<p>Anyone here who has been accepted to Stanford with low SAT scores??? If so, what were your scores, and what was something that could have "saved you" or stood out in your application that might have had admission officers not pay too much attention to your scores??? Any extra curricular activites? Sports? Essays? Recs?</p>
<p>Is it impossible to get into Stanford with low SAT scores??? Is it possible to get in even if you do not have above a 2100???</p>
<p>Yes, it is entirely possible to get in scoring below a 2100. The thing you have to remember is that, at least at Stanford, having a high SAT score will never get you in by itself. Heck, having a high SAT score probably won't even be seen as a big plus for your application. It sucks, but at best all a good SAT score will do for you is not prejudice the rest of your application and keep you even with everybody else. What does all that mean for a person with a low-ish SAT score? Basically, it would be worth your time to do some studying and take the test again, but it also means that an SAT score is not the end all be all of admission into Stanford.</p>
<p>I don't think any one thing can 'save' or counteract a low standardized test score. I think you'll find that every person that gets an offer of admission will have something (or somethings) which truly stand out in their application. In other words, you need something to stand out regardless of your SAT score. All that being said however, I do think there are some things you can do to help an admissions officer give a little less credence to your test scores. The first thing I would say is to write some excellent essays. While you should never have marginal essays no matter how good the rest of your application looks, if your writing stands out, it might make them think that you just don't take standardized tests well, but your writing is well above average. Another thing you can do would be to look into the ACT. Some people that do poorly (in their eyes) on the SAT do a lot better on the ACT, it just varies from person to person, but if you take some practice SATs and you're still not doing as well as you'd like, at the very least pick up an ACT book and flip through it, get a feel for the test, talk to a counselor, etc.</p>
<p>To summarize: an SAT score is one small, and rather marginalized (at Stanford, anyway) part of the "whole you" that an admissions officer will see. Having a low SAT score is certainly no reason not to apply, especially if you feel as though you just slipped up in that one area but the rest of your application is excellent.</p>