SAT Reasoning Test

The SAT (abbreviation of no importance, formerly Scholastic Assessment Test, before Scholastic Aptitude Test and Scholastic Achievement Test before ) is an American standardized test that is mainly required by study place candidates in American universities ( scholastic aptitude ).

Since the school system of the United States is very uneven, school grades are various high schools in general not comparable. Therefore leads the College Board, an association of 4,500 American educational institutions, to nationwide simultaneous appointments standardized tests, whose results often decide on the further education of a student.

Each test consists of several modules: a general part, the math, critical reading and creative writing is divided into sections, and up to three subject-specific tests, of which a total of 20 to choose from. The tests are carried out mainly by the multiple-choice method. Each part of the test is evaluated with a score between 200 and 800, which is then scaled for different levels of difficulty to also obtain comparable results between different SAT tests.

The SAT has been revised several times since its introduction in 1901 fundamentally and renamed. It always attempts were made to determine the purpose of the test, no knowledge, but skills to get closer and to avoid discrimination of subjects from poorer school districts.

With the SAT have confirmed the success of the high school system measure to achieve the academic requirements for attending a college with a High School Diploma. Since 2009 it reached in the United States, less than half of high school graduates the threshold of 1550 points in the SAT (as including data from 2013). The educational level of the parents said in 2013 the success of the children best ahead: While 68 % of children the threshold reached, of which at least one parent had a master's or higher degree, managed only 27 % of children whose parents only a high school conclusion had. The second most important factor was the race as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau: Students of Asian origin reached the limit to 56%, white 53%, indigenous Americans 35 %, Hispanics 24% and blacks 15%.

Also, some private universities in Germany, as the Jacobs University Bremen or the now insolvent International University in Germany in Bruchsal, demanded of applicants storing the test.