August SAT Registration Is Now Open But With Limited Availability

After months of waiting, certain students can finally register for an upcoming SAT exam.  College Board is currently offering priority registration, until 8 pm on Wednesday, June 3rd, to students who had been registered for the June 6th SAT or Subject Test and didn’t cancel their registration and to students in the high school classes of 2020 or 2021 who do not have prior SAT scores.

At 8 pm on June 3rd, registration will open up to all high school students for the August 29th, September 26th and October 3rd scheduled exams. 

Students should register as quickly as possible as there will likely be an extreme shortage of seats since the last test administered, in much of New Jersey, was back on December 7th, 2019.  The high demand for testing opportunities will be coupled with a limited seating capacity due to public health restrictions.

College Board has recommended that if students cannot find a test center when they first attempt to register, they should try again by logging back into My SAT, selecting the registration they had started, and then following the required steps.  On the “Select Your Test Center” page, they will see any new seats added in their area. College Board usually updates their systems by noon on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Students should not be lulled into complacency by announcements from some colleges that they will not be requiring SAT scores from the next applicant pool.  Colleges are concerned with getting the greatest number of applicants as possible and will therefore do whatever is necessary to get on the radar of college-bound students.  The more applications a college receives, the more competitive it can be in selecting its next incoming class. Those students who submit impressive scores will certainly have a leg up on those who choose to skip the exam. Since students will likely have fewer opportunities to take the SAT exam, they should carefully prepare in advance in order to reach their target scores as soon as possible.

SAT scores are also beneficial for purposes beyond college admissions. Many scholarship applications require SAT scores.  Many colleges use SAT scores to waive placement exams for freshmen year courses.  Many employers, including consulting firms Bain & Co. and McKinsey & Co. and banks like Goldman Sachs, inquire about a job candidate's SAT scores.

If the coronavirus has not yet abated and school testing sites are still closed when the fall SAT test dates roll around, College Board has announced its contingency plan to offer a digital SAT exam to be taken by students in their homes.    

Susan Alaimo is the founder of SAT Smart. For the past 25 years, SAT Smart’s Ivy League educated tutors have prepared students for the PSAT, SAT, ACT, Subject Tests, AP courses, and all high school subjects. Visit www.SATsmart.com or call 908-369-5362