Low Math SAT

I am amazed by all the great achievers on this site. Can a student who has a 600 Math SAT be successful in an ABET accredited civil engineering program? By successful, I mean earning a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. I’ve read on this forum that to be successful in engineering a Math SAT of at least 700 in necessary.

Your other thread said you had already been getting A’s in your CC math and engineering classes? That’s probably more representative than SAT score.

Reliance on the SAT is CRAZY overblown.

My son scored a 760 and he missed ONE problem, all day long. It was a problem in the easiest category where he blew threw it and made a careless mistake. My point, we play like a 780 is better than a 770 which is better than a 760, and it simply isn’t. They are all effectively the same. That can be said all up and down the scale.

So where does a 600 put him? Right on the border of the top quartile of a test that is too high pressure, too long, and punishes kids with short attention spans who may not be great at 4 hour tests or handling stress.

Of course he can do well in engineering. He needs to know that Math is highly cumulative and that he will use it at every step he encounters along the way. It isn’t something, like say Organic Chem for a pre-med, that he can just gut it out, get through and never use again.

As long as he enjoys math and works hard at all of his studies, he’ll be fine.

Thanks eyemgh!

It could be OK. I had 630 Math (in 1979, so “old” SAT format but assume it is similar). Many of my engineering classmates had higher math scores. But I still graduated with honors due to strong work ethic and a stubborn reluctance to ever leave a homework problem unsolved. (Looking back, those traits helped me in the workplace too.)

Note: Both my kids had much higher SAT scores than me. One ended up doing well in engineering, and the other turned out to not be a good fit. So there are many factors involved besides just scores.

It isnt really indicative. I got a 640 on the math and a subject test math 2 score of 750. Both are considered low but I have a great gpa and an internship in my college.

Thanks!

A lot of it depends on how much work you are willing to put in…not just a grade on a standardized test. My son never did well on the SAT or ACT Math. But he got into 3 good programs with a high GPA and is graduating with an ME this year with 3 good internships on his resume. He had to work very hard but it was worth it!