An Overview of the SAT Structure

An Overview of the SAT Structure:

The SAT is a standardized test that is needed to apply to undergrad programs abroad. The SAT test pattern serves as both a measure of students’ college readiness and as a valid and reliable predictor of college outcomes. It is a college entrance exam having four tests, Reading, Writing & Language, Math and the Essay (which is optional but some colleges may ask for an Essay score also).

Let’s have a better understanding of the pattern of the test. The composite SAT score ranges from 400 – 1600 and is a sum of the Evidence-based Reading & Writing score (200-800) and the Math score (200-800). The total duration of the test if you choose to attempt the Essay section is 4 hours, 5 minutes (with breaks).

Why take the SAT Exam?

Although there are many exams to study abroad, taking the SAT exam has its own benefits. Below are listed the major reasons why one should appear for the SAT exam:

• A doorway to pursue undergraduate programs in American and Canadian Universities.
• SAT score not only helps you to get a scholarship but helps you explore different options for paying your college tuition fee.
• Additionally , SAT scores are taken into consideration for certain job opportunities.

SAT Structure

Note: The SAT Optional Essay of 50 minutes is no longer a part of the test now.

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Order of the Sections:

Evidence-Based Reading and Writing Section:

• The Evidence-Based SAT Reading and SAT Writing section has 96 questions to answer in 100 minutes which is divided into two tests – The Reading test and the Writing & Language test.
• The section score of Evidence-Based Reading and Writing is calculated from the reading test and the writing test scores. The EBRW section score ranges from 200 to 800.

SAT Reading Test:

• SAT reading is the first and longest test in the SAT – 52 questions in 65 minutes.
• There will be 5 passages and each passage will be followed by a series of multiple-choice questions.
• A few passages may have a graph or a chart related to the content in the passage.
• The passages will be from previously published works in the area of world literature, history/social studies, and Science.
• The main goal of the reading test is to measure a student’s ability to understand words in context and find and analyze evidence.

SAT Evidence Based Reading Section Exam Pattern

SAT Writing and Language Test:

• SAT Writing and Language Test is the second test in the SAT – 44 questions in 35 minutes.
• This test has 4 passages and each passage will be followed by 11 multiple-choice questions.
• Graphs and charts are incorporated in the writing section too with at least two passages having a pictorial representation of the textual content.
• The questions are formulated in a way that they test the grammar, usage, rhetoric, and style of the English language.

The passages range from arguments to nonfiction narratives and will be about careers, history, social studies, the humanities, and science. Some passages and/or questions deal with informational graphics that represent data. 

SAT Math Section:

• SAT Math section has 58 questions to be answered in 80 minutes which is divided into two parts – Math No-Calculator and Math Yes-Calculator.
• Math section score is calculated from these two tests and the score ranges from 200 to 800.
• While most of the questions in the math section are multiple-choice questions, there is also a handful of Grid In questions where students need to enter their own answers.
• The four main areas tested in the math section are Heart of algebra, Problem Solving, and Data Analysis, Passport to Advanced Math and Additional Topics in Math.
• Additional math topics included Geometry, Trigonometry, and Complex Numbers.

Math No-Calculator Section:

• The test-taker is not allowed to use a calculator in this 25-minute long section which has 20 questions.
• Out of these 20 questions, 15 are multiple-choice questions and 5 are Grid In questions.
• This section has questions from all the four main areas except problem-solving and data analysis.

Math with Calculator Section:

• The test-taker is allowed to use a calculator to answer the 38 questions in this 55 minute section.
• Of the 38 questions, 30 questions are multiple-choice and the remaining 8 are Grid-in questions.
• The student has to bring a calculator; scientific calculators and some graphing calculators are allowed for this section; a calculator in the mobile is not allowed.
• Though a calculator is allowed, not all the questions in this section need a calculator.

SAT Math Section Exam Pattern  

SAT Math Content

The College Board has recently announced that the SAT will go digital beginning in 2024. The test will be 2 hours as opposed to 3 hours for the current SAT. Given the increased ease of taking the test, we are likely to see a dramatic increase in the number of test takers for the Digital SAT in 2024.The major changes to the test content declared so far include the following:

• Shorter reading passages with one question per passage
• Passages from a broader range of college-level texts
• Calculators for the entire Math section.

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How Test Scores Are Calculated

Your test score is a figure between 10 and 40. Like the section scores, it’s calculated by converting the raw score (number of questions answered correctly) to a scaled score from 10 to 40. Again, scoring accounts for slight differences in difficulty between different versions of the test. Multiply the test scores for Reading and for Writing and Language by 10 to get the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section score and then add them together. Multiply the Math Test score by 20 to get the Math section score.