If you've ever glanced through any of the year-end College Board data reports, you may have seen information about the SAT standard deviation. Unfortunately, the reports just list the numbers and then move on, without explaining at all what these numbers mean.

So how is info about the SAT mean and standard deviation useful to you? In this article, we'll explain what the term standard deviation refers to and what it means for you and your SAT score.

As a high school student, I took both the SAT and the ACT. I’d been taking the SAT every couple of years since I was in middle school, so I planned to focus primarily on it. However, as a public school student in Colorado, I was required to take the ACT by my school. My scores on the two tests were relatively similar and I ended up submitting both.

Taking both tests, whether because of school requirements or personal preference, has become an increasingly common choice for students, especially those applying to top colleges. Though it isn’t necessary to take both the ACT and SAT, doing so might be the right plan for you. This guide will walk you through the pro and cons of taking both tests.

Have you taken the SAT more than once? Are you wondering how colleges will look at multiple test scores? Will they review all your scores? Only your highest score? Will they average your scores and use that number? Standardized test scores are an important part of applying to college, but it’s not always clear how schools will review your SAT scores if you send them more than one set of scores.

Will colleges average your SAT scores if you take the test multiple times? In short, no. Colleges don’t take the average of your scores. Instead, they will look at your “best” score, however; there are multiple ways a school can calculate that. In this article, I’ll go over the various methods schools use to look at multiple SAT scores, if they require you to send all your SAT scores, and how you can use this information to your advantage and help strengthen your college applications.

The SAT is a pretty high-stakes test - it’s an important part of your college applications, which could mean trouble if you get a low score. But can you fail the SAT altogether?

The good news is that officially, it’s impossible to fail the SAT - but that doesn’t mean that a low score doesn't mean bad news. Here, I’ll review everything you need to know about why you can’t really fail the SAT, but why poor marks may as well count as failing.

Worried about your score? At the end, I’ll go over the steps you should take to pull them up.  

Planning to take the SAT? Before you sign up, you need to decide whether you're going to take the test with or without the optional Essay. How should you pick? Well, some colleges require that you apply with the SAT with Essay; others don't care whether you submit an SAT score with or without the Essay.

In this article, I'll provide you with a complete list of colleges that require or recommend taking the SAT with the Essay.

The SAT was first introduced in 1926, and since then it has continued to be a major test for college admissions standardized testing.

But what does SAT actually stand for?. To answer that question, we have to look more closely at the history of the SAT. The truth is that the name of the test has changed four times over the past 90 years!

Knowing how the name of the SAT has changed can help you better understand the significance of this major test for college admissions. The reasons for changing the name of the SAT point to controversies and scandals about the test that have affected how the test is perceived by colleges. Continue reading to find more about the history of the SAT and the reasoning behind the name.

Taking the SAT is usually an important part of the college application process. As application deadlines near, forming a plan of action for taking the SAT is important to hitting your target score and getting your college applications in on time. 

In this article, we’ve put together a complete list of all of the anticipated 2021-2022 SAT test dates, including the deadlines for normal and late registration and SAT score releases, so you can pick the right test dates for you. We’ll also go over four important tips for choosing your SAT dates 2021-2022. 

Let’s begin!

At PrepScholar, we've written the largest set of high-quality SAT guides available, covering pretty much everything you need to know to improve your score on the digital SAT. They're all free and online, right here on our blog, and we think they beat any book you can purchase.

This guide, our Ultimate SAT Prep Study Guide, combines our most important SAT guides on one page. If you master all of the concepts linked to on this page, use them in your own practice and studying, and stay motivated to work hard, you'll have an amazing shot at improving your SAT score. Essentially, you'll have a huge advantage over students who don't know this information and lack the motivation to employ it in their own studying.

Preparing to take the SAT is often a crucial part of the college admissions process. To ensure your college application plans go off without a hitch, it’s important to have a clear strategy for taking the SAT on time. In order to do that, it’s helpful to have the most up-to-date info about future SAT test dates 2022-2023. 

This article is here to help you plan out your SAT test dates. We’ll walk you through the following: 

• A full list of 2022-2023 SAT test dates (table included)
• Information about SAT registration deadlines and score release dates 
• Four top tips for how to choose your SAT testing dates 

Let’s get started!

The College Board has updated its testing calendar! Typically, the SAT is offered seven times a year, in March, May, June, August, October, November, and December. However, they've recently added an 8th test date for 2025, on September 13, 2025.

Learn why the new test date has been added and the pros and cons of taking the SAT in September so you can learn if this is the right SAT test date for you.

A test that has so much influence over where you go to college is bound to be a bit scary—but how hard is the SAT, really? Despite its fearsome reputation, the SAT isn't as difficult as it seems.

Overcoming the difficulties of the SAT is a matter of spending enough time studying areas that are tough for you and practicing questions that you might find confusing at first glance. Whether or not you find the SAT hard initially, this guide will give you the tools you need to surmount the test's challenges and come out on top.

You might have heard of something called the SAT II (or SAT 2) and wondered what it could be. A secret, harder version of the SAT, perhaps? The reality is less dramatic: the SAT II is just an old name for the SAT Subject Tests.

This guide will explain what the SAT II was and outline the differences between the SAT 1 vs SAT 2.

Are you taking the digital SAT soon or beginning your preparations but aren't sure what's on the test? You may know that there's math calculations and some passages to read, but what subjects are on the SAT, exactly?

In this guide, we'll break down the subjects you need to know to do well on each section of the digital SAT. We'll end with tips you should follow when studying for the SAT.

Are you planning to take the Math II SAT Subject Test for your college applications? As you know, the Math 2 subject test covers more advanced math concepts than the Math I. Because of this, you want to make sure you're taking it at the right time to achieve a high score.

This article will help you figure out exactly when is the best time for you take this test. First, let's quickly review what's on the Math 2 SAT Subject Test.

Whether you're actively preparing for the SAT or simply want to learn more about the ubiquitous college entrance exam, it’s important you start with the basics: how many sections are on the SAT? What are the names of the SAT sections? And what kinds of skills does each section measure?

In this article, we answer all of your burning questions about the SAT sections. We'll begin by discussing how many sections are on the SAT as well as how these sections differ from one another. Then, we’ll go over the different skills on which you'll be tested, giving you our expert tips for combating each of the SAT test sections with confidence. Finally, we'll take a look at whether certain sections of the SAT are more important than others and what this means for you and your college applications.