Is the SAT curved?

    The SAT is not curved against other test takers. It is equated — your raw score is converted using a scale specific to your test form to account for difficulty differences across dates.

    Curving vs equating

    A curve grades you relative to the people who took the test the same day. Equating adjusts your raw score based on the difficulty of the specific test form you took.

    Equating means that if your form was slightly harder than average, your raw-to-scaled conversion is a little more generous — and vice versa.

    What this means for you

    You are not competing against the other students in your room. You are competing against a fixed ability standard. This is why SAT scores are comparable across test dates, years, and schools.

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