SAT Eligibility Criteria

The Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) is a standardized aptitude test for students who are planning to pursue undergraduate courses in the United States and Canada. If you are planning to study abroad, particularly in the aforementioned countries then you should be aware of the important components of this test. This blog will explore the details of what the SAT is all about, SAT eligibility criteria as well as helpful tips to crack this exam.  

SAT Exam: General Overview

Before delving into the SAT eligibility criteria, let us first summarise what the exam entails. Administered by the College Board, the Scholastic Assessment Test is an essential requirement for those wanting to get admission in a university abroad. Conducted offline, the exam assesses your aptitude based on reasoning, writing and thinking skills. The SAT Exam syllabus is divided into three sections namely, Writing, Mathematics, and Critical Reading. Tabulated below are the key highlights of the SAT exam:

SAT Basics	Details
Duration	3 hours
Cost	USD 104 [Rs 7,700]
Sections	Mathematics, Reading & Writing, Essay [dicontinued]
Mode	Pen-and-pencil based

If you are planning to write the SAT then you should start preparing at the earliest. There is a higher level of competition in the SAT as students from all over the world take this exam to qualify for scholarships as well as courses to study abroad.

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SAT Eligibility Criteria

Being one of the most important requirements to attain overseas education, it becomes important to understand the SAT eligibility criteria. Though there is no fixed criteria under the SAT exam eligibility, here are a few parameters you should know before applying to appear for this test:

SAT Exam Eligibility	No fixed criteria
Age Limit	There is no fixed maximum or minimum age criteria in SAT exam eligibility for students. You can appear for this exam without worrying about any age limit.
Educational Background	SAT does not require any minimum educational criteria. However, if you are a high school student planning to pursue a degree after completing school, you can start the preparation in school years itself.
Frequency	There are no specified official limits regarding the frequency of how many times a person can appear for SAT. You can take this exam as many times as it would take you to pass it. However, it is advised that you appear for it at least twice before you complete your high school.

Facilities for Disabled Students Appearing for SAT

There are certain facilities provided by the College Board for the students with disabilities. It is important for such students to inform the College Board about their condition and all the requirements must be approved beforehand by the Services for Students with Disabilities units under the institution. Once approved, these facilities can be utilised for both SAT general as well as subject test. Some of the key facilities offered for Disabled Students appearing for the SAT exam are:

• Availability of using a computer for essays (dicontinued)
• Provision for getting extra breaks throughout the SAT
• Provision for extra time to finish the exam
• Provision to use Braille as well as large-print exams for visually-impaired test-takers.

SAT Eligibility Criteria- Things to Remember

Although the SAT does not require students to meet any specific eligibility criteria, at the same time, you need to be careful with the preparation and the time that you devote to studying for the SATs. Be it GRE or TOEFL, with the correct guidance and thorough preparation, you can ace every section of any competitive exams. Here are a few tips that might be helpful for you during the preparation: 

• Practice various SAT mock tests before appearing for the exam.
• Research about the average score required for you to get into the college of your choice
• Cover all the sections during your preparation and focus most importantly on the mathematics section.
• Do not think of SATs only as an entrance exam because if you score well, you can also apply for scholarships to pursue your chosen course. Scholarships can help you cover the cost of pursuing education abroad. 
• You are allowed to appear for the SAT as many times as you want and your latest 6 scores will be considered valid. But, some colleges might ask you to share all your SAT scores rather than just selectively higher ones. So, prepare thoroughly for the exam and then take the SAT rather than continuously attempting it.

Exam Pattern for SAT General and Subject Test

SAT General Test

After exploring the SAT eligibility criteria, let’s move on to the exam pattern. The SAT exam is conducted for 3 hours. Let’s look at the exam pattern to understand how to crack SAT exams. The exam contains three subject areas: Reading, Writing, Mathematics and and essay section (discontinued recently). SAT is conducted all year round and students can register for the exam on the official website. Here is the exam pattern:

Subjects	No. of Questions	Total Duration
Mathematics	58 questions	80 minutes
Writing and Language	44 questions	35 minutes
Reading	54 questions	65 minutes
Essay (Discontinued)	1 question	50 minutes

How to Ace the SAT Writing & Language Test?

SAT Subject Test (Discontinued)

The SAT eligibility criteria for SAT General and Subject is the same. The SAT Subject Test is another type of exam undertaken by aspirants who wish to study in foreign universities in the US, Canada, UK etc. In total, there are 20 SAT Subject Tests in general subject areas: English, History, Languages, Mathematics and Science. Students can appear in more than one subject test. Each test is one hour long and is scored on a scale of 200-800. Here is the list of subjects:

• Maths
• Physics
• Chemistry
• Biology
• English
• US History
• World History
• Spanish
• Spanish with Listening
• French
• French with Listening
• Chinese with Listening
• Italian
• German
• German with Listening
• Modern Hebrew
• Latin
• Japanese with Listening
• Korean with Listening

Top Universities for SAT Exam

Apart from checking the SAT eligibility criteria, it is equally important to be aware of the entry requirements for the top US universities that accept SAT exam.

• Princeton University
• Harvard University
• University of Chicago
• Yale University
• Columbia University
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Stanford University
• University of Michigan
• Purdue University 
• University of Pennsylvania
• Duke University
• California Institute of Technology
• Dartmouth College
• Johns Hopkins University
• Northwestern University
• Brown University
• Cornell University
• Rice University
• Vanderbilt University
• University of Notre Dame
• Washington University 
• Georgetown University
• Emory University
• University of California, Berkeley
• University of California, Los Angeles
• University of Southern California
• Carnegie Mellon University
• University of Virginia

FAQs on SAT Eligibility Criteria

Since there is no fixed SAT exam eligibility criteria, it is accessible for everyone to take this exam and build a career abroad. Studying for SATs can be tough but if you aced it your chances of getting into your desired college will increase. If you are preparing to give SAT and don’t know where to begin, Leverage Edu can assist you in studying every section and covering the key syllabus to nail this exam with high scores and avail scholarships to get admission in your chosen course.