SAT Introduction

What Is on the SAT? It will include a student-written essay and a multiple-choice writing section testing students' ability to identify sentence errors, improve sentences, and improve paragraphs. Although grammar and usage will be tested, students will not be asked to define or use grammatical terms, and spelling and capitalization will not be test. This essay section will be the first part of the test. The Math section will include arithmetic, geometry, algebra I, and some advanced math covering topics in Algebra II, statistics, probability, and data analysis. The test will will measure reasoning ability and problem-solving skills. The other parts of the test will contain some long and shorter reading passages, a long paired passage, a short paired passage, and sentence completion questions. How Will the Test Be Scored?

There will be a range of three scores each from 200-800 for the Writing, Math, and Critical Reading.

How Long Will the Test Be?
The total time of the test will be 3 hours and 45 minutes.

What Verbal Background Must I Have?
The reading and vocabulary levels is at the 10th to 12th grade level, but strategies presented in this book will help you even if you are at a lower grade level.

What Math Background Must I Have?
The Math part will test first- and second-year algebra (Algebra I and II) and geometry. However, if you use common sense, rely on just a handful of geometrical formulas, and learn the strategies and thinking skills presented in this guide, you don't need to take a full course in geometry or memorize all the theorems. If you have not taken algebra, you should still be able to answer many of the math questions using strategies presented in this guide.

Is Guessing Advisable?
Although there is a small penalty for wrong answers (¼ point for 5-choice questions), in the long run, you break even if you guess or leave the answer blank. For a full explanation of why, see 5 General Strategies, So it really will not affect your score in the long run if you guess or leave the answers out. And, if you can eliminate an incorrect choice, it is imperative that you do not leave the answer blank.

Can I Use a Calculator on the Math Portion of the Test?
Students can use a four-function, scientific, or graphic calculator. While it is possible to solve every question without the use of a calculator, it is recommended that you use a calculator if you don't immediately see a faster way to solve the problem without a calculator.

Should I Take an Administered Actual SAT for Practice?
Yes, but only if you will learn from your mistakes by seeing what strategies you should have used on your exam. Taking the SAT merely for its own sake is a waste of time and may in fact reinforce bad methods and habits. Note that the SAT is released on students on the Question and Answer Service three times a year, usually in the January, May, and October administrations. It is wise to take exams on these dates if you wish to see your mistakes and correct them.

Writing
Note: There is an experimental section that does not count toward your SAT score. This section can contain any of the SAT item types (writing [multiple-choice], critical reading, or math) and can appear in any part of the test. Do not try to outguess the test maker by trying to figure out which of the sections is experimental on the actual test (believe me, you won't be able to)--treat every section as if it counts toward your SAT score.

Can I Get Back the SAT with My Answers and the Correct Ones After I Take It? How Can I Make Use of This Service?
The SAT is disclosed (sent back to the student on request with an $18.00 payment) 3 of the 7 times it is given through the year. You can also order a copy of your answer sheet for an additional $25.00 fee. Very few people take advantage of this fact or use the disclosed SAT to see what mistakes they've made and what strategies they could have used on the questions.

Check in your SAT information bulletin or log on to www.collegeboard.com for the dates this Question and Answer Service is available.

Should I Use Scrap Paper to Write on and to Do Calculations?
Always use your test booklet (not your answer sheet) to draw on. Many of my strategies expect you to label diagrams, draw and extend lines, circle important words and sentences, etc., so feel free to write anything in your booklet. The booklets aren't graded—just the answer sheets (see 5 General Strategies)

Should I Be Familiar with the Directions to the Various Items on the SAT Before Taking the SAT?
Make sure you are completely familiar with the directions to each of the item types on the SAT—the directions for answering the Sentence Completions, the Reading, the Writing, the Regular Math, and especially the Grid-Type (see 5 General Strategies).

What Should a Student Bring to the Exam on the Test Date?
You should bring a few sharpened #2 pencils with erasers, and also your ID. Bring a calculator to the test, but be aware that every math question on the SAT can be solved without a calculator; in many questions, it's actually easier not to use one.

Acceptable calculators: Graphing calculators, scientific calculators, and four-function calculators (the last is not recommended) are all permitted during testing. If you have a calculator with characters that are one inch or high, or if your calculator has a raised display that might be visible to other test takers, you will be seated at the discretion of the test supervisor.

