4 Reasons You Should Take the SAT

A student uses books to study for the SAT
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As graduation nears, tons of high school students are asking themselves this question: Why should I take the SAT? Many colleges and universities out there don't require the SAT, and they'd rather get into a university that doesn't force them to take even more standardized tests. That's a great question, and there are some very good reasons for you to just take the SAT, even if you don't want to. Read below to see the benefits you can get from making the choice to sit for the exam.

The Universally Accepted Test

If you're going to college, you kind of have to take a college entrance exam like the SAT if you're attending a school that requires one (some do not). All major universities in the United States accept the SAT as a college entrance exam; most accept the ACT.

Scholarships

Scholarships, kids! Yes. Money often follows an impressive SAT score. Check into your college of choice's SAT scholarship requirements. Many schools dole out huge bucks for great SAT scores. For instance, St. Louis university has awarded $15,000 merit scholarships for a 1210 on the combined Reading and Math scores. Villanova has given more than $10,000 for a 1310.

Your school doesn't offer cash for your score? No worries. Even if your college or university doesn't offer scholarships for your SAT score, many community organizations and foundations do. Trust me, you'll appreciate not having to pay back school loans when you're all grown up if you can get much of your tuition covered with a test, so get out there and practice for the SAT until your fingers bleed.

Balance a Low GPA

So maybe you hated your World History teacher, flunked the class to spite her, and ruined that 4.0. That doesn’t mean you don't have the brain skills to survive college. Scoring high on the SAT can show off your smarts to the college admissions team when your GPA doesn’t. And yes, although admissions committees take a look at you as a whole person, not just at your SAT score, it is one of the pieces that makes up the picture of you. You want it to be good. 

Your Scores Follow You Around

I’m not kidding. When you apply for your first entry-level job, your SAT scores (if they're good enough) are going to be on your resume, because truthfully, your pizza delivery gig can’t showcase your reasoning ability like a 90th percentile on the SAT can. You won't have a lot of job experience right off the bat. Take the SAT to prove to your first future employer that you have the smarts to be successful at your job, even if intelligence is NOT really one of the things the SAT predicts or measures. 

Here are the Top SAT Registration Questions to get you started on your SAT journey. Good luck!

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Roell, Kelly. "4 Reasons You Should Take the SAT." ThoughtCo, Apr. 5, 2023, thoughtco.com/reasons-you-should-take-the-sat-3211821. Roell, Kelly. (2023, April 5). 4 Reasons You Should Take the SAT. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/reasons-you-should-take-the-sat-3211821 Roell, Kelly. "4 Reasons You Should Take the SAT." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/reasons-you-should-take-the-sat-3211821 (accessed March 28, 2024).