Hey! I'm a bit confused about the SAT. When is it usually taken in high school? Should I start preparing now or is there a specific time I should be aiming for?
Hello! Many students take the SAT for the first time in the spring of their junior year in high school. This allows for enough time to prepare, take the test, and then analyze your score to see if you're happy with it or if you want to re-take the test. If you decide to re-take the test, you would more often do so in the fall of your senior year.
Preparation time can vary greatly from student to student, but a good rule of thumb is to start studying about 3-6 months before you plan to take the SAT for the first time. This allows for plenty of time to understand the material, practice, and get comfortable with the test format. In terms of how much studying to do each week during this time, aim for about 10 hours per week if possible.
Keep in mind that as of spring 2024, the SAT is fully digital. The structure of the digital SAT has two modules each for reading and writing and for math. You'll have about 71 seconds per question for the reading and writing modules, and 96 seconds per question, or a little over a minute and a half, for the math modules.
Best of luck in your SAT preparation!
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