How is Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) Performance Related to Postsecondary Enrollment Patterns in the 2006 AISD High School Exit Survey?

Sep 14, 2026

Student data from multiple sources link Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) performance to postsecondary enrollment outcomes for respondents to the 2006 Austin Independent School District (AISD) High School Exit Survey. The analysis connects Class of 2006 demographics, College Board SAT results, exit survey outcomes, and enrollment data compiled from the National Student Clearinghouse and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Findings address participation disparities, first-generation patterns, borrowing intentions, SAT-score-linked enrollment rates, and lower enrollment likelihood for Hispanic graduates even under comparable economic conditions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time28 min

AccessFree to download

Key Findings

Student Background and Data Sources

SAT Participation by Ethnicity and Economic Status

SAT Scores by Subject Area

Enrollment Relationships and Disparities

QUESTION: How is Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) performance related to the postsecondary enrollment patterns of respondents to the 2006 Austin Independent School District (AISD) High School Exit Survey? RESPONSE: Student data from several sources were linked to examine the relationship between SAT performance and the postsecondary enrollment outcomes of graduates who responded to the 2006 AISD High School Exit Survey. These data included student demographic information for the Class of 2006, SAT results from the College Board, results from the AISD 2006 High School Exit Survey, and postsecondary enrollment data for the Class of 2006. Postsecondary outcome data for the Class of 2006 were compiled from two sources: the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) . KEY FINDINGS • Fewer African American and Hispanic students took the SAT than was expected based on the ethnic makeup of the Class of 2006. • Twenty-five percent of the AISD Class of 2006 who took the SAT were firstgeneration college students. • Graduates who intended to borrow money to finance their postsecondary education scored lower on the verbal and mathematics sections of the SAT than did students who had no plans for borrowing. Students who did not know whether they were going to borrow money performed more poorly than did either those who did intend to borrow and those who did not. • The decision to enroll in any type of postsecondary institution was positively related to SAT score. Enrollment rates peaked at 91% for graduates scoring between 1601 and 1700 on the SAT. Beyond a score of 1800, postsecondary enrollment rates ranged between 85% and 76% across SAT classifications. • Independent of how well they performed on the SAT, Hispanic graduates from the AISD Class of 2006 were less likely to enroll in any type postsecondary institution than were their White, African American, and Asian peers. This relationship persisted even when Hispanic graduates were compared with White and African American students with similar economic circumstances. STUDENT BACKGROUND Recent findings released by the College Board (2007) indicated that although the characteristics of students taking the SAT are growing more diverse, significant disparities remain across income levels, ethnicity, and family educational background. The 2006 AISD High School Exit Survey provided an opportunity to explore how closely 2006 AISD graduates resemble their national peers. In addition, a thorough description of 2006 graduates taking the SAT helps to contextualize the analysis presented here of the association between SAT scores and postsecondary enrollment patterns. Department of Program Evaluation 1 Marshall W. Garland, MA Publication No. 07.42 Evaluation Analyst Figure 1 presents descriptive information comparing AISD SAT test takers from the Class of 2006 with test takers across the nation. Given the high response rate (86%) to the 2006 AISD High School Exit Survey, survey participation by ethnic group was used for an approximation of the ethnic composition of the AISD Class of 2006. The ethnic characteristics of students taking the SAT in AISD were similar to those of students taking the SAT across the nation. The data indicated that both African American and Hispanic students were, compared with total district enrollment, underrepresented among SAT test takers (1.9 and 7.2 percentage points, respectively), while White students were overrepresented (8.5 percentage points) . Figure 1: Ethnic Profile of SAT Test Takers for the Class of 2006, by US and AISD Percentage of SAT Takers 90% 70% 50% 30% 10% -10% Sources: The College Board, AISD student records (SASI), prepared by the Department of Program Evaluation (DPE), September 2007 Note: The data in the text boxes indicate the disparity between the proportion of SAT test takers and the proportion of respondents from the 2006 AISD High School Exit Survey

FAQs

What data sources were used to analyze the SAT and postsecondary enrollment relationship?

The study linked Class of 2006 demographics, College Board SAT results, AISD 2006 High School Exit Survey results, and postsecondary enrollment data compiled from the National Student Clearinghouse and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

How did SAT participation differ across ethnic groups in AISD?

Fewer African American and Hispanic students took the SAT than expected based on the Class of 2006 ethnic makeup, while White students were overrepresented among SAT test takers.

How was SAT score related to the likelihood of enrolling in postsecondary institutions?

Decision to enroll in any postsecondary institution was positively related to SAT score, with enrollment rates peaking around 91% for scores between 1601 and 1700 and remaining high though lower beyond 1800.

Sep 14, 2026

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