Go to collegeboard.org and sign in to your account. Navigate to 'My SAT' from your dashboard to access all score-sending options.
Click 'Send Score Reports' and search for each recipient institution by name or its 4-digit College Board code. Add up to as many schools as needed in one order.
If using Score Choice, select the specific test date(s) you want each school to receive. You can send scores from one date or multiple — College Board never requires you to send all scores.
Each score report costs $13 per college. If you have unused free score sends (available within 9 days of your test), apply them at checkout to waive the fee for eligible recipients.
Review your order summary carefully, then submit. Save your order confirmation number — you'll need it to track delivery status or resolve any issues with College Board support.
Electronic score reports reach colleges within 1–5 business days. Log back into 'My SAT' to check delivery status, and contact College Board if a report isn't confirmed after 7 days.
Most students assume that once they commit to a college, their SAT scores are no longer relevant. That assumption costs real money. Sending SAT scores after enrollment is a distinct process with its own deadlines, recipients, and consequences — and missing any of these requirements can result in lost scholarship funds, delayed registration, or placement into remedial coursework you don't need.
Receiving an admission offer and receiving a merit scholarship are two separate administrative events. Many universities — including large public flagships and private colleges — issue conditional merit awards that require official SAT score verification after you enroll. The letter you received at 17 said "you've been awarded $6,000 per year," but the fine print often requires that scores on file by a specified date, typically mid-summer or the first week of fall semester.
SAT scores for scholarships must arrive as official reports sent directly from the College Board — a screenshot from your student portal or a photocopy of your score report will not satisfy the requirement. Schools running scholarship audits at the end of freshman year have revoked awards from students who never completed official verification. The cost to send one official score report is currently $13 per recipient. That's a minor expense compared to losing a $4,000–$10,000 annual award.
Specific situations where post-enrollment score sending is required:
Honors colleges within universities often operate as semi-autonomous programs with their own admissions criteria. Even if you were admitted to the general university and your scores are on file with the admissions office, the honors college may require a separate official score report sent directly to its office — sometimes a different department code than the main admissions office uses.
A common cutoff pattern: a flagship university might admit students with a 1200 SAT, while its honors college requires a 1350+ for full membership. If you applied before receiving your latest scores and those scores now meet the honors threshold, you can petition for honors admission by sending SAT scores after acceptance specifically to the honors college coordinator. Check whether honors programs accept late petitions — many do, typically through the end of the first semester.
If you're still working toward your target score, a free SAT practice test is the most efficient way to benchmark where you stand before deciding whether a retest is worth the time investment for honors eligibility.
SAT scores after enrollment serve a completely different function in the context of course placement. Most universities use a combination of SAT/ACT scores and their own placement assessments to determine whether incoming students can skip introductory math or English composition. If your scores qualify you for an exemption, the scores typically must be sent to the Registrar's Office or the Academic Advising Center — not the Admissions Office that already has your scores.
Common placement thresholds (these vary by institution — verify with your specific college):
| Course Level | Typical SAT Math Section Score | Typical SAT Reading/Writing Score |
|---|---|---|
| Calculus I direct placement | 680–720+ | N/A |
| Skip remedial math | 530–560+ | N/A |
| Skip English composition prerequisite | N/A | 600–650+ |
| Honors English placement | N/A | 680–700+ |
When you log into College Board to send scores, select the correct institutional department code. Many universities assign separate College Board codes to the Registrar, Graduate Admissions, and individual colleges within the university. Sending to the wrong code means the placement office never receives your scores, even though the university technically has them on file elsewhere.
International students on F-1 visas or receiving sponsorship funding face additional score-reporting requirements that domestic students never encounter. Several specific scenarios apply:
International students should contact both the international student services office and their sponsoring agency to confirm exactly which department codes, score versions (total vs. section), and delivery timelines are required. Processing times to international destinations via College Board's electronic delivery system are generally similar to domestic delivery — 1–5 business days — but paper reports sent abroad can take 2–4 weeks and should be ordered well in advance.
The $13 per-send fee is a rounding error compared to the value of a retained merit scholarship or the time cost of sitting through a placement course you were qualified to skip. Treat post-enrollment score sending as a checklist item — not an afterthought.
SAT scores are typically released approximately 2–3 weeks after your test date. For the digital SAT in 2026, College Board has accelerated score releases, with results often available within 2 weeks. Students can check scores by logging into their College Board account at collegeboard.org on the scheduled release date.
SAT score release dates for 2026 are published in advance on the College Board website and generally fall 2–3 weeks after each exam. Digital SAT results tend to come out faster than paper-based tests historically did. You'll receive an email notification from College Board when your scores are ready to view.
SAT scores are typically posted early in the morning Eastern Time on the official release date, usually between 6:00 AM and 8:00 AM ET. Release times are not guaranteed to the minute, and College Board advises checking your account throughout the morning if scores are not immediately visible. Setting up email notifications in your College Board account ensures you're alerted as soon as scores are available.
The SAT is scored on a scale of 400–1600, combining Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (200–800) and Math (200–800). A score of 1200 is considered above average, while 1400 or higher is considered excellent and competitive for selective universities. For Ivy League and top-tier schools, admitted students typically score 1500 or above. If you're aiming for a high SAT score, focused practice on the SAT Math section is especially impactful since it carries equal weight.