The SAT Test in a Nutshell: What You Need to Know

In January 2022, the College Board announced one of the most significant changes to the SAT Exam in 35 years: “The SAT is going Digital.”

This means that instead of bubbling their answers with a pencil on their answer sheets, students will take the tests on a laptop or tablet. However, this is not an at-home exam and would still be conducted in a testing center with a test proctor.

In addition, the test will be reduced from a three-hour to a two-hour length with fewer questions than the paper and pencil test, increasing the average time students can spend on an individual question.

Most importantly, the test is now becoming computer adaptive! The adaptiveness is from section to section meaning if a student performs well in the first section, then the second section will be harder but if a student performs poorly in the first section, then the second section will be easier.

A Quick Overview of the SAT Exam Structure

Why the SAT Exam?

The SAT is a standardized entrance exam that is used by colleges and universities in the United States and many other countries across the world to make admissions decisions. The SAT consists of multiple-choice questions and a few submit a response question in the computer-based format. It is created and administered by the College Board.

The SAT plays a crucial role in measuring a high school student’s college readiness. It offers colleges a singular data point to make critical admission decisions among all their applicants. The SAT is taken into consideration along with the high school grades, Advanced Placement exams, extracurricular activities, personal essays, letters of recommendation from teachers, and admission interviews.

While the SAT is now optional in most schools, getting a high score can help you balance out your profile and showcase your potential to perform well in an undergraduate study thereby increasing your chances of admission.

According to the College Board, ‘more than 2.2 million students in 175 countries and territories take the SAT exam every year’.

Most colleges in the USA require an undergrad applicant to submit either the SAT score or the ACT score. In many other countries, several colleges either accept or require SAT scores for undergraduate admissions. While admissions committees do consider other factors: including grades, transcripts, essays, extra-curricular activities, and contribution to the community, the SAT score is a critical criterion to get into a competitive undergrad school.

SAT is conducted 5 times a year in India. The test is generally administered in March, May, August, October, and December.

Find out more about the SAT Exam Dates 2023

When Is the SAT?

The SAT is conducted in March, May, August, October, and December. The new SAT would open up two more dates for international students. Students can appear for the tests in any of these months and they can appear for the tests as many times as it occurs in a year.

Should I Take the ACT or the SAT?

Students all over the world take the SAT or the ACT depending on what they find as the right fit for them. Both the tests are competitive concerning the ease with which students can prepare for them and it is possible to prepare for both tests in a given time period.

However, if a student wants to pick one, then the best way to make a decision is by taking a timed full-length practice test of each type. Various factors like the time pressure and the types of questions that are the most challenging can help a student determine the best fit.

What SAT Score Do I Need to Get Into My School of Choice?

Though there are no typical standards for a “good” SAT score, a student should aim for 1200 and above. Getting a high SAT score of more than 1500 improves the chances of acceptance into the school of the student’s choice!

While the top universities look at a score of 1500 and above as competitive, different universities have varying expectations when it comes to SAT scores. The best way to determine this is to narrow down the universities that you most wish to attend and determine what scores they are looking for.

Why Was the SAT Introduced?

With the new SAT, the College Board aims to bring changes to the test experience that will make the test more student-friendly and secure while still keeping it relevant.

According to the College Board, in the new test-optional world, they want to make the SAT Exam the best available option for students. The SAT Suite of Assessments offers many features through which students can access information about colleges, educational prospects, and scholarship opportunities.

Which Colleges Require the SAT?

While most of the universities in the US have become test-optional, a good SAT score has been shown to correlate with higher acceptance rates at many of the top universities. Moreover, many of the schools in the USA still use test scores to decide on scholarships and admissions in an honors college. And some research universities like MIT still need students to submit their SAT/ACT scores.

Educational Eligibility Criteria

A valid Passport or Aadhar card is required for SAT eligibility. It should include a photograph, name, and signature. Any document that is ripped, worn, scuffed, or otherwise damaged will be rejected.

SAT Scholarship

The College Board India Scholars Program focuses on providing SAT scholarships to Indian students from low-income families who have a strong academic record. SAT scholarship for Indian students provides a full scholarship to students who scored 1300 on the SAT and whose income does not meet a certain threshold. When applying for admission, students can apply for scholarships.

The College Board has established the India Global Alliance in collaboration with Indian universities. Through the SAT scholarship, candidates can study at some of the best international universities in the world, including Cambridge, MIT, Columbia, and others.

Universities Accepting SAT Scores in India

Nearly 35 universities in India accept SAT scores. Some universities accept it only for selective courses while others accept it for all of their courses. The courses could range from engineering to arts and these universities expect a score of 1350 and above from the students applying with the SAT.

