SSAT Scores Explained – Chart, Range & Scoring Guide

The SSAT is one of the most used admission tests for private schools in the US, and if your child needs to complete one to get a place in their chosen school, you as a family will need to know what to expect from the assessment, and how to read the score report properly.

In this article, we will look at what the SSAT is, what is included on the test and how it is scored.

We will also discuss what these scores mean, and how you can help your child improve their chances for entry into the school that they want to go to.

What Is the SSAT Test?

The Secondary School Admission Test (SSAT) is well regarded and considered by many to be the gold standard of admission testing.

First used in 1957, the SSAT has developed over the years to become a reliable and useful way for private schools to ensure that the children who have applied are ready for the academic rigors of the school.

The SSAT has three different levels, based on the chronological grade of the child.

• SSAT Elementary Level Test – Grade three to four
• SSAT Middle Level Test – Grade five to seven
• SSAT Upper Level Test – Grade eight to 11

Students can take the test in one of three ways.

The pencil and paper test is still the most popular, usually taken in a school setting. Some students may prefer to take it on their own computer, using the SSAT at Home online assessment.

The final choice is to take it at a Prometric Test Center.

The content of the test does not change based on the method of testing, which means that at all levels and in all test types, the number and type of questions are the same.

Writing Sample

• 25 minutes

The first part of the assessment is an unscored writing sample, where your child will be given a prompt or statement to respond to.

They might want to support or argue it, and they will be expected to use examples from history, literature, personal experience or current events.

This section might not be marked as part of the overall score, but schools can look at the writing sample to get more data on your child’s suitability for the school.

Quantitative

• 30 minutes
• 25 multiple-choice questions

This is the first part of the quantitative (mathematics) questions.

The questions will range from algebra to geometry, as well as probability and data analysis.

Reading

• 40 minutes
• 40 multiple-choice questions

The reading part of the assessment requires your child to answer several questions based on a passage of unfamiliar text.

They will need to read, understand and analyze the written information, picking up details like the main idea, inferences and word meanings.

They will also need to understand the author’s tone and purpose, recognize opinions and arguments and make predictions.

Verbal

• 30 minutes
• 60 multiple-choice questions

In this assessment, the questions are evaluating verbal reasoning, vocabulary and the ability to relate ideas in a logical way.

Thirty of the questions will be synonyms, while the other 30 are analogies, and your child will need to demonstrate their understanding of word relationships and similarities.

Quantitative

• 30 minutes
• 25 questions

This is the second half of the mathematics questions, and it continues with the same types of questions in similar content areas.

Experimental

• 15 minutes
• 16 questions

Although this is a compulsory part of the assessment, the questions in the experimental section are not marked.

They are future SSAT questions that are being tested for validity, and there will be six verbal questions, five reading questions and five quantitative questions.

Timings and Breaks

There are two 10-minute breaks built into the assessment. The first break is after the Writing Sample section, while the second is after the Reading section.

The total time for the SSAT is three hours and five minutes, with 167 questions to answer.

How Are SSAT Scores Calculated?

The scoring system starts with a raw score. This is essentially the number of correct answers, although the marking system is slightly different depending on the test level.

• Elementary level – At this level, points are awarded for each right answer, and there is no penalty for incorrect or unanswered questions.
• Middle/Upper level – A point is awarded for every correct answer. No points are deducted for an unanswered question, but a quarter of a point is deducted from the total for every incorrect answer.

This raw score is translated into a scaled score and a percentile.

On the score report, you will get a scaled score and a percentile for each section of the assessment as well as for the total score on the test.

The SSAT Score Chart

Within the SSAT score chart the scaled score is the most precise measure of performance.

It demonstrates exactly how well your child is doing without any comparison, apart from their previous attempts (if relevant).

The score ranges for the SSAT are below:

How to Interpret the SSAT Score Report

The score report is published to the family and to the school at the same time (unless other arrangements are made).

The method of testing will determine when the test results are available for you to read:

• Paper SSAT scores are released within two weeks of the test date.
• SSAT at Home scores are released the Wednesday following the test date.
• Prometric Testing Center scores are released the Wednesday after the scoring period.

Families will not be able to access their test results until the parent or guardian has completed the Testing Experience Statement, which is an opportunity to report any irregularities and issues that might have interfered with the test.

Families can wait to add schools to the recipient list for the test results if they want to see the scores first; if this is the case, when the school is added to the recipient list, they will have immediate access to the results.

You can get a PDF score report for free, which is accessed through your online account.

The Score Report

Personal Information

The first section of the score report contains basic details of personal information, including the child’s name, date of birth and chronological grade.

Total Score Summary

Following this is the Total Score Summary.

This features two scores, which are the total scaled score and the total percentile.

The total scaled score will be a number in the range for the relevant test (as shown above in the table), along with a bar representation and a pointer that indicates where that score lies between the highest and lowest possible scores as well as where the average score is.

The percentile score is a direct comparison that shows how well your child has achieved against other test takers of the same grade.

The percentile score does not show what percentage of questions your child answered correctly.

It shows how they performed in comparison to others, so a score in the 50th percentile shows that your child got a better score than 50% of grade-level peers.

Section Scores

After this, you will find the Section Scores.

