National Tests

The SAT is a standardized college admissions test developed by the College Board designed to measure a student's college and career readiness and success. The test format and scoring structure was modified in March 2016 to have a stronger connection to classroom learning provide greater insight into specific strengths and weaknesses for students and teachers. The new format contains two sections: Evidence-Based Reading & Writing and Math, as well as an optional essay component. Scores range from 200 to 800 for each of the two required sections and are combined for a total score, ranging from 400 to 1200. The optional essay component provides three scores ranging from 2-8; there is no composite score for the essay. Students may take the SAT multiple times. The College Board releases SAT scores annually by high school graduating class using the score from the students' most recent test administration, regardless of whether the score is the student's highest score. GOSA presents SAT results in both ways. Under the SAT (Recent) tab, the scores reported are from a student’s most recent administration within the fiscal year. Under the SAT (Highest) tab, the scores reported is the highest score achieved by a student within the fiscal year. Only school, system, and state scores based on the most recent administration can be compared to the national scores. It should also be noted that the national scores released by The College Board include both private as well as public school students and are for a high school graduating class, not a given fiscal year.

The ACT is a college admissions test developed by the American College Testing Program. ACT results are based on student scores across administrations within the same fiscal year. The report includes the composite scores from the current graduating class. An ACT composite score is a combination of the subtest scores in the areas of English, mathematics, reading, and science reasoning. Scores on the composites as well as each subtest range from 1 to 36. The school and system ACT data are for public schools in Georgia. The state results are for all Georgia schools, public and non-public.

The Advanced Placement Program (AP) offers students an opportunity to be exposed to challenging content at the college level while in high school. Additionally, students may earn college credit by taking an AP exam and demonstrating mastery of the material. Each AP exam is scored on a scale of 1 to 5. A student who earns a score of 3 or higher is generally considered "passing." There are 38 AP courses and exams offered across seven content areas. The AP Program is sponsored by the College Board. For more information on AP courses and exams, visit the College Board website.

The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia is the governing body of the institutions of higher learning. These institutions are divided into 5 types: research universities, regional universities, state universities, state colleges, and two-year colleges. For more information about the Board of Regents and the University System of Georgia, access their website.