SSAT Score Report
What will the SSAT score report look like? How do schools interpret SSAT scores? What do scores mean as part of the overall admission application? View sample reports and detailed explanations below.
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Sample SSAT Score Reports
Use these sample reports to familiarize yourself with the SSAT score reports. You'll also find detailed explanations of each section below.
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Score Report Breakdown
Personal Information
The score report header details the student’s basic information—name, address, date of birth, gender, etc. EMA will have scored the student at the grade displayed as indicated during registration. Please note that while gender is listed, SSAT scores are not gender-specific.
Total Score Summary
This section lists the two total scores.
"Your score" is the total scaled score, and the pointer indicates where the student’s score is between the highest and lowest possible score. We also provide the average score for additional context.
The total percentile on the right compares the student's scaled score to other SSAT test takers. For example, a sixty-seventh percentile indicates that the student scored equal to or higher than 67 percent of first-time test takers in their grade over the last three years with respect to test takers in the US and Canada.
Section Scores
In this section, EMA breaks score information into verbal, quantitative (math), and reading segments. Similar to the total score, a scaled score and percentile are shown, along with the average score. We also provide a score range; students who retest within a short period will likely score within this range. A breakdown explaining the main types of questions follows, including the number of questions answered correctly, incorrectly, and unanswered.
What is equating?
Different sets of SSAT questions—called forms—are administered to students each year. While test developers follow specific procedures to keep the form difficulty level as similar as possible, slight variations are inevitable. Therefore, EMA uses a statistical method called equating to compensate for the minor difficulty differences by adjusting scores, making them comparable across different test forms.
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Are my student's SSAT scores good enough?
When reviewing SSAT score reports, we encourage families and admission officers to focus on the scaled score (displayed as "Your Score"). It offers the most precise measure of a student's performance and is consistent over time—a scaled score today means the same as it did 15 years ago.
The SSAT percentile is also helpful for admission consideration as it compares performance with other SSAT test-takers in the same grade.
Speak with the schools if you're concerned about your child's scores. Every school differs in how they factor scores into admission applications; most will tell you they view prospective students holistically. Many schools also trust SSAT scores to help place admitted students into appropriate courses and identify those who could benefit from additional academic support.
In addition to the SSAT, schools get to know students and develop an understanding of who is a good fit for their programs through:
- Student essays
- Teacher recommendations
- Extracurricular activities and interests
