The SAT: What you need to know

The SAT is a popular standardized test used for admission into colleges and universities in the United States. First started in 1941, the Scholastic Aptitude Test was an IQ test. The SAT Reasoning Test of today has earned a place in every college going student's life.

Oddly enough SAT no longer stands for anything; rather than deal with controversial acronyms, the College Board sidesteps the issue by not having SAT actually be an acronym.

What is the SAT?

The SAT is generally taken by high school students who will soon be applying to post-secondary colleges and universities, though the test is open to anyone over the age of 12 desiring to attend college or university in the US. All that is required is to pay the registration fee which can be waived in certain circumstances. After taking the test, students can elect to send their official scores to any college or university to which they would like to gain admission.

Prior to 2008, the College Board would send ALL previous scores to elected universities. In 2008, a new policy entitled Score Choice was enacted that allowed applicants to choose their best score and submit only that score to all of their prospective colleges. With this policy in place, it is now in the best interest of students to take the exam multiple times until a satisfactory score is attained. Many colleges embrace Score Choice, but some colleges such as Cornell frown upon the practice and ask that applicants submit all test scores. It is recommended that students consult the admissions departments of their prospective colleges to determine how to best approach score reporting to the school.

The SAT is administered 7 times a year in the United States, in October, November, December, January, March (or sometimes April), May, and June. The SAT is generally scheduled on a Saturday. Outside of the United States, the SAT is offered on the same dates as in the United States except for the first spring test date, which is either March or April.

The SAT: What you need to know

Why does the SAT matter?

The SAT is required by many universities to be considered for admission. Though there are colleges that do not require it, all "brand name" universities and virtually all public ("state") universities do require it. In many cases, students can take the ACT rather than the SAT, and this decision often comes down to geography. Students in the Midwest tend to take the ACT and SAT, while students on the US coasts tend to not take the ACT at all.

Other than being required for admission to US universities, the SAT is important for the following reasons:

* Many scholarships require a minimum SAT score

* Many universities, especially state universities, will offer academic scholarships for students with a certain GPA and a minimum SAT score

* The SAT is a great way to set yourself apart from the college admissions crowd. Having a high SAT score will allow you to separate out from the thousands of other people applying to college.

* More and more employers are asking for standardized test scores during recruitment, so these scores stay with students beyond college

For some students, taking both the SAT and ACT is a great option because they can submit whichever of the two scores is better (based on their percentile ranking) which then allows them to increase their odds of acceptance in college admissions. In general, taking both tests is highly recommended as students have little to lose but much to gain.