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SAT Scores and Participation Rate
2008 SAT Participation Rates and Mean Scores
These are the participation rates of high school graduates and mean scores for all 50 states and the country as a whole. The College Board cautions against comparing states:Media and others often rank states, districts and schools on the basis of SAT scores despite repeated warnings that such rankings are invalid. The SAT is a strong indicator of trends in the college-bound population, but it should never be used alone for such comparisons because demographics and other nonschool factors can have a strong effect on scores. If ranked, schools and states that encourage students to apply to college may be penalized because scores tend to decline with a rise in percentage of test-takers.
| State |
Participation Rate |
Mean Critical Reading Score |
Mean Math Score |
Mean Writing Score |
| Alabama | 8% | 565 | 557 | 554 |
| Alaska | 45% | 520 | 520 | 493 |
| Arizona | 26% | 516 | 522 | 500 |
| Arkansas | 5% | 575 | 567 | 559 |
| California | 48% | 499 | 515 | 498 |
| Colorado | 21% | 564 | 570 | 553 |
| Connecticut | 83% | 509 | 513 | 513 |
| Delaware | 70% | 499 | 498 | 490 |
| District of Columbia | 84% | 470 | 455 | 465 |
| Florida | 54% | 496 | 497 | 481 |
| Georgia | 70% | 491 | 493 | 482 |
| Hawaii | 58% | 481 | 502 | 470 |
| Idaho | 18% | 540 | 540 | 517 |
| Illinois | 7% | 583 | 601 | 578 |
| Indiana | 62% | 496 | 508 | 481 |
| Iowa | 3% | 603 | 612 | 582 |
| Kansas | 7% | 580 | 589 | 564 |
| Kentucky | 8% | 568 | 570 | 554 |
| Louisiana | 7% | 566 | 564 | 558 |
| Maine | 87% | 469 | 466 | 461 |
| Maryland | 69% | 499 | 502 | 497 |
| Massachusetts | 83% | 514 | 525 | 513 |
| Michigan | 6% | 581 | 598 | 572 |
| Minnesota | 8% | 596 | 609 | 579 |
| Mississippi | 3% | 574 | 556 | 566 |
| Missouri | 5% | 594 | 597 | 584 |
| Montana | 24% | 541 | 548 | 523 |
| Nebraska | 5% | 581 | 585 | 567 |
| Nevada | 40% | 498 | 506 | 478 |
| New Hampshire | 74% | 521 | 523 | 511 |
| New Jersey | 76% | 495 | 513 | 496 |
| New Mexico | 12% | 557 | 548 | 540 |
| New York | 84% | 488 | 504 | 481 |
| North Carolina | 63% | 496 | 511 | 482 |
| North Dakota | 3% | 594 | 604 | 568 |
| Ohio | 24% | 534 | 544 | 521 |
| Oklahoma | 6% | 572 | 572 | 557 |
| Oregon | 53% | 523 | 527 | 502 |
| Pennsylvania | 71% | 494 | 501 | 483 |
| Rhode Island | 66% | 495 | 498 | 493 |
| South Carolina | 61% | 488 | 497 | 476 |
| South Dakota | 3% | 595 | 596 | 575 |
| Tennessee | 11% | 571 | 570 | 566 |
| Texas | 50% | 488 | 505 | 480 |
| Utah | 6% | 561 | 557 | 543 |
| Vermont | 64% | 519 | 523 | 507 |
| Virginia | 68% | 511 | 512 | 499 |
| Washington | 52% | 526 | 533 | 509 |
| West Virginia | 19% | 512 | 501 | 498 |
| Wisconsin | 5% | 587 | 604 | 577 |
| Wyoming | 6% | 562 | 574 | 541 |
| United States of America | 45% | 502 | 515 | 494 |