Chatham SAT Scores, GPA, and ACT (2026)

Chatham SAT scores split unevenly across the two sections: the Reading and Writing middle 50 runs 550 to 670, while Math runs 520 to 625, and the average composite lands at 1198. So when you check Chatham SAT scores against your own report, look at each section, not just the total. The full middle 50 for the composite is 1070 to 1295, which means half of enrolled students scored inside that band, 1 out of 4 scored below 1070, and 1 out of 4 scored above 1295. A 1200 sits almost exactly on the average, so it reads as a solid, typical score here rather than a standout.

Chatham University is a private nonprofit university in Pittsburgh, PA, with 1,232 students, small enough that an admissions reader is not skimming tens of thousands of files. The admission rate is 62.0% in the 2024-2025 data, so roughly 3 out of 5 applicants get in. Testing is optional in the most recent federal data, which changes the math on whether to send scores: a 1295 or higher strengthens your file, while a score under 1070 is usually better left off. The rest of this page breaks down where your number stands and what to do about it.

Here is how to read your number against Chatham's range. Below 1070, you are under the 25th percentile: not disqualified at a school admitting 62.0% of applicants, but with an optional testing policy, this is the score you probably keep to yourself. Inside 1070 to 1295, you match half of the enrolled class, and the closer you sit to the 1198 average, the more ordinary your score looks, in a good way. Above 1295, you outscore 3 out of 4 enrolled students, which is exactly when submitting pays off.

The section splits matter too. Reading and Writing sets the higher bar: its middle 50 of 550 to 670 runs 30 to 45 points above the Math band of 520 to 625 at both ends. A student with a 650 Reading and Writing and a 550 Math fits Chatham's profile neatly. Flip those numbers and the Reading and Writing score falls at the bottom of its range even though the composite is identical. Check both lines before deciding what to send.

Admitted students at Chatham typically present an unweighted GPA somewhere around 3.3 to 3.7. That is a band, not a cutoff. A 3.4 earned in honors and AP courses reads stronger than a 3.6 built on the lightest schedule available, because the rigor of the classes counts as much as the number on the transcript. Readers at a school of about 1,232 students have time to look at what you actually took.

If your GPA sits at the lower edge of that band, the fastest offset is a strong SAT. Grades take semesters to move; a test score can move in weeks. At Chatham, a composite at or above the 1295 mark, the 75th percentile, gives a reader a concrete reason to look past a 3.3. Since testing is optional here, a high score is pure upside: you send it when it helps and hold it when it does not. A weak transcript plus no score leaves the file thin, so the SAT is worth real preparation time.

Set two anchors. First, 1070: scoring at or above the 25th percentile keeps you in range for Chatham. Second, 1295: at or above the 75th percentile puts you in the top quarter of enrolled students, and at a test optional school that is the number worth sending without hesitation. By section, aim for 550 or better on Reading and Writing and 520 or better on Math to clear both 25th percentile marks, then push Reading and Writing toward 670 since that section carries the higher bar here.

If you are starting near 1000, closing the gap to 1198, the average, is a realistic block of work, and mapped out targets like these are exactly what score plans are built around. But pick the target before you pick the plan. Take a diagnostic first, compare your section scores against 550 to 670 and 520 to 625, and you will know within 20 questions which section needs the hours. Do that this week, then build backward from your application deadline.