Hello,
If anyone has stories of people who have gotten accepted into Andover, Choate, and St. Pauls with low SSAT scores such as a 65- 70, please let me know. Thank you, I greatly appreciate it!
Every school has a range of SSAT scores, but you want to make sure that yours are at or above the average for the schools you apply to. Knowing that a school may have accepted students with scores on the lower end says absolutely nothing about your chance of admission, so it is irrelevant data. Even perfect scores don’t guarantee admission. The schools use the SSAT scores along with grades to determine whether or not an applicant is comfortably able to do the work at their school. The range you list is outside the average for the schools you list indicating that those schools most likely would be an academic struggle for that student and would be a red flag to admissions.
If those scores are not reflective of the student’s academic ability due to learning or testing issues, it would be best to approach each school directly to discuss the individual situation and get their recommendation.
On the face of this post, I would recommend considering other schools where the test scores are closer to the averages.
Let us know whether you get in.
Agree with @ChoatieMom 100%. It will not help you to hear any stories of kids getting into those schools with low scores. Unless your profile is an exact match, and even then (school’s priorities change) it won’t tell you anything about your own chances.
Have you applied anywhere else?
As mentioned above, schools accept students with a range of scores on the SSAT. I had a conversation recently with 2 AO’s from NE BS’s. Both mentioned that the SSAT scores are just one piece of the puzzle. Both also told me that it is not the most important factor. We personally know kids who were accepted to Choate, SPS, Andover, Deerfield, Hotchkiss & PEA with variable scores - with some in the 70’s. A classmate of kiddo’s from the old local day school was accepted to PEA, Taft & L’Ville with scores in the 70’s range - I know he got low 60’s on Reading Comprehension. How do I know this? Because he told us… However, he was hooked with a PEA alumni dad.
Believe me - there are kids of variable quintiles who get accepted to BS. Trust the system.
@kharle, I know what you’re looking for. I looked for it, too when I went through the process. You spent weeks working on your applications, hitting up middle-school teachers for recommendation letters, months studying for the test (along with all your school work.) Your parents spent money on admissions fees and (I’m assuming) time out of their day to get you to interviews just like mine. You made enough of an emotional investment to want to know some stats. The other posters made good points. Maybe it gives you piece of mind and maybe it doesn’t, but if the data exists, you have every right to know.
@Golfgr8 has a strong point, too. Even if you find out someone got into St. Pauls with a 65, you may not know the exact reason. Recruited athlete, alumni connection, etc. But here’s probably the best collection of data. Yes, it’s anecdotal. but it’s something for you to look at. There is a link for 2019, 2018, 2017, and so on.
I don’t have to tell you that a school’s needs change every year. And sometimes you’ll hear about a “great kid” who didn’t make a school that on paper they should’ve, in your mind, strolled right in. You don’t know what went down in the interview, or a remark from a tour guide. It is a holistic process. I’ve got my fingers crossed for you!
I’m helping a first generation soon to be college grad student that I’ve been mentoring since the 6th grade. She is an A student at a private school (financial aid and scholarships) with great volunteer activities and leadership groups and sports. She attended camp at Choate and Cate last summer. I’ve driven/flown her all over the country to visit schools and interview. All but one interview went particularly well. I am an elite college grad but did not attend boarding school in high school so this process is foreign to me. We have help from her tutor and mentor who is a Choate grad. The student is a minority, her father is from Mexico and she lives with her mom. She had terrible, no not terrible, HORRIFIC SSAT scores. I’ve written letters to the schools to prepare them for this “blip” on her applications. She took the first exam in November the next morning after her father was involved in a serious accident and was in surgery all night. She didn’t sleep at all. She took the next exam in December 5 days after he passed away, 2 days before the funeral. I was surprised she even took the second exam to be quite honest. She did apply to some safety schools and if she doesn’t get into one of her top 3, I will continue to work with her to take the test again this summer and apply as an incoming 10th grader next year. But I have to admit, I’m sweating bullets and I’m not even the parent or student! Wish us luck, I know she will need it.
@MentorBee I am so sorry to hear that! My prayers are with you all. On a side note, just remember: this is just high school. One can get into an amazing college, without private school. She sounds like a very intellectually driven young woman, she can do it! Also, I am sure the secondary private/ boarding schools will understand, and still accept her. SSATs are not everything.
@springfield18 Thank you for your reassurance!
@Golfgr8 Thank you for letting me know… this whole BS application process is quite stressful!
yes, SPS and Andover
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My Daughter is a 7th grader and got a Scaled score of 1788
How do I know what % is this?
You should be able to see the percentiles when you log in to see the scores.
I am currently a freshman at Choate and I scored 75% on the SSAT, 80% on Reading, 30% on Math (shocking, I know) and 99% on Verbal.
It’s really all about the rest of your app. I know people that got in with lower, and also people that got in with higher.
I know this is an older thread but just in case people review this later. I want to offer a different perspective from what is suggested above – to make sure that you are “at or above” the SSAT scores for the schools on your apply list.
I would tweak that idea a bit and offer this thought –
Your SSAT score is one data point.
Your academic narrative is a combination of SSAT score, your grades, your course selection, your recommendations. If you are a top student, you probably know you are a top student. You have probably been told this your whole life. If you get a softer score, it may well not “ruin” that narrative.
Also, keep in mind that your academic narrative is actually just one piece of the overall narrative.
(activities, kindness, interesting background, resilience, etc etc etc…).
So all that to say: if we had “made sure to be at or above SSAT scores” of schools, my DD have applied to 1 or 2 of her schools. (She had an 80.) Thank goodness she didn’t do that! She got into 8 fantastic schools, all but one or two were above her average by a nice margin.
I would say, however, that you would want to be in the ballpark. (maybe 10 or 15 ppts below just as a guess if we have to put a number on it?). And, I would suggest having a few options where you are at or above the average. But don’t let a soft SSAT score lead you to cross out options before you’ve even tried.