@3puppies No mystery, I’m afraid. “Highly rated” means the score the admissions officer assign a file after reading it. Each folder would be assigned an initial rating by its readers but these frequently changed during committee discussions. “Other factors” were things like having excelled despite significant challenges, special or unique skills and abilities (outstanding artistic achievement, fluency in multiple languages, inventions, exceptional talent in some area), and awards and honors (Intel, Gates Millennium, Coca-Cola etc).
Regarding test scores, at both universities I worked at, admissions officers only saw the highest scores for each candidate, with our admissions clerks updating our computer screens when new scores arrived.