Last Updated on April 28, 2023
If you need to take the GRE for graduate school admissions, it may be that the last standardized test you took for school admissions was the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). Thus, you may be wondering whether there is any way to convert your SAT scores to GRE scores to see how well you might perform on the GRE.
In this article, we’ll discuss whether it’s possible to do an SAT to GRE conversion, for both your SAT scores and your percentile rankings. To start, let’s get a little background on what each exam is used for.
- SAT vs. GRE: What Is the Difference?
- Do SAT Scores Translate to GRE Scores?
- Can I Convert SAT Percentile Rankings?
SAT vs. GRE: What Is the Difference?
The SAT and GRE are standardized tests that are both used for school admissions, albeit at different points in a person’s educational career.
The SAT is a standardized test used as one aspect of college admissions decisions by most colleges and universities in the United States. Students taking the SAT generally do so during their junior year of high school.
The GRE, on the other hand, is used by many graduate schools to help make admissions decisions. People can take the GRE regardless of their level of academic attainment. However, generally GRE test-takers have either earned a college degree or are in the last year or two of college. (This article about GRE eligibility criteria can tell you more about who qualifies to take the exam).
KEY FACT:
The SAT is used for college admissions, whereas the GRE is used for graduate school admissions.
Now, let’s talk about converting SAT scores.
Do SAT Scores Translate to GRE Scores?
You may have come across SAT to GRE score conversion charts online. However, those charts likely have many caveats attached to them. The truth is, there is no accurate method of converting SAT scores to GRE scores. There are a couple of key reasons why an SAT to GRE conversion isn’t really possible. Let’s discuss each reason.
KEY FACT:
There is no direct way to translate SAT scores to GRE equivalents.
Reason #1: The Content Is Different
As we already learned, the SAT is geared toward students seeking admission to college, whereas the GRE is geared toward students seeking admission to graduate school. Of course, some of the same skills required to be successful in college are relevant for graduate school, so some overlap between the tests is expected. For instance, geometry concepts are tested in both the SAT and the GRE math sections.
However, since these tests are used for very different purposes and aimed toward students with different educational levels, overall, the content tested and the way concepts are tested on these exams is significantly different. Thus, converting scores on the math, reading, and writing and language sections of the SAT to scores on the verbal sections and math sections of the GRE is like comparing apples to oranges.
KEY FACT:
Converting scores on the SAT math, reading, and writing and language sections to scores on the GRE verbal and math sections is like comparing apples to oranges.
Reason #2: The Scoring Methods Are Different
The GRE and SAT each have a unique method of calculating test scores, and the tests use very different score scales.
On the SAT, the Math section and the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section (which includes both the Reading and the Writing and Language portions) are each scored on a scale of 200 to 800, in 10-point increments, for a total score of 400 to 1600.
On the GRE, the Math section and Verbal section are each scored on a scale of 130 to 170, in 1-point increments, for a total score of 260 to 340.
Equating these two score scales in a precise or useful way is not really feasible, not only because the content and structure of the exams is so different but also because exams are not geared toward students of the same educational level, what the SAT considers a difficult (and thus higher-value) question and what the GRE considers a difficult question are not the same. So, the conversions from raw scores (number of questions correct) to scaled scores will be quite different.
KEY FACT:
Since the exams are not geared toward students of the same educational level, what the SAT considers a difficult question and what the GRE considers a difficult question are not the same.
Can I Convert SAT Percentile Rankings?
Generally speaking, there is a much wider range of academic proficiency among SAT test-takers than among GRE test-takers, for a couple of reasons. For one, there are many more students who take the SAT than take the GRE, since many more students apply to college than apply to graduate school. Secondly, overall, people applying to graduate school “self-select” as a pretty academically rigorous group. After all, they are pursuing advanced degrees.
So, outscoring, say, 95% of SAT test-takers may be easier than outscoring 95% of GRE test-takers. The competition is simply stiffer once you get to those “upper levels” of educational achievement.
KEY FACT:
Because the content, scoring, and pool of test-takers varies so much between the SAT and the GRE, trying to equate SAT percentile rankings with GRE ones is not a reliable predictor of how you’ll perform on the GRE.
Interested in learning more about the GRE? Check out this complete guide to the GRE format.
