What is the scoring system for the SAT, NMSQT, PLAN and ACT?

Question

How does the scoring system work? What do the numbers mean? What is an average score on each test? What is the minimum score you need for a higher-end college?

Answer 1

SAT- maximum score possible: 2400, minimum score possible: 600
Contains 10 sections each roughly 25 minutes in length including an essay section, writing, critical reading, and math section

PSAT/NMSQT- basically a preliminary SAT...max score: 240, min score: 60 (add zero to PSAT score to approximate what you'd get on SAT...scoring system out of 240 just distinguishes the PSAT/NMSQT from the SAT)
Contains 5 sections including critical reading, math, and writing (NO essay)

PLAN- basically a preliminary ACT...max score: 32, min score: 1
Contains english, math, reading, and science sections

ACT- max score: 36, min score: 1
Contains english, math, reading, and science sections

SAT and/or ACT are the tests you should be serious about when thinking about colleges...PLAN does not matter at all, only gives you an idea of your future ACT performance, PSAT gives you an idea of your SAT performance but counts a little more than PLAN in that if you score in the top half of the top 1% in your state you could qualify for National Merit Finalist= scholarship money $$

Answer 2

The NMSQT is the PSAT/NMSQT. Scores range from 20 to 80 on each of three subsections which means that overall, the scores range from 60 to 240. The SAT is like the PSAT except you add one zero to everything I wrote above.

The ACT generates scores for four sections ranging from 1 to 36. Unlike the SAT, it does not add your scores to get a composite score. The composite score on the ACT ranges from 1 to 36. The Plan test scores range from 1 to 32.

Answer 3

Well, the scores are based on the different sections and your percentile rank in the section compared to the test group. A particular raw score will result in a particular percentile among the test group resulting in a particular scaled score. Generally, you need to score a minimum of a 2100 on the SATs and a 32 on the ACT to get into a good college.

Answer 4

How the Test Is Scored: SAT
Raw vs. Scaled
In order to reach the number you see on your score report, two calculations must take place.

First, your "raw score" is calculated. This is the number of points you earned, based on the number of questions you answered correctly, minus a fraction of the number answered incorrectly. Questions you skipped are not counted and no points are subtracted for incorrect Student Produced Response mathematics questions (grid-ins) on the SAT Reasoning Test.

There is so much more information on the scoring. I suggest that you: