Editing SAT (section)

{{Short description|Standardized test used for U.S. college admissions}}
{{about|the college admission test in the United States|the exams in England colloquially known as SATs|National Curriculum assessment|other uses}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox examination
| image_name          = SAT logo (2017).svg
| image_size          =
| image_alt           =
| caption             = Logo since 2017
| acronym             =
| type                = Computer-based standardized test
| test_admin          = [[College Board]], [[Educational Testing Service]]
| skills_tested       = Writing, critical reading, mathematics
| purpose             = Admission to undergraduate programs of universities or colleges
| year_started        = {{Start date and age|1926}}
| year_terminated     = <!-- {{End date|YYYY}} -->
| duration            = 2 hours 14 minutes<ref name=HowStructured>{{cite web|title=How the SAT is Structured |publisher=College Board |url=https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat/whats-on-the-test/structure |access-date=March 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240306025408/https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat/whats-on-the-test/structure |url-status=live |archive-date=March 6, 2024 }}</ref>
| score_range         = Test scored on scale of 200–800, (in 10-point increments), on each of two sections (total 400–1600).<br />Essay scored on scale of 2–8, in 1-point increments, on each of three criteria.
| score_validity      =
| offered             = 7 times annually{{efn|In 2020, the SAT was also offered on an additional September date due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Goldberg|first=Emma|date=September 27, 2020|title=Put Down Your No. 2 Pencils. But Not Your Face Mask.|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/27/us/sat-test-coronavirus.html|access-date=December 4, 2020|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=December 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204085625/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/27/us/sat-test-coronavirus.html|url-status=live}}</ref>}}
| attempt_restriction =
| regions             = Worldwide
| language            = [[English language|English]]
| test_takers         = {{Increase}} Over 1.97 million high school graduates in the class of 2024<ref name="test takers" />
| prerequisite        = No official prerequisite. Intended for high school students. Fluency in [[English language|English]] assumed.
| fee                 = US$60.00 to US$108.00, depending on country.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sat.collegeboard.org/register/intl-services-fees|title=Fees And Costs|publisher=The College Board|access-date=October 13, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141010185638/http://sat.collegeboard.org/register/intl-services-fees|archive-date=October 10, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>
| score_users         = Most universities and colleges offering undergraduate programs in the [[United States|U.S.]]
| qualification_rate  =
| website             = {{Official URL}}
}}
The '''SAT''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|ɛ|s|ˌ|eɪ|ˈ|t|iː|audio=LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-SAT.wav}} {{respell|ess|ay|TEE}}) is a [[standardized test]] widely used for [[college admissions in the United States]]. Since its debut in 1926, its name and [[Test score|scoring]] have changed several times. For much of its history, it was called the '''Scholastic Aptitude Test''' and had two components, Verbal and Mathematical, each of which was scored on a range from 200 to 800. Later it was called the '''Scholastic Assessment Test''', then the '''SAT I: Reasoning Test''', then the '''SAT Reasoning Test''', then simply the '''SAT'''.

