SAT Overview

SAT - Everything You Need to Know

The SAT is a standardized, multiple-choice, paper-based test used by most U.S. colleges and universities for admissions. SAT scores can also be used to determine scholarship eligibility. The SAT® measures the mathematical, reading, and writing skills of students applying for undergraduate degrees in India and abroad. The test has 4 sections – Reading, Writing & Language, Math–No calculator, and Math-Calculator. The test intends to aid universities in assessing applicants' potential for higher education. That is why more than 4000 colleges in the US, India, and 84 other countries accept SAT scores for admission to their programs. The examination is entirely paper-based and scored on a scale of 400 to 1600. Digital SAT will be launched soon in January 2023. The SAT® score alone does not guarantee a student's admission, but it is one of the many factors taken into consideration during the holistic review of an applicant's profile

The test is administered by the College Board (www.collegeboard.com), an independent body based in the US, and is conducted 5 times a year in India. The test is administered in India every August, October, December, March, and May. To know the exact testing dates, please visit www.collegeboard.com

What is the scoring scale for the SAT?

1. The Mathematics section is scored on a scale of 200-800
2. The Critical Reading section is scored on a scale of 200-800
3. The entire SAT® test score ranges from 400-1600

The Reading Test

The Reading Test presents five reading passages followed by multiple-choice questions about each passage.

The five passages on the Reading Test include four standalone passages and one pair of passages that you read together. The standalone passages and the paired set are each 500–750 words. The passages are drawn from the following types of documents: 

• 1 literary passage from a work of fiction. 
• 1 or 2 passages from a U.S. founding document or a text in the Great Global Conversation they inspired. An example of a founding document would be the U.S. Constitution. The Great Global Conversation refers to works from around the world that focus on topics such as freedom, justice, or human dignity. A speech by Nelson Mandela would be an example.  
• 1 passage from a work of economics, psychology, sociology, or some other social science. 
• 2 passages from scientific works that examine foundational concepts and developments in Earth science, biology, chemistry, or physics. 

Writing & Language Test

The Writing and Language test is a multiple-choice test in which you read passages and find and fix mistakes and weaknesses. 

This part of the SAT is 35 minutes long, includes 4 passages, and contains 44 multiple-choice questions.  

The 4 passages on the test are each 400–450 words. The complexity of the passages varies: some are more challenging and others more straightforward.

The passages are about a variety of topics, including careers, science, the humanities, and history and social studies.

The purpose and format of each passage varies:

• At least 1 is a narrative, meaning it describes events in a storylike way. This passage is not a work of fiction, but it could be a nonfiction account of an historical event, or it might describe the sequence of events in a scientific experiment.
• The other passages are either argumentative, meaning they try to convince or persuade the reader of something, or else informative and explanatory.

Some of the passages contain charts, graphs, or infographics that you interpret together with the written part of the passage.

Math

The Math Test is divided into two parts: a no-calculator portion and a calculator portion. In both portions, most of the test is multiple-choice, but some of the questions at the end ask you to write the answer (these are called “grid-ins”). Everyday formulas are provided for you to use.