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There’s really no difference between a 2350 and a 2400.<br>
Both of those scores indicate the same level of “The applicant can handle the work”. The adcoms will then move on to other areas of your application.</p>
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<p>What if other areas of the application are very similar? wouldn’t the 2400 be favored over the 2350 candidate ? I know it is very unlikely to get identical applications, but a lot of HS kids tend to have the same kind of resume.</p>
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Luceverita:
I know this thread is about Harvard, but in another thread, which you’ve read and replied to, an MIT admissions counselor stated that MIT sees no difference between a 750 and an 800 for a math SAT score. Both are equal predictors of success, so they then move on to the rest of the application.</p>
<p>Do you really feel Harvard adcoms could find any justifiable reason to view it any differently?</p>
<p>jpm: I think both harvard and mit admissions officers would do the same, that is give more consideration to a 2400 than a 2350 all other aspects of the application being equal. Of course, the situation where “all other areas are equal” is rather unlikely but, if you consider that a 2350 is similar to a 2400, then how about 2300 vs 2350 and then 2250 vs 2300 etc. Where do you actually start to make a distinction between these ranges?
Also, no matter what they claim, the reality is that there is a statistical advantage to higher scorers for admission at schools like mit and harvard, so the higher the score, the better.
I think silverturtle has got supporting data for this claim.</p>
<p>This doesn’t need to turn into a debate. Will a 2290 be THE reason for your acceptance? No; but neither will a 2400, for that matter. Proceed with your high school career and challenge yourself.</p>
<p>luceverita what your saying is absolutely correct and essentially common sense. However, many people like to believe otherwise in order to assuage their own anxieties.</p>
<p>^ You really can’t be sure of that. The only actual statement that I’ve seen posted on this issue is MIT’s assurance that they don’t distinguish between a 750 and an 800 on a subject test. You can correlate all day, and I myself strive for the highest scores possible, but you don’t know that there’s really a statistically significant difference for sure.</p>
<p>^ Peruse through a few previous threads addressing the issue and you’ll find plenty of data supporting my assertion.</p>
<p>Data, as in a statement by an admissions officer, or data is in some numbers put into a graph by a teenager?</p>
<p>It’s entirely possible; I was admitted with a 2290. Asian female.</p>
<p>I worked with a college guidance counselor for about a year about applying to Harvard. She was very well informed and understood the admissions process. I got a 2310 on the SAT, she said that would be beyond good enough. I was told that ultimately the SAT is of little importance. Anyone averaging a 750 or higher per section (2250) is in the running. Getting much higher than that is not really better than a 2250. So, yes, your score will put you in the right direction for applying. You will need more than that though, as even a 2400 wont guarantee admittance.</p>
<p>NO … But dont worry. You can make up for it with EC’s. I myself have been helping anorexic british kids gain weight and self esteem for the past 2 monts.</p>