The SAT is wholly owned, developed, and published by the [[College Board]] and is administered by the [[Educational Testing Service]].<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=How the SAT Is Structured |url=https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat/whats-on-the-test/structure |publisher=College Board SAT}}</ref> The test is intended to assess students' readiness for college. Historically, starting around 1937, the tests offered under the SAT banner also included optional subject-specific [[SAT Subject Tests]], which were called SAT Achievement Tests until 1993 and then were called SAT II: Subject Tests until 2005; these were discontinued after June 2021.<ref name="College Board-2021">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date= |title=College Board Will No Longer Offer SAT Subject Tests or SAT with Essay |url=https://blog.collegeboard.org/January-2021-sat-subject-test-and-essay-faq |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230821181111/https://blog.collegeboard.org/January-2021-sat-subject-test-and-essay-faq |archive-date=August 21, 2023 |access-date=February 14, 2021 |work=College Board Blog |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Hartocollis-2021">{{Cite news |last1=Hartocollis |first1=Anemona |last2=Taylor |first2=Kate |last3=Saul |first3=Stephanie |date=January 20, 2021 |title=Retooling During Pandemic, the SAT Will Drop Essay and Subject Tests |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/19/us/sat-essay-subject-tests.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/19/us/sat-essay-subject-tests.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |access-date=February 14, 2021 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Originally designed not to be aligned with high school curricula,<ref>{{Cite book| title=Trapped in Mediocrity: Why Our Schools Aren't World-Class and What We Can Do About It| url=https://archive.org/details/trappedinmediocr0000bair| url-access=registration| last=Baird| first=Katherine |publisher=Rowman and Littlefield Publishers| location=Lanham |year=2012}} "And a separate process that began in 1926 was complete by 1942: the much easier SAT—a test not aligned to any particular curriculum and thus better suited to a nation where high school students did not take a common curriculum—replaced the old college boards as the nations's college entrance exam. This broke the once tight link between academic coursework and college admission, a break that remains to this day."</ref> several adjustments were made for the version of the SAT introduced in 2016. College Board president [[David Coleman (consultant)|David Coleman]] added that he wanted to make the test reflect more closely what students learn in high school with the new [[Common Core State Standards Initiative|Common Core standards]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Lewin |first=Tamar |date=March 5, 2014 |title=A New SAT Aims to Realign With Schoolwork |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/06/education/major-changes-in-sat-announced-by-college-board.html |url-status=live |access-date=May 14, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140513073917/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/06/education/major-changes-in-sat-announced-by-college-board.html |archive-date=May 13, 2014 |quote=He said he also wanted to make the test reflect more closely what students did in high school and, perhaps most important, rein in the intense coaching and tutoring on how to take the test that often gave affluent students an advantage.}}</ref>

Many students prepare for the SAT using books, classes, online courses, and tutoring, which are offered by a variety of companies and organizations. In the past, the test was taken using paper forms. Starting in March 2023 for international test-takers and March 2024 for those within the U.S., the testing is administered using a computer program called Bluebook.<ref name="Thompson-2022" /><ref>{{cite news |last=Goldstein |first=Dana |title=No More No. 2 Pencils: The SAT Goes Fully Digital |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/08/us/sat-online-digital-test-college.html  |date=March 8, 2024 |accessdate=March 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240308112037/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/08/us/sat-online-digital-test-college.html |url-status=live |archive-date=March 8, 2024 }}</ref> The test was also made adaptive, customizing the questions that are presented to the student based on how they perform on questions asked earlier in the test, and shortened from three hours to two hours and 14 minutes.<ref name="HowStructured" /><ref name="CBAdaptive">{{cite web |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240321220248/https://blog.collegeboard.org/what-digital-sat-adaptive-testing |url=https://blog.collegeboard.org/what-digital-sat-adaptive-testing |title=What is Digital SAT Adaptive Testing? |date=August 14, 2023 |archive-date=March 21, 2024 |url-status=live |work=College Board Blog}}</ref>

While a considerable amount of research has been done on the SAT, many questions and misconceptions remain.<ref name="Frey-2019" /><ref name="Hambrick-2014">{{Cite news |last1=Hambrick |first1=David C. |last2=Chabris |first2=Christopher |date=April 14, 2014 |title=Yes, IQ Really Matters |url=https://slate.com/technology/2014/04/what-do-sat-and-iq-tests-measure-general-intelligence-predicts-school-and-life-success.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210831154506/https://slate.com/technology/2014/04/what-do-sat-and-iq-tests-measure-general-intelligence-predicts-school-and-life-success.html |archive-date=August 31, 2021 |access-date=August 31, 2021 |work=Slate |department=Science}}</ref> Outside of college admissions, the SAT is also used [[#By researchers|by researchers]] studying human intelligence in general and intellectual precociousness in particular,<ref name="O'Boyle-2005" /><ref name="Haier-2018" /><ref name="Lubinsky-2018" /> and [[#By employers|by some employers]] in the recruitment process.<ref name="Weber-2004" /><ref name="Treu-2014" /><ref name="Dewan-2014" />