Generally, a good plan is to take the SAT® exam during the spring of your junior year, and then, if necessary, retake it the following fall in time for application deadlines. This page is part of Happi’s full SAT® guide — here’s a closer look at picking the right date.
What to weigh before you pick a date
College application deadlines
Most deadlines are in January. For these, your last SAT® exam should be in November or earlier. However, early decision / early action deadlines are in November. If you’re going for these, your last SAT® exam should be in October or earlier.
Plan for multiple opportunities
Attending the SAT® exam once might do it for you, but it’s wise to prepare for taking it 2-3 times. Consider this with the application deadlines when deciding when to take your first SAT® exam — see our retake strategy guide for how to plan those attempts.
Preparation time
The amount of time you need to prepare for the SAT® exam depends on your target score and your current skill level. However, it’s advisable to invest at least 2-6 months of consistent studying to ensure success.
Other commitments
Consider your other commitments such as AP exams, summer break and the workload during the fall semester. These affect your available preparation time, and most importantly whether you’re able to focus on the SAT® exam when it draws near.
Locations and availability
Check the location of test centers near you in advance. Not all test centers are open for each of the test dates, and the number of available seats can vary. Also check if your school offers SAT® School Day, in which case you can take the exam at school.
Things to consider for each exam date
- Do you have midterm exams taking a lot of time?
- Does the spring break affect your preparation and focus?
- If you attend AP exams, you may have difficulty finding time to study for this SAT® exam.
- The AP exams are generally in the first two weeks of May.
- Do you have a lot of end-of-year activities that affect your study schedule?
- Do you have summer plans or vacations at this time?
- If you can study consistently during the summer break, this can be an exceptionally good time to take the SAT® exam.
- The fall of your final year in high school can often be busy. Check if you can arrange time to study over the summer for the August exam and keep October as a backup plan.
- The scores should make it for both the early decision / early action deadlines as well as the regular January deadlines.
- The scores should make it for the January application deadlines, but not for the early decision / early action deadlines.
- Can you leverage the Thanksgiving holiday for some more studying?
- The scores might not make it for the January application deadlines.
- Can you leverage the Winter break for some more studying?
These are general guidelines. Always check your target colleges’ application deadlines.
Once you’ve picked a date, building a study plan around it turns this timeline into a week-by-week routine.
Find your starting point before you commit to a date.