WHAT IS SAT?

• Standardized test widely used for college admissions abroad.

• Developed by College Board, Educational Testing Service.

• The SAT scores are valid for five years, but recent exam scores are preferred.

• Countries which have a lot of universities accepting SAT scores:

o United States.

o Canada

o United Kingdom

o Australia

o Singapore

o Finland

o Japan

o Lebanon

o The Netherlands

o South Korea

o Turkey.

•  It is recognized by all US universities but worldwide it depends on whether that

specific university chooses to recognize that test or not.

• Administered in almost over 175 countries worldwide.

• Takes place 7 times an year in the US and 6 times a year in India.

• You can take it as many times as you want. Most US universities consider the
number of attempts. More than 4 attempts are not recommended.

• A large number of universities offer scholarships to students.

• The SAT has four sections: one Reading, one Writing, one Math (no calculator), and
one Math (with calculator). It also features an optional fifth section, a 50-minute
essay. Some colleges will want you to take the SAT with essay; others will leave the
choice up to you.
• When is SAT conducted and when ,how many times should it be taken?

➢ SAT is conducted 7 times in the US (Jan, March, May, June, Oct, Nov, Dec)
and 6 times in the year in India. (Jan, May, June, Oct, Nov, Dec).The test is
generally conducted on the first Saturday of the month (except in the
month of January, when it is usually conducted on the last Saturday) .

➢ After taking the SAT, students may cancel their score up until the
Wednesday after they have taken the exam.

➢ The best time to take the SAT is in class 11, or at the beginning of class 12,
with at least six to eight months before the board exams commence.

➢ SAT scores are valid for five years.

• WHAT IS A GOOD SAT SCORE?

➢ Students can take the test more than once to see if they can score better
but they should only do so if they are confident that they can improve. Two
to three times is the maximum recommended number of attempts.

➢ There is no definition of a 'good' SAT score. Generally speaking, scoring

close to the mean (average) - about 500 on critical reading and writing and
500 on mathematics - shows that a student has scored as well as about half
of the other students who have taken the test.
➢ Each college has its own way of using test scores and evaluating applicants.
The SAT score reports sent to colleges include score ranges and percentiles
that provide some context for how well a student has performed in the test.

➢ Scoring of SAT- https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/pdf/

understanding-sat-scores.pdf
 • SAT TEST FORMAT AND SCORING METHODOLOGY:
• A 65-minute Reading section
• One 35-minute Writing & Language section
• One 25-minute Mathematics (No Calculator) section
• A 55-minute Mathematics (Calculator) section
• A 50-minute essay (optional)
Total test time: 3 hours and 50 minutes (3 hours without essay).
There are two sections of SAT (Mathematics and Evidence-Based Reading and Writing)
which will be scored on a scale that ranges from 200-800 points giving a possible total of
1600. Sub scores and insight scores will also be reported along with an optional essay
(scored separately).
Questions that a student does not answer do not count either for or against their score.
Neither are points taken away for wrong answers on the math questions where the
answers has to be entered into a grid. The raw score for each section is then converted
into a scaled score. This is where the score of 200–800 points comes from, which is done
through a statistical process called 'equating'.

HOW TO REGISTER FOR SAT?

https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat/register/online-registration-help

IS THERE NEGATIVE MARKING?

No, there is no negative marking in the new SAT. There was a negative marking of 0.25
marks in the old SAT.
HOW MUCH DOES THE SAT COST?

The cost to take the SAT for Indian students is US$ 94.
The cost to take the SAT with Essay for Indian students is US$ 106.
In addition to the  cost of taking the SAT, other charges may apply in certain
circumstances. Further details of costs can be found on http://sat.collegeboard.org/home

WHAT IS A COMPUTER ADAPTIVE TEST?

SAT is a computer adaptive test. In a computer-adaptive test (CAT), questions are selected
according to the student's level of intelligence. It starts with a question of average
difficulty, and the correctness of the answer sets the difficulty level of the subsequent
question. This pattern continues until the student gets to the end of the section and their
ability on that subject has been measured.

HOW TO PREPARE FOR SAT?

The syllabus is mainly high school level. You must be clear on the basics taught in school.
There are a couple of recommended books for practice of the level of questions you might
face in the exam. Other resources like Khan Academy are even more useful. Khan academy
is the official partner of College Board and will have awesome content explained in video
format. Moreover, it schedules your practice time too. I surely recommend that to every
guy preparing for the SAT.

