The SAT has its roots in World War I intelligence testing. The exam's predecessor, designed to measure IQ, helped the U.S. Army evaluate recruits. Years later, this test evolved into an academic tool, forever shaping college admissions.
Did you know the SAT doesn't stand for anything today? It once meant "Scholastic Aptitude Test," but after debates about whether it truly measured aptitude, the acronym became a name without meaning.
The SAT was introduced as a scholarship test for Ivy League schools, starting with Harvard, in 1934. Its broader adoption aimed to level the playing field, bringing talented public school students into elite institutions.
In 2013, a serious cheating scandal in South Korea prompted the College Board to cancel the SAT nationwide for the scheduled test date. Thousands of students had to rework their plans, underscoring the strict measures taken to ensure fairness.
The SAT has been reimagined multiple times since its first administration in 1926. The early test was a 97-minute marathon with over 300 questions, while today’s version is far more streamlined, even dropping penalties for guessing in 2016.
The concept of SAT prep courses was pioneered in 1938 by Stanley Kaplan, who tutored students from his basement in Brooklyn. His efforts laid the foundation for the multi-billion-dollar test prep industry we know today.
Past versions of the SAT included an experimental section that didn’t count toward final scores. While the College Board has been vague about its current form, unscored questions are supposedly still a hidden element in some test versions.
Studying foreign languages can apparently boost SAT scores. Students with over four years of language study have historically performed better, with those learning Chinese, Korean, and Latin often topping the charts.
In 2011, a student from Long Island, New York, confessed to impersonating others during SAT tests. Sitting for the exam at least 15 times, he was caught, prosecuted, and sentenced to tutor underprivileged youth for — what else? — the SAT.
The SAT has even inspired books and plays. A notable example is None of the Above, an off-Broadway play about a privileged teen and her SAT tutor. Quirky vocab novels like Vampire Dreams also target students seeking creative ways to prep.
