Crucial tips and insights for the October 5, 2024 SAT: A pivotal exam for seniors aiming to boost their scores before college admissions deadlines and for retakers of the August SAT.
The October 5, 2024 SAT exam is crucial for seniors looking to boost their scores before college application deadlines. It's also expected to see many retakers from the August exam who didn't achieve their desired scores. Here's what you need to know:
For many high school seniors, the October SAT represents the last major chance to improve their scores before college applications are due. Most early decision and early action deadlines fall in November, making this exam critical for seniors aiming to enhance their applications.
This exam is also popular with retakers who didn’t perform as well as they hoped on the August SAT. It’s common for students to use their summer study efforts to take both exams, and October offers an opportunity to adjust strategies and boost scores based on their August performance.
While seniors technically have another chance to take the SAT in November, many will find that month busier with college applications, school midterms, and extracurricular commitments. For that reason, we recommend treating the October exam as your best opportunity for improvement.
Similar to the June and August exams, the October SAT is expected to be challenging. Module 2 of both the Reading and Writing and Math sections is anticipated to be particularly tough, so students should prepare for high-difficulty questions.
The College Board has not indicated any plans to adjust the difficulty level, so expect it to match previous exams. It’s important to focus on difficult practice questions and simulations that mirror or exceed the complexity of the actual test to ensure you’re fully prepared.
We also recommend students practicing time management, as many have reported struggling with time constraints, particularly on the more challenging second modules. Be sure to practice completing sections within the allotted time, knowing when to skip hard questions and come back to them if time allows.
Finally, we advise students to take their practice test scores from the Official CollegeBoard Bluebook app with a grain of salt - typically the real SAT exam is slightly more difficult than the 6 official practice tests (this is especially true for the first 4 practice tests, which are considered much easier).
For rising seniors, we highly recommend taking the October SAT if you are aiming for a higher score. You can still retake the exam in November, but remember that balancing college applications, schoolwork, and other commitments may make November more stressful than October.
For juniors, we advise only taking the October SAT if you are very confident in your abilities and have been scoring consistently high on practice exams. Be aware that official College Board practice tests are often easier than the real exam, and students can expect a score drop of around 50 points on the actual exam. It might be wiser for juniors to delay taking the SAT until the March sitting next year, giving them more time to prepare and strengthen their test-taking skills.
Both seniors and juniors should take advantage of available resources to ensure they are fully prepared. Test Ninjas provides thousands of challenging practice questions and dozens of practice tests, as well as detailed study guides for all sections of the Digital SAT.
As with previous exams, the October test date is expected to fill up quickly. If you haven’t registered yet, it’s crucial to do so soon. Many students are looking to take the exam before application deadlines, so spots at test centers will go fast.
If you’re unable to secure a spot for the October exam, remember that the College Board offers SAT dates throughout the year. The November SAT is an option for those who need more time to prepare, though it may overlap with key college application deadlines. Be sure to plan ahead and register as early as possible.