The SAT, a college entrance exam, is taken by college-bound individuals. The scores, which are graded on a national scale, compare one student's performance with the performance of all test takers the previous year. The SAT is scored in two steps. First, a raw score is calculated: students receive one point for every answer that is correct and 1/4 of a point is detracted for every answer that is incorrect. Then that score is converted to a scale of between 200 and 800 using a statistical rubric. SAT scores are considered based on individual sections, which range from 200 to 800, or cumulatively, with all section scores added together.
The ACT, another type of college entrance exam, tests similar skills as the SAT. To compile grades, students' correct answers are counted; no points are deduced for incorrect answers. This raw score of correct answers is then converted to a scale. The scores are then reported by section -- English, Mathematics, Reading and Science -- and a composite score averages the four tests. The scale for ACT scores is from 1 to 36. Students' scores are then compared to the national averages and given a percentile ranking.
The GRE, a graduate school entrance exam, tests graduate school preparedness. The questions answered by the students are ranked according to difficulty, and the number of correct answers is adjusted according to the questions' difficulty rating. The scores are reported according to the test's three sections: Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning and Analytical Writing. The first two sections are ranked on a 200 to 800 point scale; the writing section is scored on a scale of 0 to 6.
The LSAT is a test that individuals applying to law school take. The raw score -- that is, the total number of questions answered correctly -- is first computed; there is no deduction in points for incorrect answers. Each section of the test is weighted differently in the final score. The raw score is converted onto a scale ranging from 120 to 180 based on a method that equates for differences in difficulty on different test scores. Each section is not graded individually.