How To Choose Your SAT Subject Tests: Highlight Your Academic Strengths And Interests

SAT online

How do you choose which SAT Subject Tests to take? There is a full range of subject tests to decide upon, twenty to be exact, and they are:

  •                Biology/EM
  •                Chemistry
  •                Chinese with Listening
  •                French
  •                French with Listening
  •                German
  •                German with Listening
  •                Italian
  •                Literature
  •                Japanese with Listening
  •                Korean with Listening
  •                Math Level 1
  •                Math Level 2
  •                Modern Hebrew
  •                Physics
  •                Spanish
  •                Spanish with Listening

Start reviewing with our helpful content: Practice Tests for SAT Reading

  1. Consult your guidance counselor or teacher.

You may want to have your teacher or guidance counselor walk you through the process of choosing which tests to take.

They should be able to explain to you your options and help you decide which SAT subject test to take based on your key strengths and the requirements of the universities you want to apply to. You can also search for the requirements in Google or using your favorite SEO tools as well.

It is also often best to take the subject test when you’ve completed your high school coursework on it. So for example, you’ll have chances of scoring better on French if you’ve completed French subjects in high school.

Related Topic: Best SAT Prep Courses

  1. Know your main interests and strengths.

Consider what your strengths and interests are. It’s mainly because the SAT subject tests you will take should be based on the subjects you’re good at, which will also most likely point you to the courses you plan to take in college.  

Your chosen SAT subject tests will tell your college’s admission committee more about your capabilities. These will help support your college application.

Check our SAT Math Practice Test

  1. What your college requires.
free SAT classes

Another factor that you should take into account is if your chosen colleges require or recommend a particular SAT subject test so that you can enroll in one of their programs. But even if a college is not concerned about subject tests, submitting a score will enhance your application.

Related Topic: SAT – Suite of Assessments | Scholastic Assessment Test Overview, Registration, SAT Subjects, Test Dates, & Tips To Prepare For High SAT Scores

The following is a list of colleges and universities that consider, require or recommend subject tests:

