You know, seeing that question about an 880 SAT score really took me back. It wasn’t me, but my neighbor’s kid, young Jamie. This was maybe five, six years ago. Kid worked hard, decent grades, but test-taking just wasn’t his thing. Always got super nervous.
So, the SAT results came out. I remember my neighbor, Sarah, calling me, sounding kind of flat. Jamie had gotten an 880. She asked me, “Is that… okay?” Honestly, my first gut reaction wasn’t about “good” or “bad”. It was more like, “Alright, what’s the goal here?”
Breaking it Down
We actually sat down that weekend – me, Sarah, and Jamie. Laid it all out. Jamie wasn’t aiming for Harvard, you know? He was looking at a couple of state universities and maybe the local community college’s transfer program.
So, we did the practical thing:
- We looked up the average SAT scores for the specific schools he was actually interested in. Didn’t bother with national averages much, too broad.
- We checked their admission requirements. Some schools were test-optional even back then, or put more weight on GPA and essays.
- We talked honestly about effort. Jamie admitted he didn’t prep much, just went in cold.
The Reality Check
For some of the state schools on his list, yeah, 880 was pretty low. The average admitted student score was easily 150-200 points higher. It wasn’t going to be competitive for those specific places based purely on that number. Seeing that was a bit of a downer for him, for sure.
But for the community college? It was perfectly fine. They mostly cared about his high school transcript. And one state school had a program where if your GPA was above a certain point, the test score mattered less. Jamie’s GPA was solid.
What Happened Next
So, was 880 “good”? In a vacuum, maybe not impressive. But in Jamie’s specific situation? It wasn’t the end of the world. It was just information. Information that helped us adjust the plan.
He decided against grinding for a retake. Hated the idea. Instead, he focused on writing a killer application essay and secured strong recommendation letters. He applied to the community college as a safe bet and the state school with the GPA focus.
He got into both. Started at the community college, absolutely thrived because the pressure was off, and transferred to the state university after two years, right into his chosen major. Graduated, got a decent job. Doing just fine.
So, my takeaway from that whole experience? An 880 isn’t just a number. It’s a data point relative to a specific goal. It doesn’t define potential. Sometimes it just redirects the path a little, and that’s often okay. It’s about what you do with that information. Panic doesn’t help. Planning does.
