Standardized tests aren’t necessarily the best or most accurate measure of intelligence, but if you’re ranking America’s best schools based exclusively on SAT/ACT scores, two Georgia universities certainly make the list.
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University of Arksansas professor Jonathan Wai recently whipped up a ranking of the
"smartest" colleges and universities in the United States based on the schools' average standardized test scores, recently published at BusinessInsider.com.
"While these tests are often criticized, research shows that both the SAT and ACT are good measures of general cognitive ability, since they rely on a person's ability to reason," BI reported. "Therefore, these scores give a reasonable snapshot of a school's overall smarts."
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For schools without reported SAT scores, ACT scores were converted to the SAT scale.
Of the 50 universities on the list, the California Institute of Technology came out on top. The Pasadena, California, school, known for its focus on science and engineering, boasts an average SAT score of 1544.
Georgia Tech, also world-renowned for science and engineering, ranked 34th on the list.
Students at Tech have an average SAT score of 1403. Additionally, Wai pointed it out, the Atlanta university awards more engineering degrees to women than any other U.S. school.
With an average SAT score of 1380, Emory University popped in at No. 44 on the list.
» RELATED: Two Atlanta colleges among the best in the world in new global ranking
In 2017, the Times Higher Education ranked both Atlanta schools among the top 100 universities in its world ranking, which featured 980 colleges around the globe.
Both Georgia Tech and Emory are also considered among the best research schools in America.
Explore Wai’s full ranking of the “50 smartest colleges in America” at businessinsider.com.
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