What is a Superscore?
March 20, 2019
A superscore (also known as “highest composite score”) is the combined ACT/SAT score that takes the highest section scores across all the dates a student took the test. Most competitive colleges consider an applicant’s super score when evaluating their application.
For example, consider a student with the following scores:
| Math | Reading and Writing | Combined Score | |
|---|---|---|---|
| May SAT | 700 | 600 | 1300 |
| June SAT | 600 | 700 | 1300 |
| Highest Score | 700 | 700 | 1400 |
Though their composite scores for both May and June would be 1300, their superscore, which combines the highest score on each section, would be 1400.
Here is how and why MIT uses superscores:
“If you take the same test (SAT, ACT, or an SAT Subject Test) multiple times, we will consider the highest score achieved in each section. We do this in order to consider all applicants in their best light.”