Information on taking the SAT exam in Ottawa and the path for finding a tutor or self-studying in Ottawa.

Ottawa
Ontario

TPS - Understanding the SAT Exam

The purpose of this page is you help you get to know as much as you can about the SAT test and help you to find a tutor, study help and practice. SAT is loaded with information but often we get information burnout and just need the information that counts. I will provide a start but will give you a number of links to give you as much knowledge as you can. Use this as a guide to understand the test and the process for taking and studying it.

To register for the test go through the official site under registration - not with the school that implements it. If you call them they will direct you to contact SAT online anyways. If you need a tutor, please look at slide show to your right for the area that you need a tutor. There are limited times per year to take the SAT test so plan ahead.

What is SAT?

There are two types 1) The SAT test and 2) The SAT Subjects Test

The SAT test is primarily a US college admissions test – you can’t escape it for admissions.

SAT Subjects tests are tests in specific subjects taken either as a requirement or an option to improve your standing. Whether or not a college requires the Subjects Tests depends on the college and the program but taking it can also increase your chances.

The important first step is determining what career you intend because ultimately its this that determines the program you want to study and then the school. In general the steps should be 1) the career 2) program 3) university/College 4) type of SAT. Too often students choose the school first without thinking carefully about whether this is really the best one for their career intention.

Please go to the official SAT Collegeboard site to find out which test and why or why not you should take the SAT Subjects test . Of course, SAT recommends the SAT Subjects test for all kinds of reasons, but I think we all know that we probably should only take it if we really think it will help our chance of admission.

What are the New SAT's Parts and Scores?

If you have never experienced the old SAT test prior to March 2016 then you are lucky - you do not need to refer to the old one. However if you have studied the SAT in 2015 or earlier, do take a look and compare the old one with the new. Some good sources that feature the new SAT are the College Board, Ivy Global and Princeton Review.

One major change is that SAT is now offering a much bigger range of free practice tests in 3 forms: Free comprehensive test practice through Khan Academy®, with over 4,000 questions and video lessons, free, downloadable practice tests, and a Mobile app that instantly scores paper tests. THis is becasue the Collegeboard has now linked up with the famous Khan Academy so the best way to access all of this is by going into Khan Academy linked to the SAT Collegeboard.

New Test 2016-2018

    Time allotted Number of Question

Critical Reading: Passage Based Reading   65 minutes 52 questions


[In summary the new test gives more time (15 minutes more) but has more questions (4 more questions), and has no sentence completion questions]

Mathematics 80 minutes
Calculator MCQ 30
Calculator Grid 8
   No Calculator MCQ 15
No Calculator Grid    5
Total 58 questions

[In summary the new test gives more time (10 more minutes) but has more questions (4 more questions) and now has a No Calculator section]

Writing and Language:   Improving & Editing Passages 35 minutes 44 questions

[In summary the new test gives the same time but fewer questions (5 fewer questions) and now only has an Improving and Editing Passages section]

Essay Writing 50 minutes
(optional for New SAT)

Total without essay    180 minutes 154 questions
Total with Essay 230 minutes

What else is new about the New SAT (Since March 2016)

There are a number of changes to the SAT but they do not take effect until March 2016. The changes are:

New Essay that is Optional. There is now a new type of essay. It is optional and students will even have double the amount of time to write their essay (50 minutes).You will have a source to write from and you can potentially add from 2- 8 points.
Fewer Answer Choices. Instead of 5 answer choices, the new format will have four answer choices.
More Time There will be more time per section on the new version
No Penalty for Guessing. Currently students are penalized for guessing wrong answers but after March 2016 the new system doesn't penalize students so make sure you answer every single question.in
More Math Questions but More Time. Previously there were 54 questions. This will be extended to 58 questions but you will now have 80 minutes instead of 70 minutes.
No-Calculator Section. There will now be 2 sections in math - one is a section you can use the calculator (55 minutes) and the other is a section you cannot (25 minutes).
The Reading Section is Shorter. The current reading section had 3 sections and 67 questions for 70 minutes. The new exam will be only one section for 65 minutes and 52 questions.
No More "Sentence Completion" in the Reading Section. Instead of a reading section all questions now are based on the passages meaning that there are more passage based readings.
No More "Identifying Sentence Errors" Section. This has been taken out in favour of more improving passage questions.

For more information refer to the Khan Academy video on new SAT exam

How is SAT Scored?

Scores on each part are from 200 – 800 and subscores from 20 – 80 and in total this is means possible scores on the SAT range from 600 to 2400, if you put together test results from three 800-point sections: Mathematics, Critical Reading, and Writing. One section is an equating section which does not count for your score (section 4). 500 on the 800 scale or 1500 on a 2400 scale is considered about an average so you can compare your score relative to others. SAT Wikipedia has the exact average for each section. Only about 10% can get over 650 or just over 1900, so consider that an excellent score. For fuller details on the scoring system visit the SAT official page or an easier to scroll one at wikipedia. Perhaps the easiest explanation is given in majortests.com

New SAT (25th to 75th Percentile

1470-1600
1480-1600
1480-1600
1460-1580
1450-1580
1500-1590
1470-1580
1440-1590
1440-1570
1530-1600

Is SAT for Me?

The important thing to remember is that you are sure that you want to study in the US and that you are aware of the requirements of the College or University. Check out the SAT’s official page on College requirements and also check out the powerscore.com site website which lists colleges that do not require SAT. Some Colleges and Universities do want SAT Subjects so please research carefully. Also, if you are strong at sciences, see if you can take ACT instead, a cheaper alternative for many (check out an interesting comparison at ibtimes to research further).

Find an SAT Course

Look through the SAT Course in the Tutor Courses Page. This gives a general idea of what is involved, but of course all tutorial programs are highly tailor-made so feel free to express your specific requirements and issues to the tutor. The initial appointment with the tutor and follow-up is crucial for making sure that the tutor can work with you to develop the best program. Be open with the tutor about your strengths and weaknesses. If you are not sure, do a practice test in a SAT textbook from the library or one online and see which areas give you your lowest score. Just type in SAT guidebook at any of the libraries and try to pick them up there. Many Metro Vancouver residents do not realize that you can take out books in areas outside of your resident areas, just by getting a card for that area. It may seem crazy to travel a long way just for a library book until you realize that many SAT guidebooks can cost close to $100 to buy when you add up the cost of CDs.

Find an SAT Tutor

The needs of those who intend to take the SAT vary so considerably that it is advisable to take SAT in a tutorial rather than in a class. One advantage of a TPS tutor is that they are committed to seeing you as a partner in the course program and material topics, strategies and skill development follows your needs not the agenda opf a teacher or textbook. We have tutors in Ottawa, Nepean West Carleton, Kanata, CHull, Plateau, Gatineau, ALymer, SRockliffe, Vanier, Gloucester and even Cumberland. Make sure that you also look at the times available page, the student and tutor obligations page as well as the pricing and policy page.

SAT Tips and Practice

There are many ways to self-study SAT at no cost. Since the test and any tutorial can be costly it is best to have a careful plan for collecting free resources. It is also a good idea to do a few practice tests as this can be a good starting discussion point with your tutor. We provide our own tips as well as useful links to in our SAT Tips page. For free practice, we provide pages on the reading and writing. sections. There you will find a wealth of resources and free exams from the more reputable sources.