get the idea of the frations, but the examples of the fractions i have given here are not right. SATs are worth more than the GPA and ECs. People who get all the fractions seem to be the first ones to make it to the universities they are applying to.</p>