Reading Your Child’s SSAT Score Report

Whew! So your child has studied hard and taken the SSAT test, and now the results are in. Interpreting your child’s score can be confusing, so here’s a breakdown of how to read your child’s SSAT Score Report.

Scaled Score

First off, to get the score report once the results are in, your child can either log onto their SSAT account, or you can pay an additional fee to have the report mailed or emailed to you. Read here for more information on obtaining the score report.

The score report will include a scaled score for each of the test’s sections. The lowest and highest possible scaled section scores for each SSAT level are listed below. Make sure when your child takes the test, they are registered for the correct level! Otherwise, there is an additional fee to have your test results re-scored.

Upper Level SSAT:

• Lowest possible section score: 500
• Highest possible section score: 800

Middle Level SSAT:

• Lowest possible score: 440
• Highest possible score: 710

Elementary Level SSAT:

• Lowest possible score: 300
• Highest possible score: 600

Upper/Middle Level SSAT Score Report

The Upper/Middle Level SSAT score reports have a different format than the Elementary SSAT score report. Here’s a breakdown of some of the things you’ll see on your child’s report if they took the Upper or Middle Level SSAT.

• Scaled Score Range: A score range is provided on your child’s report to account for what their score might be if they were to take the SSAT test again in “a relatively short period of time.”
• SSAT Reference Information: This section will give you the average score of students who are the same age and gender as your child and who have taken the SSAT in the last three years, then places your child in a percentile.
• Test Question Breakdown: This section allows you to see how your child answered each question.

Elementary Level SSAT Score Report

Here’s a breakdown of some of the things you’ll see on your child’s report if they took the Elementary Level SSAT Score Report.

• Number of Items, Number Correct, Percent Correct: This information lets you compare the total number of questions in each section to the number of questions your child got right, which is then listed as a percentage.
• Scaled Score Percentile: This section places your child’s score in a percentile compared to the other students who took the test.

Improving Your Child’s Score

Remember, your child’s SSAT score isn’t all that admissions will be looking at: “The degree of emphasis placed on scores in a school’s admission process depends on the specific school and on other information, such as your grades, interview, extracurriculars, and teacher recommendations.”

But if you are unhappy with your child’s score, a tutor can help to prepare your child to retake the SSAT by working with them on specific areas of the test that they struggled with and teaching them test-taking skills. Students in the Middle and Upper Level SSAT are allowed to take the test 8 times and those in the Elementary Level can take it twice within an academic year, so have no fear if you want your child’s score to improve!