SAT is a standardized test for International college (any Bachelors degree program) admissions. The SAT is administered by College Board and is developed, published, and scored by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). Nearly every college in USA and few more countries like Australia, New Zealand accept the SAT or SAT Subject Test as a part of its admissions process. That’s why more than two million students take the SAT every year.
Meaning Of SAT
Originally, SAT was an abbreviation for the Scholastic Aptitude Test. In 1993, the test was renamed the SAT I: Reasoning Test. At the same time, the former Achievement Tests were renamed the SAT II: Subject Tests. In 2004, the numerals “I” and “II” were dropped and the tests are now named the SAT Reasoning Test (or just SAT) and SAT Subject Tests. SAT is a simple and recognizable way of referring to the SAT Reasoning Test.
The SAT Reasoning Test is a measure of the critical thinking skills you’ll need for academic success in college. The SAT assesses how well you analyze and solve problems—skills you learned in school that you’ll need in college. The SAT is typically taken by high school juniors and seniors. Each section of the SAT is scored on a scale of 200—800, with two writing sub-scores for multiple-choice and the essay. It is administered seven times a year in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and U.S. Territories, and six times a year overseas. Total test time is 3 hours and 45 minutes.
You may have to take the test because it is an admission requirement of the college that you are interested in attending. Many colleges require the SAT I for admission because it is a standard way of measuring a student’s ability to do college-level work. Since courses and grading standards vary widely from school to school, scores on standardized tests, like the SAT I, help colleges compare your academic achievements with those of students from different schools. Colleges look at other things when making admission decisions — like your high school record, essays, recommendations, interviews, and extracurricular activities. Your SAT I test score is just one of the many tools that help colleges make admission decisions.
The Un-scored Section – In addition, there is one 25-minute un-scored section, known as the variable or equating section. This un-scored section may be either a critical reading, mathematics, or writing multiple-choice section. This un-scored section does not count toward the final score, but is used to try out new questions for future editions of the SAT and to ensure that scores on new editions of the SAT are comparable to scores on earlier editions of the test.
It is of one-hour duration, primarily multiple-choice test on specific subject. The Subject Tests measure knowledge or skills in a particular subject and your ability to apply that knowledge. Many colleges require or recommend one or more of the Subject Tests for admission or placement. Subject Tests measure knowledge or skills in a particular subject and your ability to apply that knowledge. Check with your prospective college(s) for specific testing requirements.
The 22 Subject Tests included in SAT- Subject Test are as follow:
- Writing
- German
- Literature
- German with Listening
- U. S. History
- Spanish
- World History
- Spanish with Listening
- Biology E/M
- Modern Hebrew
- Chemistry
- Italian
- Physics
- Latin
- Math Level IC
- Japanese with Listening
- Math Level IIC
- Korean with Listening
- French
- Chinese with Listening
- French with Listening
- English Language Proficiency Test
This is the most crucial step towards ensuring admission into a good university. The reason being no matter how well a student has prepared or how good he has been during his practice, what matters most is how you perform at the actual test.
As it is rightly said “You need to be the person of the moment”
SAT Reasoning Test- SAT scores are reported on a scale from 200 to 800, with additional sub-scores reported for the essay (ranging from 2-12) and for multiple-choice writing questions (on a 20-to-80 scale). Your scores tell college admission staff how you did compared with other students who took the test. For example, if you scored close to the mean or average-about 500 on SAT critical reading and 500 on SAT math-admission staff would know that you scored as well as about half of the students who took the test.
At the time of registering for the SAT you have the choice of requesting your test scores to be sent to any 4 colleges of your choice free of charge. To enter the institution codes check the SAT bulletin.
Tip – You must select your 4 colleges at the time of registering for the SAT. You may inform about the 4 colleges before taking the SAT too. If you don’t avail of this facility of sending your scores to 4 colleges, you will have to incur a cost of $9.50 X 4 = $38 i.e. Rs.1517/-
Every additional score report to be sent costs $9.50 (Rs.376.96). Additional score reports can be sent either by using the online score sending service at www.collegeboard.com or by mailing the Additional Report Request Form which you would receive with the admission ticket in the admission packet.
The SAT score reports are mailed about 3 weeks after the test date.