Universities that Accept SAT Scores for all of their Degree Courses

• Ashoka University
• Azim Premji University
• FLAME University
• Jagdish Sheth School of Management
• KREA University
• Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies
• Plaksha University
• Shiv Nadar University
• Sri Sri University
• Srishti School of Art Design and Technology
• SRM Institute of Science and Technology
• SRM University, AP – Amaravati
• SRM University Delhi-NCR, Sonepat
• Symbiosis Skills and Professional University
• World University of Design

Universities that Accept the SAT Score for Selective Programs

Number of Attempts for the SAT Exams

The College Board does not restrict the number of times that a student can take the SAT exam. This means that the student can take the exam as many times as they want in their lifetime. However, the test is administered 5 times in India at the moment which will go up to 7 times a year with the SAT. Hence, the student will be able to take the test only these many times in a year.

How to Cancel SAT Score?

If candidates are dissatisfied with their SAT results, they can cancel them. However, once they have requested cancellation, it cannot be reinstated or reported. You can cancel your SAT scores in two ways:

Option 1: SAT Test Center

• After you’ve completed the test, ask for a request to cancel the test scores form.’
• Before leaving, fill out the form and give it to the test coordinator.

Option 2: After leaving the SAT Test Center

The signed, written score cancellation form must be submitted by 11.59 p.m. ET on the Thursday following the test date. The form must be downloaded, completed, and faxed to the address.

How to Reschedule the SAT Exam?

To reschedule your SAT EXAM, students need to first cancel their existing test registration and then register for a new one. A fee of $25 is charged for canceling the registration by the deadline for change.

SAT Photo Requirements

As a part of the SAT Registration, the students are required to upload a photo onto the online application. This photo is used by the test center staff to verify a student’s identity against the photo ID carried by the student on the test date to ensure security.

If the uploaded photo does not match the one on the ID brought by the student on the test date, the student will not be allowed to take the exam. This means that the photo uploaded by the student should satisfy all the criteria mentioned at the time of uploading. That is, only the student must be in the picture, it should be visible, head and shoulders view, and the student must be completely in focus without any dark spots or shadows. A black-and-white photo is also acceptable.

Even if the photo is uploaded successfully, it does not mean that the student has uploaded the right kind of photo. It just means that the photo meets the file type and size requirements.

According to the file requirements, the photos can be in .jpg, .gif, or .png file formats.

SAT Payment Methods

The College Board allows payment through one of the following methods: International Credit cards: American Express, Discover, Visa, MasterCard, Diners Club, and JCB.

PayPal: If the students do not have a PayPal account, it can be created before registration.

SAT Test Day Checklist​

The most important thing for you to carry on the test date is valid ID Proof (original Aadhar card or passport) to validate the student’s identity and the printed up-to-date Admission Ticket. The test staff checks the name on the admissions ticket against the one on the ID.

Besides this the students are advised to bring a;

• Your fully charged testing device with the Bluebook™ application installed 
• Face covering (if required at your test center).
• Pencils or pens for scratch work.
• An acceptable calculator for use on the Math section of the test (there will be an embedded graphing calculator available to use within Bluebook).
• Epinephrine auto-injectors (like EpiPens) are permitted without an approved accommodation. They must be placed in a clear bag and stored under the student’s desk during testing. For policies on other medications and medical devices, contact Services for Students with Disabilities.

How is the SAT Scored?

The super score for the SAT is 1600. It has two sections: the Reading and Writing and the Math Section, each of which is scored out of 800.

How to Send SAT Scores?

When a student registers to take the SAT, he or she can send four score reports free of charge. The score recipients can be designated at the time of registration or until nine days after the student takes the exam.

After this period, to send the SAT score to a university, the student has to pay a fee of $12. To do so, the student has to sign in to the College Board account and select the colleges to send the scores to on the Send SAT Scores page. After searching for the universities by name or code and adding them to the recipient list, the student can make the payment and the College Board will initiate the score-sending process.

SAT Exam Preparation

The SAT exam is divided into two sections: Reading and writing, and Math. It is critical to target each section individually to achieve a higher score.

• Make a strategy for each section
• Begin with the simpler questions
• Before the exam, take as many SAT practice tests as you can
• Recognize your flaws and work to improve them
• First, eliminate incorrect answers
• Before answering, highlight the important parts of the question
• Learn the fundamentals of grammar
• If questions are taking too long, skip them
• Most importantly, remain calm throughout and double-check your answers