1. For understanding stuff and for instructional material:-

• Barron’s SAT Study Guide (Contains practice tests as well)
• Princeton Review’s SAT guide (Also contains practice tests)

2. For practicing the stuff learned from the above:-

 • Kaplan SAT Practice Tests
• The Official SAT Study Guide, 2018 Edition

3. For the vocabulary section:-

• Barron’s 1100
• Princeton Review’s SAT Power Vocab

Just pick up one book from each section and you will be good to go. Regarding the
vocabulary part, go with Barron’s 1100 , sometimes most of the vocab words in the
reading section are from this book only.

❖ Good reading and comprehension skills are necessary. Reading habit is important
because it helps in building concentration.

• Practice Test 1: https://bit.ly/1spgVhW

• Practice Test 2: https://bit.ly/1mBUq6h
• Practice Test 3: https://bit.ly/2fXdx9j
• Practice Test 4: https://bit.ly/2iRIQU5
• Practice Test 5: https://bit.ly/2fVhnny
• Practice Test 6: https://bit.ly/2F0lRBx
• Practice Test 7: https://bit.ly/2mYtSP7
• Practice Test 8: https://bit.ly/2iYwzy1

WHAT TO EXPECT IN SAT?

1) READING TEST
➢ All Reading Test questions are multiple choice and based on passages.
➢ When you take the Reading Test, you’ll read passages and interpret
informational graphics(ie. Graphs, bar charts, pie charts etc). Then you’ll
use what you’ve read to answer questions.

➢ Some questions ask you to locate a piece of information or an idea stated

directly. But you’ll also need to understand what the author’s words imply.
In other words, you have to read between the lines.

❖ The Reading Test always includes

➢ One passage from a classic or contemporary work of U.S. or world

literature.
 ➢ One passage or a pair of passages from either a U.S. founding document or a
text in the Great Global Conversation they inspired. The U.S. Constitution
or a speech by Nelson Mandela, for example.
➢ A selection about economics, psychology, sociology, or some other social
science.
➢ Two science passages (or one passage and one passage pair) that examine
foundational concepts and developments in Earth science, biology,
chemistry, or physics.
TYPES OF QUESTIONS IN THIS SECTION:

The reading test is aimed at measuring the following parameters:

CATEGORY 1:

1) Find evidence in a passage (or pair of passages) that best supports the
answer to a previous question or serves as the basis for a reasonable
conclusion.

2) Identify how authors use evidence to support their claims.

3) Find a relationship between an informational graphic and the passage it’s

paired with.
CATEGORY-2:
1) Use context clues in a passage to figure out which meaning of a word or
phrase is being used.
2) Decide how an author’s word choice shapes meaning, style, and tone.

CATEGORY-3:
Passages in the fields of history, social studies, and science. These questions are to check
the candidate’s reading, interpretation and comprehension skills. For instance, you might
be asked to read about an experiment then answer questions that ask you to:
Examine hypotheses.
Interpret data.
Consider implications.

❖ Answers are based only on the content stated in or implied by the passage.

2) WRITING AND LANGUAGE TEST:

➢ The SAT Writing and Language Test asks you to improve passages given in the test—
and that include deliberate errors.

➢ All questions are multiple choice and based on passages.

➢ Questions may need you to look closely at a single sentence or read the entire
piece and interpreting a graphic. For instance, you might be asked to choose a
sentence that corrects a misinterpretation of a scientific chart or that better
explains the importance of the data.

➢ The passages given may be arguments or nonfiction narratives and will be about
careers, history, social studies, the humanities, and science.

❖ TYPES OF QUESTIONS IN THIS SECTION:

1) Words in context: Improve word choice. You’ll need to choose the best
words (from a given set of options) to use based on the text surrounding
them.

2) Analysis in History/Social Studies and in Science: You’ll be asked to read

passages about topics in history, social studies, and science with a critical
eye and make editorial decisions that improve them.

3) Expression of Ideas: passage’s organization and its impact. For instance,

you will be asked which words or structural changes improve how well it
makes its point and how well its sentences and paragraphs work together. 

4) Standard English conventions: building blocks of writing: sentence

structure, usage, and punctuation. You’ll be asked to change words,
clauses, sentences, and punctuation. Some topics covered include verb
tense, parallel construction, subject-verb agreement, and comma use.  

3) MATH TEST:

➢ The Math Test focuses on three areas of math: Problem Solving and Data Analysis,
Algebra, and Advanced Math.

➢ Problem Solving and Data Analysis is includes using ratios, percentages, and
proportional reasoning. 

➢ Algebra focuses on the mastery of linear equations and systems

➢ Advanced Math focuses on more complex equations and the manipulation they
require.
➢ The SAT also includes questions on other topics, including the kinds of geometry
and trigonometry