Unacceptable calculators: Laptops or portable/handheld computers; calculators that have a QWERTY keyboard, make noise, use an electrical outlet, or have a paper tape; electronic writing pads or stylus-driven devices; pocket organizers, and cell phone calculators will not be allowed during the test.

How Should a Student Pace Himself/Herself on the Exam? How Much Time Should One Spend on Each Question?
Calculate the time allowed for the particular section. For example, 25 minutes. Divide by the number of questions. For example, 20. That gives you an average of spending 1 ¼ minutes per question in this example. However, the first set of questions within an item type in a section is easier, so spend less than a minute on the first set of questions and perhaps more than a minute on the last set. With the reading passages you should give yourself only about 30 seconds a question and spend the extra time on the reading passages. Also, more difficult reading questions may take more time.

How Is the Exam Scored? Are Some Questions Worth More Points?
Each question is worth the same number of points. After getting a raw score—the number of questions right minus a penalty for wrong answers—this equated to a “scaled” score from 200 to 800 in each of the Critical Reading, Math, and Writing sections. A scaled score of 500 in each part is “average”.

It's 3 Days Until the SAT: What Can a Student Do to Prepare?
Make sure you are completely familiar with the structure of the test (Format of the SAT), the basic math skills needed (Mini-Math Refresher), and the basic verbal skills, such as prefixes and roots (The Gruber Prefix-Root-Suffix List That Gives You the Meanings of Over 150,000 Words). Take a few practice tests and refresh your understanding of the strategies used to answer the questions (A Four-Hour Study Program for the SAT).

What Is the Most Challenging Type of Question on the Exam and How Does One Attack It?
Many questions on the test, especially at the end of a section, can be challenging. You should always attack challenging questions by using a specific strategy or strategies and common sense.

What Should a Student Do to Prepare on Friday Night? Cram? Watch TV? Relax?
On Friday night, I would just refresh my knowledge of the structure of the test, some strategies, and refresh some basic skills (verbal or math). You want to do this to keep the thinking going so that it is continual right up to the exam. Don't overdo it, just enough so that it's something continuous—this will also relieve some anxiety, so that you won't feel you are forgetting things before the exam.

The Test Is Given in One Booklet. Can a Student Skip Between Sections?
No—you cannot skip between the sections. You have to work on the section until the time is called. If you get caught skipping sections or going back to earlier sections, then you risk being asked to leave the exam.

Should a Student Answer All Easy Questions First and Save Difficult Ones for Last?
The easy questions usually appear at the beginning of the section, the middle difficulty ones in the middle, and the hard ones toward the end. So I would answer the questions as they are presented to you, and if you find you are spending more than 30 seconds on a question and not getting anywhere, go to the next question. You may, however, find that more difficult questions toward the end are actually easy for you because you have learned the strategies in this book.

What Is the Recommended Course of Study for Those Retaking the Exam?
Try to get a copy of the exam that you took if it was a disclosed one—the disclosed ones, which you have to send a payment for, are usually given in October, January and May. Try to learn from your mistakes by seeing which strategies you could have used to get questions right. Certainly learn the specific strategies for taking your next exam.

What Are the Most Crucial Strategies for Students?
All specific Verbal (Critical Reading) and Math Strategies are crucial, including your general test-taking strategies (5 General Strategies), guessing, writing and drawing in your test booklet, and being familiar with question-type directions. The key Reading Strategy is to know the four general types of questions that are asked in reading—verbal to math, drawing of lines, etc. Also make sure you know the math basic skills cold (Mini-Math Refresher--make sure you know them).

I Know There Is an Experimental Section on the Exam That Is Not Scored. How Do I Know Which Section It Is?
The SAT people have now made it so difficult to tell which is the experimental section, I would not take a chance second-guessing them and leaving it out. It will look like any of the other sections. It is true that if you have, for example, two of the same sections, such as two sections that bot deal with grid questions, one of them is experimental—but you won't know which one it is. Also, if you have two sections where there is a long double reading passage, one of those sections is experimental, but again you won't know which one it is.

