Extremely Horrific SAT II scores.. HELP!!

dufus3709
Wed, 01 Jun 2005 23:43:41 +0000

People on this thread are going overboard about the 790 on Math IIC. The average score for most of the SAT II’s is 600, but the Math IIC has a very high average. However, the difference beween a 790 and 800 is probably only a single question. Nobody would ever think that the difference between 790 and 800 means anything at all. The 740 and 710 are good. The two 600’s will verify solid work, but not impress anyone. Taking five SAT II’s was good because it shows effort. The thing you have to remember is that the Bio, Chem and Hist SAT II’s are only taken by people who really care about those particular subjects. If you get a 600 on one, you are average. However, you are average among the preselected group of people who are extremely good at that particular subject.

The bottom line to all of this is that you shouldn’t worry. First, they care about difficulty of curriculum, gpa/rank, and SAT I much more. Second, after you qualify for admission based upon your academic record (and 70-80% of the applicants do), they make the decision about who gets in based upon the “hook” of the applicant. A 1500 SAT with a good hook is much more likely to be accepted than a 1600 with no hook. After a certain point, the standardized test scores do not matter that much. In the essay, you need to stand out from the crowd. You need to be special, unique, interesting, and memorable. In addition to having outstanding EC’s, the EC’s have to support the essay. Adcoms want to see “passion” and long-term commitment to one or two EC’s. Don’t worry about the SAT II’s. After all, the math and chemistry are quite good and you were only required to have two. Work on the essay and presenting the supporting EC’s.

Also, don’t get too freaked out about what everyone else at your school is saying they got for their scores. People lie. If people lie about anything, it is about this.