The Egyptian Ministry of Education and Technical Education has announced plans to reinstate the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), widely used for college admissions, for students in American Diploma programs after a four-year suspension.
The Minister of Education and Technical Education, Mohamed Abdel Latif, and Matthew Chovanec, the Director of the College Board International Team for South West Asia and North Africa, held a video conference meeting on 5 December to discuss the reintroduction of the SAT exams and outlined mechanisms for conducting the tests.
Abdel Latif emphasized the importance of collaboration between the ministry and the College Board to provide precise, digitally-administered international exams for American Diploma students, ensuring equal opportunities for all.
He also praised the College Board for its role in developing and administering internationally accredited exams, including the SAT and other standardized tests.
Similarly, Chovanec, on behalf of the College Board, affirmed the institution’s full readiness to support the Ministry’s efforts and implement the necessary measures to ensure the accurate administration of SAT exams.
In 2020, the College Board cited repeated leaks of test questions and suspended the SAT exams in Egypt, and students had to take the ACT college admission exam. The following year, Egypt’s Ministry of Education stopped recognizing SAT scores for university admissions in 2021.
While the SAT was discontinued, new alternatives were introduced, including the Egyptian Scholastic Test (EST), developed and administered by a UK-based organization, and the ACT test.
According to the former Education Minister, Tarek Shawky, the ACT exam assesses the same skills as the SAT but has a distinct advantage over it by being electronic which reduces the risk of exam papers being stolen or leaked.
Additionally, Shawky explained that the decision was intended to discourage students from traveling abroad to take the SAT, a practice often managed by intermediaries charging high fees.
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