These are similar to the total score in that you will see both a scaled score and a percentile score. Each section (Quantitative, Verbal and Reading) will have these scaled scores and SSAT score percentiles as well as the average score.

You will also be able to see the score range, which can be used to gauge where your child could score if they were to take the test again.

The Score Range uses one Standard Error of Measurement (18 points) on either side of the score they have achieved this time.

Finally, you will be able to see a breakdown of the questions and the answers that formed the raw score.

This will include the number of questions on the section, the number of questions that were answered correctly and the number of questions answered incorrectly or not attempted.

What Is a Good SSAT Score Range?

It is not a simple calculation to work out what a ‘good’ SSAT score is on an SSAT score chart.

As the assessment is used to evaluate students for entry to private schools, the score that your child needs to achieve depends on the benchmarks set by the individual school.

There are nearly 35,000 private schools in the US, and each can have a different SSAT score range that it wants applicants to reach – and that means that you need to know what you are aiming for before you start.

Both the total scaled score, the section scaled score and the relative percentiles can be used in the admission process, so it pays to know what the school is looking for.

You can usually find out required SSAT scores for private schools by speaking with the schools directly, although some will publish this information in their admissions policy.

The first benchmark that you want your child to beat in the SSAT is to get above the average SSAT score for their peer group.

This is a score of 50th percentile in all the sections and in the total, which is above the median, or a score above the average for the scaled score.

What Happens if I Don’t Reach the Benchmark Score?

Almost every educational establishment that uses the SSAT as part of the admission process will also use other assessment measures to ensure a more holistic approach to admissions.

These can include:

• Interviews
• Student essays
• Teacher recommendations
• Character skills snapshot

If you want to ensure that your child has their pick of schools, then you want to help them to achieve scores that are in the 80th to 90th percentile or higher – and below are some tips that can help.

Take Online Practice Tests

The more your child has access to practice tests and example questions, the more comfortable they will be during the real thing.

Not only will they be able to get an idea of what the content of the questions will be, but they will also get familiar with the structure and layout of the tests so they can relax.

Practice tests are also excellent ways to set a personal benchmark that can be used to create a realistic and useful study plan – focusing on the areas where they might have missed the answer.

Learn the Right Answering Strategy

In the Elementary Level test, guessing on a question that they do not know is a perfectly valid answering strategy to obtain the max SSAT score that they can.

They will not be penalized for getting it wrong, and they have a 20% chance of getting it right even if it is a random guess.

If they can narrow it down at all, they increase their chances.

However, this is not necessarily the best strategy for the Middle and Upper Level tests.

While the penalty for a wrong answer is the loss of quarter of a point, these can add up.

If your child has narrowed down the choices in the options available to just a couple, then it might be worth a guess, but if they haven’t, they are better off leaving the answer blank as this does not take points off.

Take the Test Multiple Times

Most students will take the SSAT multiple times.

This is something that you should prepare for, using the scaled scores and the performance in each section to help build revision habits between tests so that the scores will improve.

If you have already planned for your student to take the tests multiple times, you will be able to tell from the Personal Score Range what their score could be with some more revision, knowledge and preparation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good score for the SSAT?

The SSAT admissions assessment is for entry to private schools – so a good SSAT score achieves or exceeds benchmarks set by the educational establishment your child is applying for. This is usually somewhere in the 80th to 90th percentile on an Elementary, Middle or Upper level SSAT scores percentile chart.

Is 2,400 a good SSAT score?

2,400 is the highest SSAT score possible for the SSAT at the Upper Level (grades eight to 11) – so that would definitely make this max SSAT score a good score.

What grade level is the SSAT exam?

There are three different SSAT exams, each aimed at different grade levels. The Elementary Level test is aimed at grades three to four, the Middle Level is for grades five to seven, and the Upper Level is for grades eight to 11.

What is a good SSAT score for an 8th grader?

An 8th grader would take the Upper Level SSAT, which has a score range of 500 to 800 per section, and a total score range of 1,500 to 2,400. A good score would usually start with exceeding the average SSAT score for 8th grader students and the median percentile (50th).

Which part of SSAT is the hardest?

It is normal for your child to find parts of the SSAT harder than others, and this will usually be related to the subjects that they are stronger (and weaker) in. You can use revision techniques and practice tests to focus on these areas in the time before the exam.

What is 70th percentile on SSAT?

If your child receives a score of the 70th percentile on the SSAT, that means that they have performed better than 70% of students in the same grade. It does not mean that they answered 70% of the questions correctly.

What is the lowest score on the SSAT?

The lowest possible scores on the SSAT are as follows:

• Elementary Level: 300 per section, 900 total
• Middle Level: 440 per section, 1,320 total
• Upper Level: 500 per section, 1,500 total

Final Thoughts

The SSAT is a well-known, popular admissions test that is usually administered as part of a larger holistic process to ensure that students applying for a place can demonstrate that they are able to perform academically at the right level.

There are three different levels of the SSAT, each aimed at differently aged students – with a scaled scoring system that is normed to be used throughout the age ranges.

For students taking the test, practice tests and revision can help improve scores.

Parents and guardians can contact the school to find out what score their child needs to achieve to be considered and set this as a target throughout the revision.

The personal score range, total scaled score and percentile ranking score are all important when it comes to admission, but students will also be evaluated in other ways to build a bigger picture of their achievements and academic ambitions.