<p>My 8th grade son took a practice SSAT test and scored a 2040 overall. Is that good?</p>
<p>No, that’s not very high but there are schools for every SSAT level and you need to find right “fit.” In addition,SSAT scores are only one piece of application. </p>
<p>How to read my score @ ssat.com - There are three sections to the test. 8oo is the highest score…800 x3 =2400</p>
<p>To rehash my point on another thread, it’s very difficult to say if a given score is “good”.</p>
<p>I mean, in the context of what kids and parents tend to report here (which IMO, skews to the higher end of things, very few people have the courage to report lower scores), it’s on the low side.</p>
<p>If you are shooting for the most selective schools, it’s definitely on the low side. But as payn4ward states, there are schools that offer a better than average chance of admission at every SSAT level. The trick is to be open to those schools instead of focusing on a handful of the most “name brand” (which are often the most selective).</p>
<p>Keep in mind that, if you/your child is targeting the “uberselectives” (schools like Exeter and Andover), he is competing against kids who, with minimal to zero prep, walked in and scored a 2350+. For a point of reference, Andover’s average SSAT percentile for their admitted students is 93%. I can only speak to scores of my own kids, but based on my younger girl’s score last year, I can tell you a mid 2100 score is good for a mid-80s percentile. Of course, average means that there are people admitted who scored higher and some who scored lower than the average score. But if was my kid and s/he didn’t have any significant desirable traits (impact player in sport that is important to school, virtuoso musician, etc.) I would not feel that confident about his/her chances at Andover — or any of the ultra-selectives.</p>
<p>Additionally, based on what a few AOs told me a few years ago, they look to the SSAT as a barometer of whether a kid “can handle the work” at these rigorous schools. So your 2040 kid might be overwhelmed by the rigor and workload of a school whose average SSAT is significantly higher…meaning, that high school experience would be a very rough four years.</p>
<p>Something to consider…</p>
<p>I do not think even a mid 2100 will bring it up a 80th percentile. Many people in my school who scored 2100’s are only placed in the 70s. </p>
<p>Hi. My child took the test in October. We have not yet sent the score to any schools. He is taking the test again in January. But the results won’t be in until after most applications are due. The schools all note that the January 10 test is acceptable. But I’m not clear if there is a disadvantage to waiting until the January 10 results are in before sending in the better score. Any thoughts?</p>
Just saying, you should make a new thread with your question.
But I think it is perfectly fine to wait until the Jan10 results are out. A lot of people do that. You can always ask the admissions staff just to be sure…
@Alfa45: Looking at my SSAT January Score Report, the average score for an 8th grader was listed as a 1993. By average, I’m assuming that means 50th percentile. Individually, the average scores for eighth graders are: Verbal - 665, Quantitative (Math) - 674, Reading - 654.
If your son had a 2040, based on the average of 1993, I’d assume he’d be somewhere around 55-65 percentile.
Looking at my DD score, a 2277 was 98%. So, 2350+ (99) is well above the 93-94% of Exeter/Andover. For them and other top schools to have averages of 5-6% below (PE/PA) or lower (CH 85) means that they are looking at other factors for admittance. Based on CC posts, it seems that the average is lower based on hooks like siblings, athletics, legacies, FP, and unusual accomplishments.
A 99 is not necessarily a 2350+. I got a 2313 on the October test and got a 99. I would say anything in the 2300 range is a 99.
2360 and 98…
Huh? That is very odd. 
@mrnephew
@mathman1201: maybe mrnephew is in a higher age range, perhaps he took the test as a ninth or tenth grader.
No, that was eighth grade. Ninth grade was 2380 and still 98.
That’s odd. How far up do you have to be to get a 99, then…2400?! puzzled
No clue. I had a 99-99-97 split.
On the January test, my daughter got a 2307, which was a 99 overall and 99 female for 8th grade. I would imagine she was a point away from a 98.