SAT vs JEE: Which is More Difficult?

There is only debate that truly matters to high-schoolers across social media: which is tougher SAT or JEE? While this debate is a great indulgence for many; what truly matters is scoring well in the respective exams and building a fine future for yourself. JEE (Joint Entrance Examination) is conducted for admissions to several Indian engineering colleges that include prestigious colleges like IITs, NITs, etc. Simultaneously, the SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) is for access to undergraduate programs in foreign countries, primarily countries like the US and Canada. In this blog, we will compare and find out the differences in SAT vs JEE. Read on! 

Also Read: IIT vs MIT

Highlights

Tabulated below are the important differences between the two to give you a brief overview of SAT vs Jee. Have a look here: 

JEE vs SAT	JEE (Mains)	SAT
Full-Form	Joint Entrance Examination	Scholastic Assessment Test
Conducting Body	National Testing Agency	The College Board
Purpose	Admissions to engineering colleges and other technical colleges across India	Admissions to undergraduate courses in foreign colleges and universities in the USA, Canada & even India
Exam Fee	Rs 650:General/OBC/EWS Rs325:Girls/SCs/STs/PWD/Transgender	Without Essay: USD 49.5 + USD 49(Regional fee)  With Essay: USD 64.5 + USD 49 (Regional fee)
Eligibility Criteria	There is no age limit but candidates must qualify/be appearing for 12th	No Age Limit
Frequency	4 times	Round the year
Validity	1 year	Indefinite
Mode of Exam	Computer-based (Online)Online & Offline for B. Arch	Written-based (Offline)
Medium of Exam	English, Hindi or Gujarati etc	English
Duration	3 hours	Without Essay: 3 hours With Essay: 3 hours + 50 mins
Number of Questions	90	154
Marking Scheme	negative marking	No negative marking

Must Read: IIT vs NIT

About JEE and SAT

In the debate of SAT vs JEE, let us find out what the two exams are about and their details. JEE (Joint Entrance Examination) Mains is the national entrance exam for admissions to undergraduate courses like engineering, architecture and planning in technical and engineering colleges across India. It is conducted by the National Testing Agency. The question paper for each subject is different in terms of a number of questions, syllabus and marking scheme.

SAT(Scholastic Assessment Test) is an international entrance exam for seeking admissions in different international colleges and universities. It is administered by the College Board. There are two types of SAT exams: SAT 1 and SAT 2. The former is for general programmes while the latter is for specific programmes and the duration of each exam is 3 hours and 1 hour respectively.

Requirements

We will now look at the different requirements for both the exams in SAT vs JEE. 

JEE Mains
The minimum requirement for appearing for JEE is clearing 12th examination or any equivalent examination. Candidates who are going to appear for 12th Boards in the year of the exam can also appear for the national entrance. 

SAT
There is no prerequisite requirement for appearing for the test. A large number of students attempts SAT in their 11th or 12th in order to seek admissions in colleges and universities or for scholarships.

Registration

Registration process can be tedious and arduous so it is best to do it in advance. Here are the details for registration of SAT vs JEE, so that we know the differences better. 

JEE: The application process for JEE is completely online and fairly easy. Students can download the form from the National Testing Agency’s official website, fill out the form, upload all the relevant documents, and pay online. As the exam date gets closer, the admit card is released which students can download from the website.

SAT: You can register for the SAT online or by mail. The application process for online registration is extremely straightforward. Students must make an official account with the college board, fill out all the details, upload the relevant documents and select the centres and exam date carefully. Once all the steps are completed, you can download the admission ticket for the future.

Exam Dates

Next while comparing SAT vs JEE, let us look into the dates for the two exams. JEE Mains will be conducted 4 times in 2022; in the months of February, March, April and May while SAT is conducted frequently throughout the year; in the months of March, May and June.

SAT vs JEE: Exam Pattern

Moving on in our comparison of SAT vs JEE, we will compare the exam pattern of the two. 

JEE Exam Pattern: The exam pattern for engineering, architecture and planning is different:

• For B. E/B.Tech courses, the exam consists of three sections: Maths, Physics and Chemistry, each subject has 90 questions out of which 75 are compulsory.
• For B. Arch courses, the exam consists of three sections: Maths, Aptitude Test and Drawing Test. The total questions are 77 and the total marks are 400.
• For B. Planning, the exam consists of three sections such as Maths, Aptitude and Planning based objective type questions. The total number of questions is 100 and the total marks are 400. 

SAT Exam Pattern: The SAT exam pattern consists of three sections: Reading, Writing and Mathematics. It also includes an essay option. The composite score of the SAT exam is from 400 to 1600. 

• The Evidence – based reading and writing section has 96 questions in total and 100 minutes. 
• The Maths section consists of 54 questions and 80 minutes. 
• The Essay section consists of one question and is allotted 50 minutes.

SAT vs JEE: Acceptance Rate

SAT vs JEE: Universities 

Here are the top universities that accept SAT and JEE Mains scores for admissions:

SAT

JEE

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA  Harvard University, Cambridge, USA Yale University, Connecticut, USA Stanford University, California, USA Caltech University, California University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Los Angeles University of Michigan, Michigan  The University of Texas at Dallas Arizona State University  Nanyang Technological University, Singapore National University of Singapore Georgia Institute of Technology Cornell University Purdue University Princeton University University of Maryland

National Institute of Technology Tiruchirappalli (NITT) National Institute of Technology Rourkela National Institute of Technology Surathkal, Karnataka Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Shibpur National Institute of Technology Warangal, Telangana (NITW) National Institute of Technology Calicut, Kerala (NITC) International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad (IIITH) Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, Ranchi, Jharkhand (BITMESRA) Delhi Technological University, New Delhi (DTU) Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai(ICT) National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra, Haryana (NITKKR) Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, Nagpur (VNIT)

FAQs

Explore: How to Prepare for JEE Mains

This was all about SAT vs JEE. JEE and SAT are both extremely competitive and tough exams given by millions of students every year for higher education. The toughness of which exam is determined by the calibre, aptitude and interest of the candidate. If you are someone who wants to know what your true potential is, then sign up for a free session with our experts at Leverage Edu and find out where your excellence lies.