SAT Test FAQ

Why do I have to take the SAT at all?

If you want to go to college, you pretty much have to take the SAT (or the ACT; we cover that in this FAQ too). But why do colleges put you through this ordeal? Why do they require you to take the SAT? Two reasons:

1. Colleges consider the SAT a standard by which they can evaluate students from high schools across the country. Imagine you’re a university admissions officer considering the applications of two students, Justin and Ben.  Both of these students have A averages, but Justin goes to Grade-Inflation High, whereas Ben goes to Impossible Polytechnic.  How are you, the admissions officer, supposed to know that Ben’s A is so much better than Justin’s?  That’s where the SAT comes in.  Ben and Justin may go to different high schools, but when they take the SAT, they’re taking the same standardized test.  So colleges can use the SAT as a tool to measure all students against each other without worrying about differences in their schools.


2. Colleges have considered SAT scores valuable in predicting how students will perform in the first semester of college. This reason is much more controversial. A ton of data has been thrown back and forth over the years about whether the SAT can effectively predict first semester grades, but the truth is, nobody knows.  What we can’t understand is why anyone cares so much about predicting first semester grades.  Sure, they’re important, but shouldn’t the focus be on grades throughout all four years of college?  And nobody claimed that the SAT could predict college grades over all four years.

Why did they change the SAT?

The official line is that the College Board, the organization behind the SAT, made the change to the new SAT for three reasons:

1. To better align the SAT to the curricula of high schools.
2. To provide a third measure—writing skills—that will help colleges make better admissions decisions.
3. To reinforce the importance of writing in education.

Also there’s a fourth reason why the College Board switched from the old SAT to the new SAT: 

They had to!

Here’s what happened: The University of California system of schools began to criticize the old SAT because it focused more on memorization of vocabulary than on actual writing or reading skills.  The University of California is the biggest client of the College Board.   If the University of California had switched to another test, say the ACT, the SAT and all the money it brings in to the College Board might have slowly disappeared.   And so the old SAT became the new SAT, which does indeed focus much more on reading and writing skills.  

What’s the ACT?

The ACT is a competitor of the SAT.  It takes about an hour less, and is more straight-forward knowledge based than the SAT.  Many people have argued that the ACT is actually a better test than the SAT, and, in fact, most of the changes made to create the new SAT actually made the SAT more like the ACT.   While the SAT dominates the national discussion of standardized tests for college admission, only slightly fewer students take the ACT each year than take the SAT.  An increasing number of colleges around the country have begun to accept ACT scores from applicants, either in addition to SAT scores or instead of them.  In general, colleges on the east and west coasts accept the SAT, while colleges in the middle of the country accept just the ACT, or both tests.  But don’t just assume the colleges you’re applying to fit the general mold. Be certain which schools you’re considering applying to require (or prefer) the SAT or the ACT.   To decide which test is right for you, you should do two things:

1. Find out whether the colleges to which you’re applying require one test rather than the other test. Confirm this by speaking to representatives from the college.


2. If it doesn’t matter which test you take, decide which test is better suited to your skills and will likely result in a better score. To do this, take one SAT practice test and one ACT practice test, and compare the results both in terms of how well you score and how suited you feel to the skills that the test tests.

What’s a good score on the new SAT?

There’s no one “good” score on the SAT. A good score is different for different people. Think back to why you take the SAT.  Because colleges make you.  So a good score is a score that gets you into the college of your choice.  Want to go to Yale?  You have to shoot for at least a 2100.  Interested in UCLA?  You’re probably looking for a 1900 or higher. Only concerned about athletic eligibility?  You’re looking to score more in the 1200 to 1300 range. An average score on the new SAT is somewhere around a 1520.   Having score goals and sticking to them is crucial for the new SAT. Why? Because your strategy for taking the test will differ depending on what score you need.  So do some research.  Check out the projected average new SAT scores of the schools you want to attend.  Talk to a guidance counselor at your school.  Get a clear sense of what your goals are, and then use this book to go after them.

Will the new SAT give some students an unfair advantage?

This one’s tough to answer. The new SAT’s changes are so significant that it’s difficult for anyone to map out all of the new test’s ramifications. The changes may have unintended consequences, and people won’t even agree on what they are for years, if ever.  That we guarantee.   For now, here’s a stab at what we think might happen and who might benefit:  Math Whizzes vs. Literary Stars: Since the new SAT includes a new Writing section, it’s likely that students with stronger verbal skills will score proportionally higher than they would have on the old SAT.  Meet Kid Math. S he’s the fastest number-slinger this side of the Mississippi but a bit of a bumbler when it comes to words. She got a 400 Verbal, 800 Math on the old SAT. On the new SAT, she will likely get roughly a 400 Critical Reading, 400 Writing, and 800 Math, for a total score of 1600. (We’re assuming Verbal scores will translate similarly to Writing and Critical Reading scores.)  Now imagine Kid Verbal, who got an 800 Verbal and 400 Math on the old SAT.  He could anticipate an 800 Critical Reading, 800 Writing, and 400 Math on the new SAT, for a total of 2000. A huge difference in total score, right?  True, but these big differences look much bigger than they really are.  Most college admission officers look at your individual scores on each test section.  If they’re looking for a math whiz, Kid Math still has the advantage.  To sum it all up: If anyone gains an advantage from the new SAT, it’ll be the literary stars, but we don’t think that advantage will have much impact on actual college admissions. The lit stars might have higher SAT scores to brag about at college, but that’ll just make them bigger losers.

When should I take the SAT?

Most students take the SAT for the first time in the spring of their junior year—that means either in March or in May. Depending on their scores, many students then decide to take the test again in the first semester of their senior year.  If you’re planning to take the test a second time, make sure you take it early enough so that your scores will reach colleges before the application deadline passes. If you’re taking the test senior year, you should take it in either October or November to be certain nothing goes awry. The December date is often too late.   So check with the schools to which you are applying and make sure that you’re on track to take the test by the correct date.