SAT 2021: Registration, Dates, Eligiblity, Pattern, Cut-off | EducationAsia.in

The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is an international exam for admission into various undergraduate colleges in the United States of America. SAT is administered by Educational Testing Services worldwide on behalf of the College Board in over 25,000 test centers across 192 countries. SAT exam is meant to evaluate the written, verbal and mathematical skills of the candidates.

Highlights

SAT 2021 Schedule

SAT Admit Card

The SAT admit card or admission ticket will be available right after the candidate has successfully registered. The candidate needs to log in to his account on the official website and download the SAT Admission Ticket. The candidate must present the SAT admission ticket along with a photo ID proof at the test centre.

Details present in the admission ticket:
1. Student Name
2. Student Address
3. Date of Birth
4. Gender
5. High School
6. Test Date
7. Test Type
8. Test Center
9. Registration Number
10. Instructions for Test day 

SAT Syllabus

The syllabus for SAT changes along with the type of SAT test. SAT on different dates has a different syllabus.  The total syllabus for SAT is given below:

Reading:
 A passage from a classic or contemporary work of U.S. or world literature
 One passage or a pair of passages from either a U.S. founding document or a text in the Great Global Conversation
 A passage about economics, psychology, sociology, or some other social science
 Two science passages (or one passage and one passage pair) examining foundational concepts and developments in Earth science, biology, chemistry, or physics

Writing and Language:
 Passages may contain info-graphics such as tables, graphs, and charts
Questions are based on sentence structure, usage, and punctuation
Questions such as fixing sentences through the change of words, clauses, punctuations, etc
The topics will include verb tense, parallel construction, subject-verb agreement, and comma use as well

• Mathematics level 1 
• Mathematics level 2

•  Algebra
•  Ratios, Rates, Proportional Relationships, Scale Drawings, Percentages
•  Polynomials, Linear, Quadratic, Exponential Models, and Equations
• Linear and Exponential Growths
• Probability, Statistics, Graphs
• Geometry and Trigonometry

Science:

• Physics
• Chemistry
• Biology

History:

• US history
• World history

Language:

• Spanish
• French
• Chinese 
• Italian
• German
• Modern Hebrew
• Latin
• Japanese 
• Korean

SAT Exam Pattern

The SAT exam consists of two types. The first one is the SAT Reasoning Test and the second one is the SAT Subject Test. The SAT Reasoning Test is for the students who are opting for higher education in countries abroad. The SAT Reasoning Test does not contain any language section. The SAT Subject Test is for students who are looking to study a particular subject in detail. This test would consist of the language section. The candidate can opt for either of the two tests.

SAT Reasoning Test:

• Exam mode: Offline (paper-based)
• Essay question: Optional
• Total question: 154 (155 with essay)
• Exam duration: 3 hours and 3 hours 50 minutes with essay
• Total Sections: 4, Reading test, Writing and Language test, Mathematics test (with and without a calculator), and Essay
• Score Ranges: 400 to 1600

Negative marking: No negative marking

SAT Subject Test:

• Duration: 1 hour or 60 minutes
• Marking system: Here the candidates are graded from a total of 800 points
• No.of tests per day: A candidate can take a maximum of 3 subject tests in a day
• Limitation: One cannot take the SAT Reasoning Test and SAT Subject Test on the same day

The candidate can choose any subject from the given 20 subjects:

• German
• German with Listening
• Italian
• Physics
• Spanish
• Spanish with Listening
• French
• French with Listening
• Modern Hebrew
• Korean with Listening
• Chinese with Listening
• Japanese with Listening
• World History
• US History
• Literature
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Latin
• Math I
• Math II

SAT Cut-Off:

Various colleges accept candidates with their SAT scores which is different for each college. 

SAT Application Form

The registration for the SAT can be done online or by mail.

