Get SAT for AP’s
January 29, 2010 by Matthew Rieber
When preparing for college most students tend to focus on bringing up their SAT scores in order to get into a good college. However, what most students fail to understand is the AP credit they take for granted is limited to those who score a four or a five on the exam. While some colleges do accept 3, they are normally for classes that are not a student’s major. Splitting their focus between these two tests causes many students encounter difficulty when trying to score well for both. There is an alternative to SAT testing that may provide a needed review for the AP exam. The SAT Subject Tests test students on information that they will be tested on for the May AP exam.
The May AP exam tests whether or not a student can competently do college level work in high school. Typically difficult, a student competes with others all around the country, and scores are given based on how well they do in comparison to their peers. By taking subject-based SATs students are able to help their scores by seeing questions similar to those that could appear on the AP exam, albeit at a lower difficulty. Students too often the mistake of worrying about their SAT scores rather than focusing on the subject matter of the AP exam, which getting credit for is infinitely more difficult.
Students often do more poorly than they ordinarily would have on the SATs because of the structure of the test that many students feel is confusing. The subject based SATs provide an alternative to the traditional test by structuring it to focus solely on a single subject. This allows those taking the exam to be better prepared for the exam by allowing them to concentrate on a single subject rather than divide their attention between multiple topics. SATs tests review the student’s knowledge of a subject in depth and gives colleges a better idea about how knowledge a student is in a given area.
While also providing a needed review for those who take it before the AP’s the subject based SATs also have all of the normal perks that come with taking the regular SATs. In cases where students take more than the required number of SAT Subject Tests, most schools have a policy of considering your best scores. Colleges receive the entire list of scores, when the SATs are submitted. This can cause some students to make mistakes waiting too long before taking the SAT, or being too hesitant to take a Subject Test at a time when they are best prepared.