Institutions Using SAT Subject Tests
Agnes Scott College

AIB College of Business

Al Akhawayn University

Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences

Albion College

Alfred University

Allegheny College

Alma College

American Academy of Dramatic Arts

American International College

American Jewish University

American Samoa Community College

American University

American University in Cairo

American University in Dubai

American University of Beirut

American University of Kuwait

Amherst College

Aquinas College

Arcadia University

Arizona State University

Armstrong State University

Art Institute of California: Los Angeles

Art Institute of California: San Francisco

Art Institute of Pittsburgh

Ashland University

Augustana College

Austin College

Ave Maria University

Babson College

Barclay College

Bard College

Bard College at Simon’s Rock

Barnard College

Bates College

Bennington College

Bentley University

Berklee College of Music

Bethel College

Bluffton University

Boise Bible College

Boston College

Boston University

Bowdoin College

Brandeis University

Brenau University

Briar Cliff University

Brown University

Bryant & Stratton College: Albany

Bryant University

Bryn Athyn College

Bucknell University

Buena Vista University

Burlington College

Cabrini College

Caldwell University

California Institute of Technology

California Institute of the Arts

California State University: Fullerton

California State University: Los Angeles

California University of Pennsylvania

Calumet College of St. Joseph

Calvary Bible College and Theological Seminary

Calvin College

Canisius College

Capitol Technology University

Carleton College

Carlow University

Carnegie Mellon University

Carroll University

Case Western Reserve University

Catholic University of America

Cedarville University

Central Connecticut State University

Champlain College

Chapman University

harleston Southern University

City University of New York: Baruch College

City University of New York: Queens College

City University of New York: York College

Claremont McKenna College

Clarke University

Clarkson University

Clemson University

Cogswell Polytechnical College

Colby College

Colgate University

College of Mount St. Vincent

College of St. Joseph in Vermont

College of St. Scholastica

College of the Atlantic

College of the Holy Cross

College of William and Mary

Colorado College

Columbia University: Columbia College

Columbia University: Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science

Columbia University: School of General Studies

Community College of Allegheny County

Concordia College

Concordia University

Concordia University Irvine

Connecticut College

Cooper Union

Cornell College

Cornell University

Cornerstone University

Culver-Stockton College

Cumberland University

CUNY New York College of Technology

Daemen College

Daniel Webster College

Dartmouth College

Davidson College

Dean College

Deep Springs College

Delta State University

Denison University

DePauw University

DeVry University: Federal Way

DeVry University: Fort Washington

Dickinson College

DigiPen Institute of Technology

Divine Word College

Doane College

Dominican College of Blauvelt

Dominican University

Drury University

Duke University

Duquesne University

Earlham College

Eastern Connecticut State University

Eastern Nazarene College

Eastern New Mexico University

Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester

Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne

Elms College

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Emerson College

Emmanuel College

Emory University

Eureka College

Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising

Felician College

Finlandia University

Fisk University

Fitchburg State University

Florida Institute of Technology

Florida International University

Fordham University

Franklin Pierce University

Franklin University Switzerland

Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering

Friends University

George Mason University

George Washington University

Georgetown University

Georgia Gwinnett College

Georgia Institute of Technology

Georgian Court University

Gettysburg College

Goldey-Beacom College

Gordon College

Gordon State College

Grace Bible College

Greenville College

Guilford College

Gustavus Adolphus College

Hamilton College

Hampden-Sydney College

Hampshire College

Harrisburg University of Science and Technology

Hartwick College

Harvard College

Harvey Mudd College

Hastings College

Haverford College

Hellenic College Holy Cross

Hillsdale College

Hofstra University

Holy Cross College

Holy Family University

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Hood College

Houghton College

Howard University

Huston-Tillotson University

Illinois Institute of Technology
Immaculata University

Indiana State University

Indiana University Bloomington

Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris

Inter American University of Puerto Rico Bayamon

Ithaca College

Jewish Theological of America, Albert List College

John Carroll University

Johns Hopkins University

Kansas State University

Kaplan College: Indianapolis

Keiser University Flagship Campus

Kennesaw State University

Kenyon College

Kettering University

Keuka College

Keystone College

King’s College London

Knox College

Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

La Salle University

Lafayette College

LaGrange College

Lake Erie College

Lake Superior State University

Lakeland College

Lasell College

Lawrence University

Lebanese American University

Lebanon Valley College

Lee University

Lehigh University

Lesley University

LIU Brooklyn

LIU Post

Loras College

Loyola Marymount University

Loyola University New Orleans

Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts

Macalester College

Maharishi University of Management

Maine College of Art

Mansfield University of Pennsylvania

Marian Court College
Marian University

Marlboro College

Mary Baldwin College

Marygrove College

Marywood University

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Massachusetts Maritime Academy

