Average SAT Scores at Top Colleges

Whether you’re a high school junior preparing for the March 9th Digital SAT or a curious parent eager to understand the competitive landscape of higher education, we want to shed light on the numbers that (still) carry significant weight in the world of college admissions.

Average SAT scores serve as a benchmark to gauge a student’s performance relative to their peers on a national scale. Even in this test-optional landscape (Though schools like Dartmouth and MIT say, “Not for long!”), data is king. What may be considered a competitive score at one school may not be at another, depending on the school’s selectivity.

When researching potential schools, understanding the SAT score range of past admitted students will help you better assess your own odds of admission. This information can be found in the Common Data Set or in a college’s official first-year profile (see, for example, the UPenn incoming class profile).

We curated the below lists based on the U.S. News & World Report rankings for the top 25 national universities in the U.S. along with the top 25 Liberal Arts Colleges. Keep in mind, the scores below represent the “middle 50% of scores,” meaning 25% of students scored lower and 25% of students scored higher.

As always, our goal at Top Tier Admissions is to demystify the college admissions process and empower you to navigate your journey with confidence.

NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES: AVERAGE SAT SCORES

Rank	Schools	SAT Comp	EBRW	Math
1	Princeton University (NJ)	1540-1580	760-780	780-800
2	MIT (MA)	1520-1580	740-780	780-800
3	Harvard University (MA)	1460-1570	720-780	740-800
3	Stanford University (CA)	1500-1570	730-780	770-800
5	Yale University (CT)	1470-1560	740-780	760-800
6	University of Pennsylvania	1500-1570	730-770	770-800
7	California Institute of Technology*	NA	NA	NA
7	Duke University (NC)	1490-1560	730-770	750-800
9	Brown University (RI)	1500-1560	730-780	760-800
9	Johns Hopkins University (MD)	1520-1560	740-770	780-800
9	Northwestern University (IL)	1500-1560	730-770	760-800
12	Columbia University (NY)	1500-1560	730-780	770-800
12	Cornell University (NY)	1470-1550	710-770	750-800
12	University of Chicago	1510-1560	740-780	770-800
15	University of California, Berkeley**	NA	NA	NA
15	University of California, Los Angeles*	NA	NA	NA
17	Rice University (TX)	1510-1560	730-770	760-800
18	Dartmouth College (NH)**	NA	NA	NA
18	Vanderbilt University (TN)	1490-1570	730-770	760-800
20	University of Notre Dame (IN)	1450-1550	710-760	740-790
21	University of Michigan—Ann Arbor	1350-1530	670-750	680-780
22	Georgetown University (DC)	1410-1540	700-770	690-790
22	University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill	1330-1500	660-740	660-770
24	Carnegie Mellon University (PA)	1500-1560	720-770	770-800
24	Emory University (GA)	1450-1530	700-760	730-790
24	University of Virginia	1400-1540	690-750	710-790
24	Washington University in St. Louis	1500-1570	730-770	770-800

LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES: AVERAGE SAT SCORES

Rank	Schools	SAT Comp	EBRW	Math
1	Williams College (MA)	1490-1550	730-780	750-790
2	Amherst College (MA)	1480-1550	690-770	670-780
3	United States Naval Academy (MD)*	NA	NA	NA
4	Pomona College (CA)	1480-1540	730-770	750-790
4	Swarthmore College (PA)	1455-1540	710-770	730-790
4	Wellesley College (MA)	1440-1540	720-770	710-780
7	United States Air Force Academy	1320-1470	650-730	660-750
8	United States Military Academy	1230-1430	610-710	610-740
9	Bowdoin College (ME)	1340-1520	670-760	670-780
9	Carleton College (MN)	1430-1540	710-770	720-780
11	Barnard College (NY)	1430-1530	720-770	720-780
11	Claremont McKenna College (CA)	1450-1540	710-760	730-790
11	Grinnell College (IA)	1410-1520	680-750	700-780
11	Middlebury College (VT)	1420-1520	700-760	710-780
11	Wesleyan University (CT)	1310-1505	660-750	660-760
16	Davidson College (NC)	1360-1490	670-740	680-760
16	Hamilton College (NY)	1440-1520	700-760	720-780
16	Harvey Mudd College (CA)	1480-1560	720-770	760-790
16	Smith College (MA)	1390-1500	700-760	670-760
16	Vassar College (NY)	1440-1510	720-760	710-775
21	Colgate University (NY)	1418-1510	690-750	700-780
21	Haverford College (PA)	1410-1530	700-760	730-780
21	Washington and Lee University (VA)	1410-1533	700-753	710-780
24	Bates College (ME)	1340-1500	660-745	650-760
25	Colby College (ME)*	NA	NA	NA
25	University of Richmond (VA)	1425-1510	690-750	710-780

Bryan Yan is a current undergraduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, studying Finance from The Wharton School and Mathematics. He is a 2019 Coca-Cola Scholar (150 out of 100,000 applicants) and hails from Cincinnati, Ohio. After graduating high school, Bryan took a gap year in China, where he interned for Pfizer. With a 35 ACT (with perfect scores in both Math and English) and an 800 in the Math II SAT Subject Test, Bryan specializes in tutoring the SAT/ACT and all Math courses. In his free time, Bryan is a NASM-Certified Personal Trainer (365 Bench Press) and plays competitive Clash Royale.

BRYAN’S TOP FOUR TIPS FOR TAKING THE SAT

1. Know the test in and out: know the format, the style and scope of questions, section times, the instructions, the format to bubble open-ended questions, the formulas given to you, etc. 

2. Meticulously detail and thoroughly understand your mistakes: you mustn’t focus on what you are good at but rather allocate the proper time towards areas that require more improvement.

3. Keep putting your best foot forth whilst prioritizing your mental health. The journey towards a score that best reflects your abilities is full of ups and downs, and progress isn’t always linear. 

4. Give it your all: do practice exams, do memorization exercises, be proactive with studying, do every practice problem, learn from others, read questions thoroughly, ask questions, sleep well, and take healthy study breaks.