Online registration:
1. Go to the official website of the College Board and create an account
2. Fill the application form by providing all the necessary details
3. Create a student profile by providing details about your high school, academics, extracurricular activities, college level, etc.
4. Select test date and test centre
5. Upload your photo with accurate specifications
6. Pay the SAT fee of $49.50 ($64.50 with essay) through credit card or PayPal

Test Centres of SAT in India 

SAT Counseling

When you sign up for the SAT, you get the chance to hear from colleges that have an interest in you based on a combination of your test scores, grades, academic interests, and other characteristics. The admission through SAT varies from college to college. Different colleges have their SAT score range to accept a student. 
The student decides who sees their scores because they are in charge of sending them. Students are required to send their score reports by phone or mail to the colleges they are eligible for. Students can send up to four score reports to colleges for free, prior to which additional fees will be charged.
If you take the SAT more than once, you can often choose to send only your best scores. But each college sets its own policy for how it uses multiple scores:
1. Some colleges require all your scores.
2. Some colleges look at your highest combined scores from one test date.
3. Some colleges accept your highest section scores from any day you tested.

SAT Result

SAT result is usually published within 3 weeks of the test on the official website of the College Board. For students who registered by mail will get receive paper score reports.

Steps to view your SAT score:
1. Go to the official website of the College Board
2. Click on  "Access My Scores"
3. Enter username and password
4. Click on "My Test Scores"
5. Enter your credentials and view the result
6. Download and take a print out of the scorecard

Details present on SAT scorecard:
1. Total score
2. Sectional score
3. Subscore (marks scored in each type of questions)
4. Essay score (if applicable)
5. Student’s percentile

SAT Score V/S Percentile 

How to Send SAT Score to College?
Most colleges require applicants to send them official score reports directly from the College Board—they do not accept copies of online score reports or score report labels on transcripts. You can ask us to send score reports to colleges before or after test day.

Before Test Day:
You can send four free score reports to colleges every time you register for the SAT. This is the fastest way to send scores to colleges and scholarship programs—and there’s no fee. Many colleges view receiving your scores early as a demonstration of your interest.

After Test Day:
You can still send four free score reports to colleges up to nine days after the test, after that there's a fee of $12 for sending each additional score report.

Score Choice:
Students can send their SAT scores to their choice of colleges. Students can send their new or old SAT scores. There is no additional fee required to send SAT scores to their choice of college.

SAT Answer Key

There will be no answer key released by the authorities for the SAT exam.

SAT Eligibility

College Board, a private, not-for-profit corporation in the US owns and conducts the SAT and has not set up any SAT eligibility for candidates wanting to appear for the exam. There is no age limit to appear for this exam. There are certain restraints in order to appear for this exam:

• Students who are 12 years or younger in age can only register by mail
• Students in eighth grade or below must not include a photo in their registration
• Students applying from countries other than the U.S must have a valid passport

SAT Eligibility for Students with Disabilities:

Students with disabilities must inform the College Board who is the governing body of the SAT about their condition. It must be approved beforehand by the College Board’s Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) unit. After the approval, they will be eligible to appear both the SAT Reasoning Test and SAT Subject Test. Students with disabilities are provided with extra facilities such as:

• The use of Braille and large-print exams for visually impaired candidates
• Provision for extra time for completion of the SAT exam
• The use of a computer for essays
• A provision for extra breaks during the exam

SAT FAQs

Q: How many times one can take the SAT exam?
A: There is no such limit for an individual to take the SAT exam.

Q: What is the age limit to take the SAT exam?
A: There is no age limit to take the SAT exam.

Q: What is the fee for the SAT exam?
A: The basic fee for the SAT exam is $49.50 (without essay) and $64.50 with the essay.

Q: How can I get my SAT admit card?
A: The SAT admit card is available after you have successfully registered and made the payment. Candidate can immediately download their admit card right after the registration process.

Q: What is the validity of SAT scores?
A: The SAT score is valid for a span of 5 years.

Q: Can I use a calculator for the mathematics section in the SAT exam?
A: Yes, but in one of the two-section in mathematics. One cannot use a calculator in the other section of mathematics.

Q: Can I take the SAT exam after 10th?
A: Yes, there is no specific age limit to take the SAT exam.

Q: Is there any negative marking in the SAT exam?
A: No, there is no negative marking scheme in the SAT exam.

Q: How do I check my SAT results?
A: Steps to view your SAT score:

• Go to the official website of the College Board
• Click on  "Access My Scores"
• Enter username and password
• Click on "My Test Scores"
• Enter your credentials and view the result
• Download and take a print out of the scorecard

Q: How many times is the SAT available in a year?
A: SAT is available 7 times a year in the United States. It is usually available at least 5 times a year in countries outside the U.S.