Can I Take the Test More Than Once, and If So, How will the Scores Be Reported to the Schools of My Choice? Will All Scores Be Reported to the School, and How Will They Be Used?
Check with the schools to which you are applying to see how they use the reported scores, e.g., whether they average them, whether they take the highest. Ask the schools whether they see unreported scores; if they do, find out the individual school deals with single and multiple unreported scores.

How Do Other Exams Compare with the SAT? Can I Use the Strategies and Examples in This Book for Them?
Most other exams are modeled after the SAT, and so the strategies used here are definitely useful when taking them. For example, the GRE (Graduate Records Exam, for entrance into graduate school) has questions that use the identical strategies used on the SAT. The questions are just worded at a slightly higher level. The GRE (American College Testing Program), another college entrance exam, reflects more than ever strategies that are used on the SAT.

GMAT (The Graduate Management Admission Test) is a computer adaptive standardized test in mathematics and the English language for measuring aptitude to succeed academically in graduate businessstudies. Business schools commonly use the test as one of many selection criteria for admission into an MBA Program. However, there are many business schools that also accept GRE scores.

The following are criteria of certain business schools: In comparison with GMAT's emphasis on logic, GRE measures the test-takers' ability more in vocabulary. This difference is reflected in the structure of each test. Despite the Analytical Writing section in common, GRE has analogies, antonyms, sentence completions, and reading comprehension passages in Verbal section, while GMAT has sentence correction, critical reasoning and reading comprehension.
 * Harvard Business School: Official test scores for the GMAT or GRE tests no more than 5 years old.
 * UVA-Darden: Will also accept a GRE score in place of the GMAT.
 * MIT-Sloan:The GMAT or GRE is required of all applicants and must be taken before submitting your application.
 * Penn-Wharton School: Official test scores for the GMAT or GRE tests.
 * Stanford: Finance - The GRE is preferred, although the GMAT will be accepted.
 * NYU-Stern School: The GMAT is strongly preferred, but scores from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) will also be accepted.
 * U Chicago: For Economics - the GRE is required. For Finance - the GRE is preferred; GMAT is acceptable. For all other areas - the GRE or the GMAT are accepted.
 * Ohio State-Fisher - The GMAT is required however scores from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) are eligible for review.
 * Berkeley-Haas: Without exception, all applicants to the Haas Ph.D. Program must submit official scores of either the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Examination.
 * Columbia Business School: Accepts GRE test scores in place of the GMAT, only if applicant has not taken the GMAT within the last 5 years.
 * Johns Hopkins: Accepts either GRE or GMAT scores.

Also, higher mathematical ability is required on the GMAT to get a good score. The GRE is more appealing to international MBA students and applicants from a non-traditional background.

The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) is a half-day, standardized test administered four times each year at designated testing centers throughout the world. All American Bar Association (ABA)-approved law schools, most Canadian law schools, and many other law schools require applicants to take the LSAT as part of their admission process. It provides a standard measure of acquired reading and verbal reasoning skills that law schools can use as one of several factors in assessing applicants.

In the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and some other countries, the LSAT is administered on a Saturday, except in June, when it is generally administered on a Monday. For Saturday Sabbath observers, the test is also administered on a weekday following Saturday administrations.

Many law schools require that the LSAT be taken by December for admission the following fall. However, taking the test earlier—in June or September—is often advised.

Some schools place greater weight than others on the LSAT; most law schools do evaluate your full range of credentials.

How Does the Gruber Method Differ from Other Programs and SAT Books?
Many other SAT programs try to use “quick fix” methods or subscribe to memorization. So-called “quick fix” methods can be detrimental to effective preparation because the SAT people constantly change questions to prevent “gimmick” approaches. Rote memorization methods do not enable you to answer a variety of questions that appear in the SAT exam. In more than thirty years of experience writing preparation books for the SAT, Dr. Gruber has developed and honed the Critical Thinking Skills and Strategies that are based on all standardized tests' construction. So, while his method immediately improves your performance on the SAT, it also provides you with confidence to tackle problems in all areas of study for the rest of your life. This method remarkably enables you to be able to, without panic, look at a problem or question, extract something curious or useful from the problem, and lead you to the next step and finally to a solution, without rushing into a wrong answer or getting lured into a wrong choice. It has been said that test taking through this methodology becomes enjoyable rather than a plan.