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Well, at least she was happy in the end.

I've taken it four times now, and it's pretty much bs in my opinion. My brother got a 2250 overall score, yet got a 2 on the essay. I got a 1900, yet a 4 on the essay. He's 3 years older than me and a far better writer. The SAT doesn't actually show how much you really know, and I'm glad that it only is a small portion of your overall college application.

2250?! He could get into all of the Ivy League schools with that! Yeah, the SAT test is quite BS and the makers of the test are finally realizing that. They also noticed people were favoring the ACT more as well.

Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly is the SAT test? Is there one for every subject? Or is it more of an aptitude test on top of your subjects (also what is the level of study when applying for college - AP or something?)?

The SAT test is basically something the CollegeBoard says you need to take to refine your reading, writing, and mathematical skills. Over the years, less people have been taking it because it costs money ($38 when I took it ages ago) and it doesn't allow students to show their superiority in certain subjects. The main SAT test has the aforementioned topics, but you can choose to get a specialized test in a certain subject like biology or history. Students have began taking the ACT because those are solely one subject of your choosing. The SAT test is just a hassle really. For me, the test was held at 7am on a Saturday morning in a school that was 30 miles away. You sit in a classroom and take this timed exam, get watched and you can't go back to previous sections.

So, to answer your question, yes - it is a sort of aptitude test. Colleges look at the scores and use that to determine whether you will be admitted into their institution or not.

Fun fact: I took the SAT twice and got the same score twice. It really does not show how well you perform in these subjects because the "SAT words" are freaking outrageous. I got a 1370 out of 2400, but for the state test I had to take (a whole different thing) I got a perfect score on the writing. Oddly enough, people who are good in English get better scores on the math section of the SAT. That's what happened to me.