Decision guide
Start with your target schools: most independent and boarding schools accept either exam, but some prefer one — check each school’s admissions page first. If both are accepted, the differences below usually decide it.
Understand the scores
How Upper Level results are reported. The two exams use different scales and different comparison groups, so their scores are not interchangeable.
One total score and three section scores
| Measure | Scale | Also printed |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 1500–2400 | Percentile |
| Verbal | 500–800 | Percentile |
| Quantitative | 500–800 | Percentile |
| Reading | 500–800 | Percentile |
The total is the sum of the three section scores, not a separate measure.
Reported by the test maker, never by RichiePrep. SSAT scoring in full
Four section scores, and no overall total
| Section | Scale | Also printed |
|---|---|---|
| Verbal Reasoning | 760–940 | Percentile · stanine |
| Reading Comprehension | 760–940 | Percentile · stanine |
| Quantitative Reasoning | 760–940 | Percentile · stanine |
| Mathematics Achievement | 760–940 | Percentile · stanine |
There is no overall ISEE total. Schools read the four section scores.
Reported by the test maker, never by RichiePrep. ISEE scoring in full
| Dimension | SSAT Upper Level | ISEE Upper Level |
|---|---|---|
| How the raw score is formedthe arithmetic each exam applies before its scale | Each correct answer adds a point, an omitted question adds nothing, and an incorrect one subtracts a quarter point. That raw score is then converted to the scale. | Every correct answer adds a point and nothing is subtracted for a wrong one, so a blank and a wrong answer cost the same. That raw score is then converted to the scale. |
| The extra bandthe difference the stanine makes | No stanine. Percentiles accompany the total and each section score; the report also prints a range around each score. | A stanine beside every section: a band from 1 to 9 that groups the percentile ranks into nine steps, so nearby ranks share a band. |
| Who the rank compares againstthe group behind every percentile rank | Students of the same grade and the same gender who took the exam in the past three years. | Students in the same grade who took the exam over the previous three years, whatever their gender. |
| The writing piecewhat happens to the essay or writing sample | The writing sample is not scored. It is sent to the schools as a writing example. | The essay is not scored by the test maker. It is sent to the schools as a writing example. |
Each rank describes standing inside one exam's own comparison group. There is no conversion between the two scales here, and none of these numbers is produced by RichiePrep.
We are not the test maker, so we never print a scaled score, a percentile rank or a stanine. Those need equating and norm data only the test makers hold.
A practice report gives the raw score under that exam’s own rule, with correct, incorrect and omitted counted separately, accuracy by skill, and the two or three skills worth the next study block.
RichiePrep is an independent test-preparation provider and is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by the organizations that administer the SSAT or the ISEE. SSAT® and ISEE® are registered trademarks of their respective owners. RICHIE’S is an independent publisher and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the trademark owners. Nothing on this page is an exam score report.
A practical rule of thumb
Students with strong vocabulary and pattern skills often like the SSAT’s analogies; students who prefer reasoning from sentence context and mathematical comparison often like the ISEE. The honest way to decide: take one timed practice test of each and compare not just the results but how the student felt at the 90-minute mark.
RichiePrep never combines or ranks SSAT and ISEE results against each other — the two exams use different scales and cannot be compared numerically. RichiePrep is independent and not affiliated with either test maker.