About the SAT
The SAT is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. The College Board states that the SAT is intended to measure literacy, numeracy, and writing skills that are needed for academic success in college. They state that the SAT assesses how well the test-takers analyze and solve problems—skills they learned in school that they will need in college. As of 2023, Collegeboard has been implementing the new, digital SAT, which has proven to be a new obstacle for students in the upcoming years. These are the tips, tricks, and resources I used to score in the 99th percentile of the SAT.
All About the Digital SAT
The new digital format of the SAT is beginning to confuse and baffle many students worldwide as they face new challenges such as the sudden unpredictability of a test that has been altered after having been consistent and unchanged for many years. Here is a list of the key similarities and differences we have seen in the digital SAT to help you feel more prepared for test day. ​
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FORMAT
The format of the SAT is one thing that hasn't been changed. It continues to have a reading/writing section and a math section, both of which are divided into 2 parts (modules, as they're now known).
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​TEST LENGTH
In each of the R&W sections, there are 25 operational questions and 2 pretest questions, meaning there are 50 operational questions and 4 pretest questions in total. Likewise, in each of the math sections, there are 20 operational questions and 2 pretest questions, meaning there are 40 operational questions and 4 pretest questions in total.
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​TIME PER STAGE
Both modules in the R&W section allot 32 minutes each while the math modules allot 35 minutes each. ​
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TOTAL QUESTIONS
R&W has 54 questions while math has 44 questions.
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​TOTAL TIME
R&W allots 64 minutes for its modules while math allots 70 minutes, making the total time 134 minutes (2 hours and 14 minutes).​
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STIMULUS TOPICS
The stimulus topics of the R&W section include literature, history/social studies, humanities, and science. The stimulus topics of the math section include science, social science, and real-world topics/application.​
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3 Categories of Studying
1
R&W Practice
There are various ways to study for the reading & writing portion of the SAT. One of the biggest tips I can give to generally improve reading comprehension is to just read more challenging content and tell people about what you've read. For my full list of studying resources for the R&W section, visit my page.
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Math Practice
The math portion of the SAT, in theory, should be very simple for most high school students due to the fact it covers basic content from algebra, algebra 2, and geometry. However, the wording of these questions has proven tricky for students in years past. To tackle this, check out my guides to acing the SAT math portion now!
3
Test-Taking Strategies
While studying is great, the biggest part of the SAT that trips up students isn't the advanced content, it's the style of the test. There are various important test-taking strategies you should remember for test day, including many relaxation methods, guessing techniques, and more.