Scaled score
A scaled score is your raw score, the number of questions you answered correctly, converted onto a fixed reporting scale such as 400 to 1600 or 1 to 36. The conversion adjusts for how hard your test form was, so the same scaled score means the same level of performance on any form.
In more detail
The reason for the conversion is fairness. Test makers run many forms of the same exam, and no two are exactly equally hard. If everyone just got their raw score, you would be punished for drawing a hard form. So each form gets its own conversion table, built with a statistical step called equating. A raw score of 52 can become a 31 on one form and a 29 on another.
Raw score and scaled score answer different questions. The raw score says how many items you got right, and on most paper tests there is no penalty for wrong answers, so it is a plain count. The scaled score says where that count lands on the reported scale. It is not a percentage and it is not a percentile. A 1200 on the SAT does not mean 75 percent correct. A percentile rank, which says what share of test takers you scored above, is a separate number that sits next to it on most score reports.
Do not assume every test works like a paper test. Some exams, such as the digital SAT, adapt to you, so which questions you got right and how hard they were both feed the score, and there is no single raw-to-scaled table to look up. Every exam also publishes its own scale. Use the official score guide of your test, and treat conversion tables you find online as estimates unless the test maker released them.
Scaled score ranges of common tests
| Test | Scaled score range | Note |
|---|---|---|
| SAT | 400 to 1600 | Two sections of 200 to 800 each |
| ACT | 1 to 36 | The composite is the average of the four section scores |
| GRE | 130 to 170 per section | Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning, in 1-point steps |
| MCAT | 118 to 132 per section | Four sections, so 472 to 528 in total |
| LSAT | 120 to 180 | Converted from the number of questions answered correctly |
| England KS2 SATs | 80 to 120 | 100 is the expected standard |
Example
Imagine a student who sits two forms of the same 60-question practice exam. On form A she gets 50 right, on form B she gets 52 right. Her raw score went up by two. But form B was easier, and its conversion table gives 32 for 52 right, the same 32 that form A gave for 50 right. Same scaled score, same performance. The two extra right answers only made up for the easier questions.
How to use it
- 1
Find the raw score (number correct) and the scaled score on your score report.
- 2
Open the test maker's score guide to see the scale and what each range means.
- 3
Compare your scaled score with the percentile rank to see where you stand against other test takers.
- 4
Look up your target score on the conversion table of a released form to see how many raw points it takes.
- 5
Practise on released forms and track the raw score per section, so you know which section deserves the next hour.
How StudyPDF does this
StudyPDF practice exams are built from your own lectures and notes. They are sectioned and can be timed, and the graded report shows results per section, while quiz results list your weakest concepts first. That is a raw result, not an official scaled score, so use the test maker's conversion table to translate it. The point is to see which concepts cost you points before the real exam does.
See also
Put it to work on your own course
Upload your lectures and ask Bo. Cited answers, plus flashcards, exams, and more built from your material.
Common questions
What is the difference between a raw score and a scaled score?
A raw score is the number of questions you answered correctly. A scaled score is that number converted onto the test's reporting scale, such as 1 to 36 on the ACT. The conversion adjusts for how hard your test form was, so a given scaled score means the same on any test date.
Is a scaled score the same as a percentage or a percentile?
No to both. A scaled score sits on its own scale, like 400 to 1600 for the SAT, so it is not percent correct. A percentile rank tells you what share of test takers scored below you, and most score reports show it as a separate number next to the scaled score.