How is the SAT scored?
Each SAT subject (Critical Reading, Writing, and Math) is scored on an 800 point scale.
Each of these ‘scaled scores’ is determined by comparing your ‘raw score’ on each subject with those of other students.
Scoring on SAT Multiple Choice questions
For all SAT multiple choice questions (except Math Grid-Ins) your raw score is calculated using this formula:
1 point ADDED for every CORRECT answer
¼ point SUBTRACTED for every WRONG answer
0 points for every SKIPPED answer
The SAT penalizes guessing on multiple choice questions by subtracting a ¼ point for every wrong answer. Because SAT multiple choice questions each have 5 possible answers, subtracting a ¼ point for each wrong answer prevents a student from randomly filling in the answer sheet in hopes of getting extra points.
I still do not understand how scaled score is calculated.
Once I had 750 in Math with 2 questions skipped and 2 wrong and raw score = 50 , another time 730 with only 2 questions wrong and raw score = 52.
How is that logical?
Your scaled score reflects how well you did in relation to other students who took the same test you did.
If a test is relatively easy, then more people do better, which means it takes a higher raw score to get the same scaled score. Likewise if a test is relatively difficult, then overall raw scores are not as high, which means a lower raw score still results in the higher scaled score.
To give you an idea of the ‘norm’, the scale from the Official SAT Practice Test (which is actually the October ’05 test) translates a 50 raw score into a 720, while a 52 raw score earns a 760.
Still, every test grades out a little differently. Sounds to me like the first test you took was fairly hard, and the second test was a lot easier. This would account for the apparent discrepancies between your raw and scaled scores on the two tests.
Anyway, what’s the big deal? A 750 on SAT Math is an amazing score no matter how hard or easy the test. So don’t sweat it. You did great!
Adam – Thanks a lot for reply! Now it’s clear to me, although seems a little unfair.
I guess the best is to have all questions answered and zero wrong