So on this blog I do a lot of high-level expert-type test analysis—but just like learning ANYTHING, everybody needs the basics in order to get to the advanced stuff. If you’re new to the test prep game, whether a high schooler or a parent of one, this post’s for you! I’m going to walk you through the major types of tests that everyone keeps talking about, so you know the difference. These are: the ACT, the SAT I Reasoning Test, and SAT II Subject Tests. By the time you finish this post, you’ll have your testing basics down and you’ll be ready to think about strategy, including testing timelines, game plans, study approaches—you know, the advanced, expert-type stuff that will get you the score you need to get into that dream school.
The Main Standardized Tests: the ACT and the SAT I Reasoning Test (or just “ACT” and “SAT” for short)
These are the two main tests that you’ll likely be dealing with in your college process: the ACT and the SAT. Both tests are 3.5-4 hours long, and both evaluate your knowledge and skills with regard to reading, math, grammar, and data interpretation, though they both accomplish this in VERY different ways.
Think of the ACT and the SAT like Visa and MasterCard: yes, they’re competing credit card companies, and yes, YOUR credit card is one or the other (not BOTH). However, the store where you’re purchasing your winter coat doesn’t CARE if you hand them a Visa or a MasterCard: they just need a credit card to collect your payment! And you only need to hand them ONE card, not one of each type.
You can also think of the ACT and the SAT like Coke and Pepsi: yes, they are different competing companies, and people have personal preferences over one or the other, but at the end of the day, they BOTH fulfill the requirement for “sugary carbonated beverage with caffeine and lots of tasty chemicals.” And if you’re into that type of thing, you’re not going to get BOTH a Coke AND a Pepsi—you’re going to get a glass of the one you prefer. Know what I mean?
Yes, there are some colleges and universities that don’t require the ACT or the SAT—we call these “Test Optional” schools—but most still do. And the bottom line is that they don’t care which test you take, they care about what score you send them. Which means that the test you should take is the one that shows you off the best. (And forget what it was like when YOU were in high school and “everyone just took the SAT”; these days, the ACT and the SAT are both accepted equally by college admissions officers.)
What’s the difference between the SAT I and the SAT II?
So, to make things more confusing, there are two different types of SAT that are owned and operated by the College Board: the SAT I Reasoning Test...and SAT II Subject Tests.
The “SAT I Reasoning Test” is the same thing as the “SAT I” or just the “SAT.”
This is the long test that covers reading, grammar, math and data interpretation (with an optional essay) and that competes with the ACT. THIS is the test that’s out of 1600 and that will usually fulfill a college’s standardized testing requirement. THIS is the test that—should you favor the SAT over the ACT—you’ll be prepping for for months and possibly take multiple times to get the Super Score that surpasses the Target Score that you need for your college list.
An “SAT II Subject Test,” on the other hand, is the same thing as an “SAT II,” “SAT 2,” or simply a “Subject Test.”
SAT II Subject Tests are 1 hour-long tests that evaluate how well you know content from different academic classes you took in school. There are Subject Tests for Literature, Math Level 1, Math Level 2, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, US History, World History, and a variety of foreign languages. You can take up to three different Subject Tests on the same test date, and even use Score Choice to send your Biology score, but not your World History score.
SAT II’s are NOT required by every college or specific degree program, but when they ARE required (or when they’re “strongly encouraged”), you have to make time in your testing timeline to do them.
In recent years, the trend has been that colleges have little-by-little lowered their Subject Test requirements, so currently, more schools DON’T require them than DO require them. But you have to do your individual research on the specific colleges on your list to know for sure.
So those are all the basics you need to know about the ACT, SAT I, and SAT II tests.
Does that make sense now? Is it crystal? If it’s all too much for you, and you need an expert to walk you through picking the right test(s) for you, I’m just a click away!
