<p>This is probably a basic question, but I was unable to find information on it through the search function.</p>
<p>My SAT scores (lower 700s x 3) are relatively low for the schools I am applying to (Amherst, Pomona, some Ivy). And although it will do me no good wondering about this now, I ask: are SATs usually a type of "bright-line test" (as I've seen a few people consider it) or are they more hierarchical, in terms of the traditional AI rating.</p>
<p>I'm sure there isn't an arbitrary way to decide all matters, but I'm just wondering if I could just get some commentary on this. </p>
<p>Thanks a lot and trying not to think I suck as I read the scores of these crazy people, s.</p>
<p>Nah, I always question the importance of the SATs, especially with international students ! I fully know almost all schools always stress the SATs are just one minor part of the whole application package and with US students, for the most part, I think it is quite true.
But is the circumstance different when it comes to international students ? Some of my experienced bros and sisters say that adcoms of course aren't always familiar with the GPAs of international students , so they will put much more emphasis on students' essays and the SATs , rite ? Anyone out there has experiences in that kind of stuff, please share your thoughts :) ( especially at this moment when many dudes have got their final results )</p>
<p>I have two exeptionally smart sisters who used to make 4.0 in HS, had all A's on the GCSE's, just tore up college, and now have good paying jobs (relative to the Bahamas) . But gess what they did horrible on thier SATs. Me who is nowhere as smart as them got higher than them. So I dont really know who good the SAT is as a jidge of smartness or apptitude.</p>
<p>I would say for the colleges you are looking at, SAT is going to be paired with GPA (assuming you have rigorous courseload) for kind of an even comparison. i.e, if you have a 2360 SAT, 3.6 GPA, top 15% of class for one kid, and another kid has a 2080 SAT, 4.0 GPA, and is in the top 1-2% of class, I would say they have the same chance</p>
<p>Antarius: they weigh them using a chemical balance :D</p>
<p>Hey, that is besides the point :D ! Anyway, if you don't mind n have experience, tell me more about the importance of the SATs with international students ? But one thing that puzzles me too bits is I don't know why I know several inter students who got a very low SATs score were still accepted to elite schools ( with full fin aid ) ? Why could this occur ? :)</p>
<p>a lot of the SAT questions are wordy and tricky. This could very easily trip someone up who is not extremely fluent in english. i believe the consensus is that if you're taking hard classes at wherever you are, have a great GPA, good EC's, etc, then the SAT shouldn't be that important.
A lot of questions on the SAT require an intrinsic understanding of the english language and it automatically puts international kids at a disadvantage.. now if a kid gets a 620 Math score.. that would be looked at, because math doesn't trip you up (to a great extent) if you aren't extremely fluent w/ english.</p>
<p>is it true that a lot of american kids take the psats all throughout high school? maybe international kids have a disadvantage because they don't have as much practise with the SATs. that, in addition to a language barrier, could influence admissions. in addition, i have 3 friends in my school who got near perfect scores (2300+) on their SATs yet they're not the sharpest tools in the shed, so to speak. i say we should stop using the SAT..</p>
<p>Heh, I find the SAT to be quite funny because</p>
<p>-I scored a 5 on the AIME and a 110 on AMC 12
-I can't get past a 760 on the SAT Math
-I got an 800 on math iic while very sick in 1 try
-I went from a 560 writing (6/12) to a 740 (12/12) with only 2 practice tests.</p>
<p>Heh, completely agree that inter students don't always have ready access to SATs books, courses, or whatever ! But the point is if inter students get high SATs score, will adcoms be really impressed ? ( I mean for example with the same high SATs scores but belong to two different dudes: one is inter student and one is US student. Who will make a greater impression on adcoms ? Or who, in other words , will have the competitve edge ? )</p>
<p>I mean, SATs aren't the only thing that college adcoms are looking for. Besides, most international kids get pretty nice SAT scores plus score marks. The international pool of applicants should be more competitive.</p>
<p>As with most admissions factors, I think the importance of SATs depends on the college.</p>
<p>For extremely prestigious schools like Harvard and Princeton, SATs really don't matter (unless your score is terribly low) because all the applicants have high scores.</p>
<p>For other schools SAT might be more important and serve as a distinguishing factor between applicants.</p>
<p>If all applicants have high scores, it won't help you to have high scores. It will however, hurt you to have low scores-you are at an immediate disadvantage.</p>
<p>Oh well , what Takeme2cali said is completely accurate ! I forgot that adcoms often put inter students in the same pool and US students in the other ! So there is no comparision between an inter student n US student :)</p>