Colleges with the Highest Standardized Test Scores
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
In March 2016, Reuters published a story examining the recent security breaches on SAT exams in China. Students were given a booklet compiled by a Shanghai test-preparation school which was "essentially an answer key," a result of the school system systematically exploiting the SAT's security shortcomings. Though most students prepare for the test using honest methods, this bit of international espionage shows standardized college exams are a big deal.
For those who aim high, StartClass has ranked the 30 colleges with the highest average scores in the SAT and ACT. To do this, we created a weighted average of the two test scores and combined them to form a "Combined Test Score," with the highest possible score being 100. Test score data comes from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Combined Test Scores explained: If State University A has an average SAT score of 1920 and an average ACT score of 27, its Combined Test Score is calculated as follows:
All eight Ivy League schools made the list, with three — Harvard, Yale and Princeton — making the top 10. Each Ivy League school has an average SAT score of 2130 or better and an average ACT score of 32, though none of them claimed the top spot in our ranking.
Note: In the event of ties, the school with the larger undergraduate enrollment was ranked higher on the list.
#30. Claremont McKenna College
Combined Test Score: 87.95
Average SAT score: 2155
Average ACT score: 31
Acceptance rate: 10.8 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 1,301
#29. Tufts University
Combined Test Score: 88.16
Average SAT score: 2165
Average ACT score: 31
Acceptance rate: 17.2 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 5,177
#28. Northeastern University
Combined Test Score: 88.3
Average SAT score: 2105
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 32.2 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 13,510
#27. Swarthmore College
Combined Test Score: 88.31
Average SAT score: 2172
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 17 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 1,542
#26. Haverford College
Combined Test Score: 88.51
Average SAT score: 2115
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 24.7 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 1,194
#25. Cornell University
Combined Test Score: 88.82
Average SAT score: 2130
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 14.2 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 14,282
#24. Carnegie Mellon University
Combined Test Score: 89.24
Average SAT score: 2150
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 24.6 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 5,888
#23. Johns Hopkins University
Combined Test Score: 89.24
Average SAT score: 2150
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 16.1 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 6,357
#22. Brown University
Combined Test Score: 89.55
Average SAT score: 2165
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 8.7 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 6,548
#21. Amherst College
Combined Test Score: 89.63
Average SAT score: 2169
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 13.8 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 1,792
#20. Williams College
Combined Test Score: 90.07
Average SAT score: 2190
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 19.3 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 2,072
#19. Rice University
Combined Test Score: 90.07
Average SAT score: 2190
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 15.1 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 3,926
#18. University of Pennsylvania
Combined Test Score: 90.07
Average SAT score: 2190
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 10.4 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 11,548
#17. Pomona College
Combined Test Score: 90.17
Average SAT score: 2,195
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 12.2 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 1,650
#16. Dartmouth College
Combined Test Score: 90.17
Average SAT score: 2195
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 11.5 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 4,289
#15. Duke University
Combined Test Score: 90.17
Average SAT score: 2195
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 11.4 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 6,626
#14. Northwestern University
Combined Test Score: 90.38
Average SAT score: 2205
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 13.1 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 9,048
#13. University of Notre Dame
Combined Test Score: 90.52
Average SAT score: 2145
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 21.1 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 8,448
#12. Stanford University
Combined Test Score: 90.59
Average SAT score: 2215
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 5.1 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 7,019
#11. Columbia University in the City of New York
Combined Test Score: 90.69
Average SAT score: 2220
Average ACT score: 32
Acceptance rate: 6.9 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 8,100
#10. Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering
Combined Test Score: 91.71
Average SAT score: 2202
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 12 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 350
#9. Vanderbilt University
Combined Test Score: 92.29
Average SAT score: 2230
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 13.1 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 6,851
#8. Washington University in St. Louis
Combined Test Score: 92.29
Average SAT score: 2230
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 17.1 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 7,401
#7. Princeton University
Combined Test Score: 92.71
Average SAT score: 2250
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 7.4 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 5,391
#6. Yale University
Combined Test Score: 92.81
Average SAT score: 2255
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 6.3 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 5,477
#5. University of Chicago
Combined Test Score: 92.96
Average SAT score: 2262
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 8.8 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 5,738
#4. Harvard University
Combined Test Score: 93.02
Average SAT score: 2265
Average ACT score: 33
Acceptance rate: 6 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 10,338
#3. Harvey Mudd College
Combined Test Score: 93.35
Average SAT score: 2214
Average ACT score: 34
Acceptance rate: 14.2 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 804
#2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Combined Test Score: 93.68
Average SAT score: 2230
Average ACT score: 34
Acceptance rate: 7.9 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 4,512
#1. California Institute of Technology
Combined Test Score: 95.35
Average SAT score: 2310
Average ACT score: 34
Acceptance rate: 8.8 percent
Undergraduate enrollment: 983
Learn More About Colleges at StartClass
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