Unearthing the beauty of the Scholastic Aptitude Test

Nearly 1.7 million nervous teenagers took the SAT in 2014, with scores ranging all the way from the minimum 750 all the way to a “perfect” 2400. 583, smart and lucky (depending on how you look at probability) teenagers scored a 2400.

The test is so full of bias that movies, television, and even professional comedians have referenced its thoroughness and it’s highbrow stereotypes. Comedians, songwriters, and actors have referred to it.

For Example,in the 2011 comedy “Friends with Benefits” Mila Kunis is mocking her soon to be ex boyfriend’s outfit by saying “What? Are you going to take the S.A.T’s after this?” Others, like this journalist believe that there is an unseen beauty to this test.

Consider a situation for a moment. Suppose a senior at Harborfields has not worked to her potential through high school. She has taken some easy and some semi- hard classes, and has always found herself to be around the 85 average mark with a mediocre SAT score. This student can get into a less than competitive college, and has a limited amount of careers waiting for her, if and when she earns her diploma.

Now consider the same situation, but with a slight alteration. The student still hovers around the 85 line, but this time she earns a 1480/1600 on the SAT compared to the 1020 she had before. This student would have a completely different life.

She could get accepted to a more selective college, which most likely will offer many more prestigious programs that have more challenging course load. This would nevertheless bolster her resume and provide improved jobs and experiences she never would have had with the 1020.

Senior, Alessandra Deminico who has eyes on attending Oneonta University next fall says, “I am just trying so hard to get the highest score possible. I met with a rep from there and they said that it all comes down to who has the higher score!”

This statement is supported in an article in Veritasprep.com, “Ultimately, for students looking to attend competitive universities, your SAT score is valued more than your GPA.”

In 2012 Veristaprep claimed “You spend over 4,000 hours in a high school classroom working on your GPA. You spend 4 hours taking the SAT. This is a grim reality of the educational system that high school students face today. But instead of quitting, learn how to play the game.”

This article is so well informed because it captures how we live in a “dog eat dog world.” Nobody cares how much effort you put into something sometimes, it all comes down to who is smarter than who.  

The beauty of the SAT is that all you need to do is work hard for a little bit, get some good strategies and you can out perform a person even if they have a better GPA! This isn’t meant to discourage those who have worked hard to give up, it just goes to show that everybody has a shot at the big leagues!

The SAT is an assessment which measures someone's college readiness and ability to perform. There is an unseen beauty to the test that most people can’t see. You could be sitting on a winning lottery ticket, so just cash it in.