Why are scores scaled?

Scaling allows fair comparison between students who take different versions of a test with varying difficulty levels.

Is a scaled score the same as a curve?

Not exactly. A curve adjusts scores based on class performance. Scaling uses a predetermined conversion to normalize scores.

Yes, College Board provides concordance tables to convert between SAT and ACT scores, though it is not a simple linear conversion.

Convert a raw test score to a scaled score using a linear transformation. Useful for standardized test preparation.

Raw Score

Maximum Raw Score

Scale Minimum

Lowest possible scaled score

Scale Maximum

Highest possible scaled score

Scaled Score

650

Raw Percentage75.0

Scale Range600

Scaled Score vs Raw Score

A scaled score converts a raw score to a standardized scale for fair comparison.

Scaled Score = Scale Min + (Raw Score / Max Raw) x (Scale Max - Scale Min)

This linear mapping preserves relative performance across different test forms.

A student gets a raw score of 45 out of 60, mapped to a 200–800 scale.

Calculate your raw test score.

Convert z-scores to grades.

Find your percentile rank.