<p>fignewton - LOL, you misunderstand. I was tweaking the poster because they were just so wrong. Not only did they say common app when they meant common data set, but the CDS doesn’t have what they claimed anyway. You are right that the mid 50% range is fine, and in many ways more informative than an average, although I wouldn’t mind seeing both.</p>
<p>Thought this thread was worth reviving. I’m surprised how low (for CCers) these averages are. Apparently, the average SAT score for a Harvard student is 2230. [What</a> is the average SAT score for Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts?](<a href=“http://colleges.findthebest.com/q/1929/2549/What-is-the-average-SAT-score-for-Harvard-University-in-Cambridge-Massachusetts]What”>http://colleges.findthebest.com/q/1929/2549/What-is-the-average-SAT-score-for-Harvard-University-in-Cambridge-Massachusetts)
Yet many CCers consider a 2250+ essential to have a good shot at an Ivy. Why is this? Is the average brought down by athletes?</p>
<p>That website appears to derive the “average” by taking the average of the 25th and 75th percentiles. Assuming that the score distributions are bell shaped, that would give the median, not the average. And if the score distributions are not bell shaped, that would give a number that is only a rough approximation to the median. The average should be lower than the median, because the tail to the left of the 25th percentile doubtless will be longer than the tail to the right of the 75th percentile.</p>
<p>2230 probably is a good approximation of the median SAT score, I would think.</p>
<p>Awesome thread</p>