If you're wondering if you have the SAT scores you'll need to get into one of the top private universities in the United States, here's a side-by-side comparison of scores for the middle 50% of enrolled students. If your scores fall within or above these ranges, you're on target for admission to one of these top colleges.
Realize, of course, that SAT scores are just one part of the application. Perfect 800s don't guarantee admission if other parts of your application are weak. Admissions officers will also want to see a strong academic record, a winning essay, meaningful extracurricular activities and good letters of recommendation.
To see a full profile of each university, click on the names in the chart below. You can also check out these other SAT charts (or ACT charts):
SAT Comparison Charts: the Ivy League | top universities (non-Ivy) | top liberal arts colleges | more top liberal arts | top public universities | top public liberal arts colleges | University of California campuses | Cal State campuses | SUNY campuses | more SAT charts
2007-08 data from National Center for Educational Statistics
Top University SAT Score Comparison (mid 50%)
(Learn what these numbers mean)
| SAT Scores | ||||||
| Reading | Math | Writing | ||||
| 25% | 75% | 25% | 75% | 25% | 75% | |
| Carnegie Mellon | 620 | 720 | 670 | 780 | 620 | 710 |
| Duke | 660 | 750 | 680 | 790 | 680 | 780 |
| Emory | 640 | 730 | 660 | 740 | 640 | 730 |
| Georgetown | 620 | 730 | 630 | 730 | - | - |
| Johns Hopkins | 630 | 730 | 650 | 760 | 630 | 730 |
| Northwestern | 670 | 750 | 680 | 770 | 660 | 750 |
| Notre Dame | 650 | 740 | 670 | 760 | 640 | 730 |
| Rice | 650 | 750 | 670 | 780 | 640 | 750 |
| Stanford | 650 | 760 | 680 | 780 | 670 | 760 |
| University of Chicago | 660 | 770 | 650 | 760 | - | - |
| Vanderbilt | 650 | 740 | 680 | 760 | 650 | 730 |
| Washington University | 680 | 760 | 700 | 780 | - | - |
