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Can SAT scores from the 1960s be obtained under US privacy laws or archives?
Executive summary
SAT scores from the 1960s are legally protected as education records under FERPA, and access depends on who is requesting and whether records still exist in retrievable form. Practical retrieval hinges on two separate barriers: privacy rules that generally require student consent (or narrow research exceptions), and archival/retention limits—the College Board and many institutions may no longer retain or be able to produce scores from that era, so requests should target both the College Board and the issuing school or archive while expecting possible fees, processing delays, or outright unavailability [1] [2] [3].
1. Why privacy law matters — FERPA puts control in the former student’s hands
FERPA classifies standardized test results, including SAT scores, as protected educational records, meaning the right to access and control release rests with the student (now an adult) or their authorized representative, not third parties. Schools that receive federal funding must follow FERPA and generally require written consent before releasing specific scores; the only routine exceptions are narrow—directory information (which typically excludes test results) or approved research studies that meet FERPA’s de‑identification and approval standards [1] [4] [3]. For scores from the 1960s the original test‑taker is usually the person who must authorize release, and if the person is deceased, state rules and institution policies will determine whether next‑of‑kin or estate representatives can obtain the records. FERPA’s 45‑day response window and institutional retention practices will shape whether a request succeeds [5] [3].
2. Institutional record-keeping is the practical chokepoint — schools may or may not still hold the data
Even with proper authorization, availability depends on whether the school retained the records; while some institutions maintain permanent transcripts and archives, many retained only minimal records or destroyed older files after state‑mandated minimum retention periods. Institutional policies vary and archives may treat mid‑20th‑century test sheets differently from official transcripts; schools sometimes keep scores as part of archived academic records but access requires formal requests and archive approval [4] [3]. Researchers should expect that local education agencies, state departments, or university archives will require procedures, forms, and potentially restrictions if records are fragile or not digitized. The presence of a documented chain of custody and cataloging determines the searchability of 1960s scores. [3] [4].
3. The College Board’s role — policy vs. preservation creates mixed messages
The College Board controls official score reports but has communicated two divergent facts in the analyses: its routine services can process archived score requests, sometimes with a fee and expedited options, yet the organization has also indicated that scores older than 2005 may be decommissioned or inaccessible, meaning a formal request may fail if the data have been purged or are on obsolete media [6] [7] [2]. The College Board’s customer‑facing procedures (online account options, phone/mail requests, fees, and standard vs. rush timelines) create a clear pathway to try, but those procedures do not guarantee successful retrieval for 1960s tests because of archival decisions and legacy data formats [6] [7].
4. Research exceptions and de‑identified archives — a narrow pathway for scholars
FERPA allows aggregated or de‑identified data to be shared for approved research without individual consent, and some archives may release statistical or anonymized files from historical datasets. For academic projects that can meet de‑identification standards and obtain institutional approvals, state/local education agencies or school archives may permit access to non‑identifiable 1960s test data, but individual identification remains protected [3] [5]. Researchers should expect institutional review board oversight, formal data‑use agreements, and possibly requests routed through school districts or state education departments rather than direct access to named score reports. This route is feasible for population‑level analyses but not for obtaining identifiable individual score reports without consent. [3] [5].
5. What to do next — a pragmatic checklist and realistic expectations
Start by contacting the College Board to submit an archived score request and pay any applicable fees; expect standard processing timelines and an explicit statement if scores are unavailable due to archival purges [6] [7]. Simultaneously, contact the issuing high school or its successor institution and the relevant state education archive with a signed authorization from the test‑taker (or legal representative) and be prepared to follow FERPA procedures; if seeking data for research, prepare IRB approvals and a de‑identification plan [3] [5]. Be realistic: legal permission is necessary but not sufficient—many 1960s records may simply not exist in retrievable form, so anticipate refusals, partial returns, or only aggregate data even when following the correct legal and archival channels [1] [2] [7].