<p>@Data10 That is correct. A high SAT student will graduate at about the same rate at a low selective school compared to going to a highly selective school. This is true about a low SAT students as well. Their attendance at a more selective school will not substantially improve their graduation rate. </p>
<p>The data from the research shows the direct relationship between SAT scores and graduation rates. This is important from the aspect of college admissions because high SAT correlates well with high graduation rates. Low SAT also correlates well with low graduation rates. Another reason why SAT is important for ranking purposes.</p>
<p>The data also shows that when a student’s SAT is above 1 standard deviation the rate of change for the probability of graduating gets smaller the higher the SAT score. This explains why those test optional schools see little difference in freshman GPA of submitters and non-submitters. The difference is not that substantial at high average SAT levels which many of these test optional schools are. </p>
<p>For instance, Bowdoin has a mean SAT of about 1400 for submitters and about 1300 for non-submitters. Based upon the graph one would not see that much of a difference in graduation rates from submitter and non-submitter . Some how Bowdoin is able to select relatively high SAT scoring students from the non-submitters. Had Bowdoin selected high HSGPA students with average SAT scores from the non-submitters, it is clear from the data that Bowdoin would see marked differences in graduation rates of non-submitters vs submitters.</p>