<p>I can't seem to find this, which actually surprises me.
I have heard conflicting opinions as to how colleges view these tests. Some people say it doesn't matter, just do what you will do best at. (which makes sense.)
But some people say that only the math 2 is considered important, and that the math 1 is a copout.</p>
<p>Take Math 2 unless you have not taken pre-calculus; it’s as simple as that.</p>
<p>Well I haven’t taken precalc…so I guess math 1.</p>
<p>Or you could self-study the Math 2 material if you are up to it.</p>
<p>Well would you consider it to be worth it? Thats kind of what I was wondering, because my math SAT 1 score isn’t so hot and I want to counteract that with a good math SAT 2 score. Does a good score on the math 2 mean more than the math 1?</p>
<p>^ I’m not completely sure… But I can say that it’s easier to get an 800 on math 2 than it is on math 1.</p>
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<p>If you are good at math, yes; if not, no.</p>
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<p>At some schools, perhaps: most colleges do not seem to understand that the curves for the tests are wildly different and that, in turn, a given scaled score has a different meaning for different tests. Getting a high score on Math 2 is certainly easier than getting a high score on Math 1 as long as you know the material.</p>
<p>silverturtle, is this from your experience or is it deduced from the percentiles? The population of students who take Math 2 instead of Math 1 is already self-selective, so the 90th percentile in Math 2 is different from the 90th percentile of Math 1.</p>
<p>The population of students who take Math II is indeed selective, which is why the percentiles are as they are. However, CollegeBoard realizes the Math II is a harder test conceptually, and thus allows the test taker a larger margin of error. Colleges seem to value Math II more because of its conceptual difficulty, which is why I would recommend taking Math II.</p>
<p>And the Math I is not a copout by any means. I got an 800 on the Math II test with relatively little preparation and difficulty, but I question my ability to get an 800 on the Math I because of the small margin of error.</p>
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<p>This comes from my analysis of the percentiles within the context of self-selection as indicated by the average SAT Reasoning Math scores for those taking each Subject Test, as well as the reports from many who have taken Math Level 1 and Level 2 and found Level 1 to be more difficult (not to mention the curve).</p>