SAT Category

Congratulations, you’ve taken your first step or about to take your first step towards your SAT’s. You’ve registered for the exam and as the days to the date of your SAT’s draws near, you become more and more nervous. The best way to deal with it is to make a detailed schedule to study for your SAT’s and stick to it. Follow it every day and soon you will see quite a difference in your approach, confidence and practice scores.

Are you taking SAT for the first time? Then, there is quite a bit for you to keep in mind.

• Studying for your SAT’s is best done in the morning. While some students are not morning people, most students will better utilize their energy and time by studying in the morning hours, especially early morning hours when your mind is fresh and active.
• Find good sources of books or online material for guidance. Take as many practice tests as possible and try and understand the complete structure of all the three major sections of the SAT test, its scoring, timings, and the topics covered in each section.
• Assess yourself on your strength and weakness on the subjects and take guidance from any experienced instructors or friend who can guide you in your preparation
• Set aside few hours everyday that is completely dedicated to your SAT preparation.
• At the end of each day, go through all the things you worked on. Make a note of anything that you are not happy with so that you can revisit them the next day.
• Practice! Practice! Practice! For, practice alone can make you perfect.
• Take the sample SAT test paper once you think you are done with your preparation. Consider each and every practice test as your actual SAT test. Approach them with all seriousness and do not forget to time yourself. These practice test will slowly build your confidence level and speed up your thought process in the actual exam.
• You should be done studying for your SAT a week before the actual test date. Try to relax in the last few days before your test. Reduce any revision time to less than a couple of hours each day. Give yourself a break and let your mind rest after all the days of intense studying and pressure. Do not worry about forgetting what you’ve learned. The rest will help you remember even better during the actual exam.
• Eat and sleep well so that you can be physically and mentally fit to write the exam without any worries or tensions.
  It is better to visit and know the location of the exam center once prior to the exam to avoid being lost or delayed on the exam day.
• The night before the exam, it is strongly recommended to get a minimum of 10 hours of sleep. Parties and sleepovers are a strict no no.
• The most important thing to remember before and during the SAT exam, is “DO NOT PANIC”.
• On the big day, wake up, cheer yourself up, be relaxed, after all you’ve been studying for this day for months now. Start early and make sure to reach the test center at least 30 minutes early.
• Remember to check the list of things to be taken to the test.
• Before starting the exam, go through the instructions carefully. Read the questions properly and answer all the easy ones first. Narrow down the options for the doubtful questions before answering them. Try not to waste too much time on one question.

Are you taking the SAT for the second or third time?

You are already aware of the various sections and procedures. So your main concentration this time around must be to identify why you did not meet your expectations the in your previous attempt. Look back at your previous scores and identify the problem areas. Start working more on these areas and work on improving them. You might even consider going to a professional to help coach you in those problem areas.

In any case, whether you are taking the SAT’s the first time or the nth time, practice is key and repeated practice is what is going to ultimately help you ace the test. As the date of your SAT’s approach, spend more time taking practice SAT tests online or on paper and work on any weak sections till you are satisfied. Good luck !!

About SAT

SAT stands for Scholastic Aptitude Test. Colleges and Universities in the United States demand either the clearance of SAT or ACT exam for admission. The College Board, which is a non-profit organization of the United States, organizes the SAT Reasoning Tests that evaluate the analyzing skills, writing skills, math, and critical reading skills of the students to ensure that he or she is ready for college.

It is better for a junior student to take the SAT exam in the spring to provide himself with ample time before the college admissions get into full swing> This way if it becomes necessary to retake the exam in case of a lower score, you have the option of taking the exam one more time before admission season gets underway. The SAT exam by the way is held seven times in a year.

Why SAT?

The SAT has its added advantages. By scoring high in the SAT’s, a student can get through the admission process in spite of low GPA. Majority of the Universities and Colleges accept students who have cleared SAT. Since the SAT scores take a place in the resume of the student, it makes up a significant part of the student profile. The SAT’s by and large has become the actual test of aptitude for the students irrespective of their academic scores. Tests such as the SAT’s test a student on their reading, writing and basic math skills and can effectively project the ability of a student, which is why many colleges and universities base a large percentage of their admission criteria on these tests. A good score on the SAT can pretty much ensure that the student eligible to enter into a reputed college.

SAT Exam Sections

The duration of the test is 3 hours and 45 minutes with 3 major sections and the last 20 minutes is devoted for the experimental sections the score of which is not counted and is the most difficult and confusing part of the test.

1. The reading section is one of the major sections that takes 70 minutes of the total time. This reading section, in itself is comprised of different sections like sentence completion and reading comprehension. This is to assess the critical reading of the student.
2. Next comes the writing section, which takes about 60 minutes of the total time and has several questions on grammar and essay writing.
3. The third major section is the Math section, which takes 70 minutes with questions of multiple-choice and Grid-ins. Topics like absolute value, functional notation, exponents and manipulations are all covered in this section.
4. The extra section is the Experimental section, which could be in reading, writing, or Mathematics.

SAT Subject Test or SAT II

These tests are conducted to assess the student’s knowledge in selected subjects like Math, History, Science, and English. This enables the student to choose a specific course and the colleges to choose their students for the various courses on various subjects offered by them.

SAT Eligibility

All the high school juniors and seniors are eligible for SAT. A good academic score is not necessary for the SAT exam though it could be an added advantage to get into a reputed college. International students are eligible too if they have completed 12 years of education.

Preparing for SAT

There are several books that available to buy or in the libraries that a student can access. Reading books alone is not sufficient, you have to put that knowledge into use by taking several mock tests. Mock tests not only can highlight the areas that you need ot target for improvement but also help you gain confidence and help you work on your test times as well.

The College Board web site also provides free practice papers and questions on a daily basis. Other websites also have sample question papers to help students prepare for the SAT.

SAT Scores and Results

You can view your SAT scores in 3 weeks after completion of the SAT exam. However, your SAT results by mail can take as much as  6 weeks.

When it comes to scores, scores for all the three sections of reading, writing, and math are given separately, the score of each section ranges from minimum of 200 to a maximum of 800, which makes the total of all the three sections range from 600-2400. The average score for each section is 500, which makes the average of all the three section to 1500.

Students, who have taken the test more than once may produce their best of their scores to the colleges they apply to.

Added to the score is the percentile ranking. The percentile ranking tells the student his or her place in comparison with the other students.

SAT Registration Process

Registration for your SAT’s is the first step to be taken for college admissions. The fastest and easiest way of all is to register online through the web site of the College Board. The choices of the test center and date can be made through this web site, which confirms the registration on completion of the process.

The counselor’s office in each school can provide student with a free copy of the Registration Bulletin of the College Board if asked for, and the registration form in that can be filled out and sent by the student.

Registration through phone is also possible if the student has already registered earlier for a previous SAT test.

If you miss registration, all you have to do is, call the ETS (Educational Testing Service) in advance, and try for the walk-in registration option at the test centers. If you are lucky enough to find an opening in the test center, you may write the exam.