Kevin Hart's life lesson after failing major test and being 'left behind'

Some lessons in life come easy, others come at great personal expense, as comedian Kevin Hart learned after making a major mistake before sitting his all-important SATs.

Hart's hard-earned life lesson has recently resurfaced on social media, with a clip going viral of the 46-year-old actor and comedian sharing a mistake he made as a teenager on the Joe Rogan Experience.

“I got a 585 on my SAT, they give you 400 for putting your name on the paper. I guessed A,B,A,C,A,D,A... I did ABACADABA all the way down” Hart told Rogan. Sadly he was not joking, though he did explain why he'd done something so... dumb.

But first of all, it should be said for anyone sitting their SAT anytime soon, do not just guess the answers at random. You are not likely to become a world-famous comedian, even if it will certainly provide good material for a future stand-up set.

Hart added: “I didn’t care because there was a class trip that same day, I wanted to go. I was told that not taking my SAT seriously would prohibit me from furthering myself in life.”

Interestingly, entering questions entirely randomly would return you a score between 600 and 700, so even by the standards of filling out the tests at random, Hart had done poorly.

Something he felt when all of his friends received their results for the hugely-important test, which essentially dictates what your next steps in life will be. With a score of 585, there weren't many good options for the later Captain Underpants star.

“When I saw all my friends get their test scores back and they were ecstatic, everybody’s going to college, I felt like the biggest idiot in the world,” Hart shared on the podcast, before reflecting on how this had stunted his life after school.

Kevin Hart shares the lesson that changed his life

“I got a 585 on my SAT, they give you 400 for putting your name on the paper. I guessed A,B,A,C,A,D,A... I did ABACADABA all the way down”

“I didn’t care because there was a class trip that same day, I wanted to go. I was told… pic.twitter.com/BCoNK58Xna

— Jack (@Jackkk) May 5, 2026

He added: “The same people I wanted to rush to go to Great Adventure with, they had taken their SAT the week before. I was the only one who didn’t prioritize so I’m the only one going to community college… I just got left behind.”

Indeed, after attending Community College of Philadelphia for one year, Hart gave up on education entirely and started taking up any work he could get, including as a shoe salesman.

But while this experience limited his ability to progress alongside his peers, it did teach him an important lesson that has taught him to lock in on every opportunity to progress.

“Lesson learned, any opportunity given should be taken serious from this point on because if not you can find yourself feeling just like this,” he shared, adding: “I learned from it… now if I gotta take a test you best believe I’m studying for that.”

This 'shoot your shot' mentality has doubtlessly been helpful in his career as a comedy superstar, which is culminating in a new Netflix show on Sunday, where the tables will finally be turned on Hart.

That's because, for once, he will be the one targeted with brutal jabs and harsh comments from other comedians as part of The Roast of Kevin Hart.