HSPT scores explained: standard scores, percentiles and the CSQ
The HSPT reports a standard score from 200 to 800 for each section and composite (500 is the national average), a national percentile from 1 to 99 (50 is average) and a Cognitive Skills Quotient. There is no pass mark: each high school decides what it looks for.
Updated October 23, 2026 · by AdmitTest
What is on the score report
All of this is from STS: its HSPT Interpretive Manual and its page on understanding scores.
| Score | What it is | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Standard score (SS) | The main score, set separately for each section and each composite and equated across years, so a 550 means the same thing from one year's form to the next. | 200 to 800, average 500 (standard deviation 100) |
| National percentile (NP) | Where the score stands against a national group of students in the same grade. 50 is average. Local percentiles and stanines may be reported too. | 1 to 99 |
| Grade equivalent (GE) | Reported for the basic skills only: Reading, Mathematics and Language. | a grade level |
| Cognitive Skills Quotient (CSQ) | From the Verbal and Quantitative scores and the student's age. STS says it replaces the traditional IQ score. | about 55 to 145, average 100 |
| Raw score | The number of right answers in a section. Used to compute everything above, but not shown on most reports. | 0 to the number of questions |
The three composites
- Total Cognitive Skills = Verbal + Quantitative.
- Total Basic Skills = Reading + Mathematics + Language.
- Battery Composite = all five sections.
Each composite is computed from the summed raw scores, not as an average of the section scores. STS's manual names the Battery Composite as the best predictor and recommends it for admission and scholarship decisions. The optional Science and Catholic Religion tests are not part of it.
What counts as a good HSPT score?
There is no pass or fail and no national cut-off. Each high school decides how it uses the scores alongside the rest of the application, and STS points out that schools also use them to place students in courses. We have not found a published cut-off we could cite, and we do not repeat the numbers that circulate on forums.
What you can say for certain: a standard score of 500 or a national percentile of 50 is the national average for the grade. Above that is above average. For what a particular school expects, ask its admissions office.
Who gets the scores, and when
STS does not send scores to families: the school or diocese distributes them. In diocesan cooperatives a student can list up to three high-school choices, and the scores go to each of them. Ask your school when and how results are shared.
Why our practice test shows no 200-800 score
A standard score comes from STS's scaling of that year's form against its national norm group. STS publishes no table that turns a number of right answers into a standard score or a percentile, so there is nothing honest to convert a practice score with. A made-up number could be off by a lot, in either direction, and would make you either worry or relax for the wrong reason.
So our result shows what we can measure: right answers in each section and in each skill, how far your child got before each clock stopped, and where the time went. That is what tells you what to practice.
Free full-length HSPT practice test. 298 questions in five timed sections, no sign-up. Your child's score by section and by skill when it ends.
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What is a good HSPT score?
There is no national pass mark. Each high school sets its own expectations, and STS recommends schools use the Battery Composite for admission and scholarship decisions. As a reference point, a standard score of 500 and a national percentile of 50 are the national average. Ask the schools on your list what they look for.
What is the HSPT scored out of?
Each section and each composite gets a standard score from 200 to 800, with a mean of 500 and a standard deviation of 100. The report also shows national percentiles from 1 to 99 and, for the Verbal and Quantitative sections, a Cognitive Skills Quotient.
What does the HSPT percentile mean?
The national percentile compares your child with a national group of students in the same grade. A percentile of 50 is average; a percentile of 80 means a higher score than about 80 percent of that group. It is not the percent of questions answered correctly.
Can I convert a practice test score to an HSPT score?
No. STS publishes no table that turns a number of right answers into a standard score or a percentile, and each year's form is scaled separately. Any converter you find online is guessing. Use practice scores to see which sections and skills need work.
Do parents get the HSPT scores?
Not from STS. STS sends the scores to the school or diocese, which then shares them with families in its own way.
What is the CSQ on the HSPT?
The Cognitive Skills Quotient, built from the Verbal and Quantitative scores and the student's age. Its average is 100 and it runs from about 55 to 145. STS says it replaces the traditional IQ score.