McDaniel College

McGill University

MCPHS University

Medaille College

Memphis College of Art

Menlo College

Mercer University

Mercy College

Mercyhurst University

Meredith College

Middlebury College

Mills College

Minnesota State University Mankato

Missouri Southern State University

MODUL University Vienna

Monmouth College

Moore College of Art and Design

Moravian College

Morgan State University

Mount Aloysius College

Mount Holyoke College

Mount Mary University

Mount Saint Mary College

Muhlenberg College

Nazareth College

New College of Florida

New England College

New England School of Communications

New York Institute of Technology

New York University

North Carolina A&T State University

North Carolina State University

North Park University

Northeast Catholic College

Northeastern Illinois University

Northeastern University

Northern Arizona University

Northwestern College

Northwestern University

Northwood University: Michigan

Notre Dame de Namur University

Oberlin College

Occidental College

Ohio Valley University

Oklahoma City University

Oregon College of Art & Craft

Oregon State University

Oxford College of Emory University

Pace University

Pacific Union College

Patrick Henry College

Patten University

Pine Manor College

Pitzer College

Point University

Pomona College

Pratt Institute

Prescott College

Princeton University

Principia College

Providence College

Quinnipiac University

Randolph College

Randolph-Macon College

Reed College

Regis College

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rice University

Richard Bland College

Richmond: The American Intl Univ in London

Ripon College

Roanoke College

Robert Morris University

Rochester Institute of Technology

Saint Anselm College

Saint Joseph’s College

Saint Michael’s College

Salisbury University

San Diego Christian College

San Francisco State University

Santa Clara University

Sarah Lawrence College

Savannah State University

School of the Museum of Fine Arts

Scripps College

Seattle Pacific University

Sewanee: The University of the South

Siena Heights University

Silicon Valley University

Simon Fraser University

Skidmore College

Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania

Smith College

Soka University of America

Sonoma State University

Southeastern Baptist College

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

Southern New Hampshire University

Southern Oregon University

Southern Vermont College

Spelman College

St. Elizabeth College of Nursing

St. Francis University

St. John’s University

St. Joseph’s College New York: Suffolk Campus

St. Lawrence University

St. Luke’s College

St. Mary-of-the-Woods College

St. Mary’s College of Maryland

St. Mary’s University of Minnesota

St. Olaf College

Stanford University

Sterling College

Stetson University

Stevens Institute of Technology

Stockton University

Stonehill College

Suffolk University

SUNY College at Geneseo

SUNY College at Old Westbury

SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

SUNY Polytechnic Institute

SUNY University at Stony Brook

Swarthmore College

Sweet Briar College

Temple University

Tennessee Wesleyan College

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi

Texas State University

Texas Woman’s University

Thiel College

Tiffin University

Trinity College

Trinity University

Tufts University

Union College

United States Coast Guard Academy

Univ Puerto Rico: Carolina Regional College

University of Advancing Technology

University of Alaska Anchorage

University of Alaska Southeast

University of Alberta

University of Arizona

University of Baltimore

University of California: Berkeley

University of California: Davis

University of California: Irvine

University of California: Los Angeles

University of California: Riverside

University of California: San Diego

University of California: Santa Barbara

University of Delaware

University of Detroit Mercy

University of Findlay

University of Florida

University of Georgia

University of Great Falls

University of Hawaii: West Oahu

University of Houston: Clear Lake

University of Houston: Victoria

University of La Verne

University of Maine at Presque Isle

University of Mary

University of Mary Washington

University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

University of Miami
University of Michigan

University of Minnesota: Crookston

University of New Hampshire at Manchester

University of North Carolina at Asheville

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Texas

University of Northwestern: St. Paul

University of Notre Dame

University of Pennsylvania

University of Portland

University of Puerto Rico: Bayamon University College

University of Puerto Rico: Aguadilla

University of Puerto Rico: Arecibo

University of Puerto Rico: Humacao

University of Puerto Rico: Mayaguez

University of Puerto Rico: Ponce

University of Puerto Rico: Rio Piedras

University of Puerto Rico: Utuado

University of Richmond

University of Rochester

University of San Diego

University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma
University of South Florida

University of Southern California
University of St. Mary

University of Tennessee: Knoxville

University of Texas

University of Texas at Arlington

University of Texas at Dallas

University of Texas at El Paso

University of the Incarnate Word

University of the Pacific

University of Toronto

University of Virginia

University of Virginia’s College at Wise

University of Washington Tacoma

University of West Georgia

University of Wisconsin: River Falls

University of Wisconsin: Whitewater

Ursinus College

Utica College

Valley Forge Military College

Vanderbilt University

VanderCook College of Music

Vassar College

Virginia Tech

Virginia Wesleyan College
Wabash College

Wagner College

Wake Forest University

Walla Walla University

Wartburg College

Washington & Jefferson College

Washington and Lee University

Washington University in St. Louis

Webb Institute

Wellesley College

Wells College

Wesleyan University

West Virginia Wesleyan College

Western Connecticut State University

Western Oregon University

Western State Colorado University

Westmont College

Westwood College: Aurora

Westwood College: Online

Westwood College: River Oaks

Wheaton College

Whitman College

William Peace University

William Penn University

Williams College

Winston-Salem State University

Wofford College

Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Xavier University of Louisiana

Yale University

Yonsei University

If you do well on a specific subject test, you might also be granted with a credit or an exemption from certain freshman course requirements by your chosen college. You can inquire from these institutions about their policies pertaining to this matter.

Finally, you can go over the list of SAT subject tests and work out if you have accomplished the coursework for the subjects of your choice. When you have decided on this, it’s time to focus on your SAT test prep. You can visit our article here on Kaplan SAT Prep Review.

Related Topics: 

 SAT practice tests