Colleges Receive Corrected SAT Scores for Thousands of Students

SAT Scoring Gaffe Raises Questions on Standardized Tests

Anyone who cares enough about college admissions to be reading this blog has probably heard last week's news about a technical glitch that resulted in incorrect SAT Reasoning Test scores being issued for approximately 4,000 out of the roughly 450,000 students who took the test last fall.

Applicants and admissions officers were understandably upset both about the mistake and about the way the College Board informed people of it.

To its credit, the College Board did take the initiative to do right by test-takers who got inaccurately low scores by sending their corrected scores to colleges and universities and by refunding the test fee. And the College Board has stressed, fairly enough, that only a small number of test-takers were affected (about .8 per cent of the October pool), and that the vast majority of those errors involved scores that were off by as little as 10 points. We're not aware so far of a single admissions decision that has been reversed on the grounds of the corrected test scores.

But the College Board did itself no favors by taking so long to correct the scoring problem or to notify affected applicants and schools. (Press reports suggest the College Board was aware of a scoring problem by late December, but did not notify schools until more than two months had passed.) Its spokesmen also dragged their feet in admitting that, in a handful of cases, the inaccurate scores were wildly off, in at least one case by almost 400 points.

What are college applicants to do? On the one hand, they pretty much have to take either the SAT or the ACT if they want to go to college. (Even those schools that don't require a standardized test score for admission often want one for scholarship consideration or class placement.) On the other hand, it's become obvious that there is no firm guarantee of getting an accurate test score.

One source of consolation is to keep in mind that your SAT or ACT score is just one part of your college application. (Similarly, your GMAT score is only one part of your business school application, and your LSAT score is only one part of your law school application.) Admissions committees interpret your score in the light of all the other information you provide in your application. That includes things that you have much more control over, particularly your essays and your recommendation letters.

By all means do your best to prepare for whatever standardized test you're required to take and get the best score that you can on it. But put even more effort into crafting a persuasive application packet (including strong essays, letters, and resume and extracurricular activities list). It's those other things that will give the admissions committees an idea of who you really are and why they want you at their school.