Is it bad having a high GPA and a mediocre SAT score?

<p>Basically that is my only question. I have around a 4.0 grade point average in a fairly competitive foreign international school overseas, but my SAT scores are mediocre. But thats enough about me. I heard that if your score doesn't match your gpa, its a bad thing. Can someone explain this better to me. Thanks.</p>

<p>It just implies to the adcoms that your school isn't as rigorous as one might think. If you get straight As in math but only score 600 on the SAT section, there is a disconnect.</p>

<p>Or, instead, it might imply that you're an extremely hard worker -- especially if your HS is well regarded by the adcoms.</p>

<p>yeah i agree, it implies that you're hardworking but not genuinely smart?</p>

<p>^ Wow thanks Vanessama. Way to make my day. </p>

<p>Ses, my school is very competitive. Its 65 percent Korean. Definitely the wrong place if you are looking for a high class rank. And about the SAT again, it doesn't have anything to do with how smart you are. One test I scored a 690 verbal, and the second time i took it, I got a 570. But I think... I am a hard worker though. I really am. But theres no way to prove that to colleges I think. I mean... I bet that I'd do better in certain schools than the kids with 2300 Sat scores. It all seems to depend on your work ethic to me.</p>

<p>obviously it's not good since SAT scores are also an admission factor...</p>

<p>How much is it weighted?</p>

<p>Are you looking at top schools? You can still go to great colleges with "mediocre" SATs and a great GPA.</p>

<p>How "mediocre" is this SAT score? I have one friend who considered her...what was it, something around 2200...to be a mediocre score.</p>

<p>its better than having a bad gpa and great sats. that just shows you're smart but don't try.</p>

<p>Mister Sinister, what is your superscore?</p>

<p>low sat = immediate no at the top few colleges (HYP) no matter what, unless you cured cancer or recruited athlete</p>

<p>"Low" sat is under 1450/2400.</p>

<p>


</p>

<p>There is some correlation between SAT score and intelligence, but a lot of respectably smart people don't score very high on the SAT. If you're brilliant, you should probably score high on it, but if you're not (but still smart), you could conceivably study and earn a high score. </p>

<p>To the OP: I'd much rather have a high GPA but lower SAT than a high SAT but low GPA. Most top colleges seem to care a little more about GPA and other factors than they do the SAT.</p>

<p>I think it shows grade inflation at your school.</p>

<p>I don't know what you mean by that. SAT and GPA are entirely different things. SAT math is not school math. Everyone knows that. SAT just determines how much you studied/ and how great of a test taker you are.</p>

<p>what do you consider low? what about around 2000?
"low SAT no in HYP no matter what" .....</p>

<p>if there's really no extremely significant thing on your resume like intl olympiad, intel, recruited athlete, UM or curing a major disease, then my guess is you need a bare minimum of about 2150+ to have a good chance.</p>

<p>myarmin, actually i have to disagree...if you read most of the college prep and advisory books out there, particularly ones catering to the upper tier schools, many of them in plain english say that the SAT score is still the leading predictor of a childs aptitude to succeed in college, and that they would rather see but don't publish it, lower gpa and very high sat than vice versa. You should read Michelle Lopez's books, she was the admissions director at Dartmouth for 16 years and is considered to be the "DR. SPOCK" in some eyes of the college admissions world. That said, the OP probably stands as good a chance as any to get into a great school, to me you cannot minimize a kid who has plugged away for 4 years and ended up with a really impressive record, that speaks volumes and I wish you luck!</p>

<p>an sat scored doesnt reveal how smart you are. all it does is show how much you have prepared for it. …and some people practically buy their sat scores with expensive test prep. ultimately, a high gpa and a mediocre sat proves that you have taken your high school work more seriously than a single standardized test. that is not necessarily bad, but if you want to apply to a competetive school, the mediocre sat score will clearly not help you. im sure admissions officers at tough schools are looking for standout flaws as an excuse to not consider a candidate because choosing among a pool of so many well-qualified applicants is very difficult.</p>