<p>Old SAT perfect scores, before the blunting of the content and truncation of the score scale, were extremely rare, maybe 20-30 in the world per year. More than 40-50 percent admission for those. Today, if you have a 1600, and go beyond that with a hypothetical 850 on the math using competition results, or on the verbal with mastery of foreign languages, a high score on the national Latin exam or a national ranking in Scrabble tournaments — you are in at most of the top 10 schools absent grades below the top decile. That level of testing is rare.</p>
<p>Figures from class of 2008 on SAT score frequencies: </p>
<p><a href=“http://professionals.collegeboard.com/profdownload/sat_percentile_ranks_2008_composite_cr_m_w.pdf[/url]”>Higher Education Professionals | College Board; </p>
<p>Scaled scores of 2290 and above were at the highest reported percentile level (“99+” in College Board terminology) on that table. The comparable figures for class of 2009 will come out in August if College Board follows its usual schedule. </p>
<p>P.S. Participant danas brings up the issue of a student who has no grades (some homeschoolers would present that case, as would a few applicants from unconventional high schools). Most colleges that report admission rates by class rank level are reporting those for students who were EXPLICITLY ranked by their high schools. Quite a few high schools do not explicitly rank students (although the Common Application Secondary School Report still allows inferences about how a student ranks in a class without explicit rank, if the counselor fills it out in the requested manner), so it may be that some number of students have neither a grade average nor a class rank officially in view as they apply to college.</p>
<p>Yes, great SAT and other test scores will help someone with a lower GPA get admitted. No College will say out loud that they value a four hour test as much as a four year transcript, but I think colleges like the super high scoring kids, especially if they are well rounded with EC’s.</p>