Same scores but vastly different percentiles on SAT Biology?

Test Preparation
1

Ok so I have taken SAT Biology twice.

The first time I got a 720. The second time I got a 720.

But there is more to the story.

You see the first time I did Molecular Biology and got a percentile of 68th
The second time I did Ecological Biology and got a percentile of 79th.

Really my choice of which test to take was arbitrary. I usually look over both sections and decide what looks like it is more of my “cup of tea” for the day and take that section.

What on earth is going on here? Like I know my 800 score in Math 2 was technically 80th percentile… So is my ecological biology score just as good as my math 2 score? What accounts for the 10 percentile difference between the two test scores?

What should I send to colleges? Do they look just at the score or also at percentiles?

Does a 720 in these subjects throw away chances of getting into schools like Northwestern or Rensselaer?

2

Percentiles are irrelevant to subject tests. Demonstrated proficiency in the subject is key and anything above 700 shwos that.

3

The percentile difference means more students scored higher than you on the molecular biology test than the ecological one. It’s not relevant when gauging test performance (your score itself does that), but it’s handy to see how you measure up against hopeful doctors/neuroscientists/biological engineers/biologists/conservationalists.

You’ve scored better than over half of test takers in each test. That’s something to be very proud of!