About the SAT

Designed and administered by the College Board, the SAT Reasoning Test is a standardized exam which evaluates your critical reasoning and problem-solving skills.

Colleges and universities across the United States use SAT scores as a standard measure for comparing students from different educational backgrounds and as an indicator of how successful students will be in college. The SAT is the nation's most widely used admissions test among colleges and universities.

• The SAT is comprised of three main sections: Critical Reading, Mathematics, and Writing. There is also a 25-minute experimental section that does not count towards your final test grade; it may be a critical reading, mathematics, or writing multiple-choice section. It is used by the Educational Testing Services (ETS) for research purposes alone.
  
  
• The exam is scored by section, each on a 200 to 800 point scale, for a cumulative score of up to 2400. The written response, or essay, is scored on a 2 to 12 scale. This is factored into the overall Writing score.
  
  
• The total testing time for the SAT is 3 hours and 45 minutes—not including breaks, check-in time, and pre- and post-exam administrative activities.

For additional information about the SAT, or to register for the exam, visit the College Board Web site. 

The Format of the SAT

Critical Reading

The critical reading section, formerly known as the “verbal section,” incorporates two types of questions: sentence completions and passage-based reading questions.

• Sentence completion questions test a student’s vocabulary, grammar, and understanding of how sentences fit logically together.

• Passage-based reading questions measure a student's ability to think critically about the elements, ideas, and points of view found in both short and long passages. The passages are taken from a variety of fields, including the humanities, natural sciences, and literary fiction. They also vary in style—some are narrative, while others may include two passages which the student must compare and contrast. Passage-based questions may include vocabulary in-context questions, literal comprehension questions, or extended reasoning questions.

Mathematics

The mathematics section of the SAT tests basic algebra and geometry topics which most students learn in their freshman and sophomore years of high school.

This section contains two types of questions:

• Multiple-choice
• Student-response, or grid-in

Student-response questions appear without answer choices. These problems can be solved in a variety of ways. Sometimes, when there is a range of possible correct answers, the student’s response must lay within a predetermined range of possible answers.

Writing

The writing section is comprised of one essay and three types of multiple-choice questions. For the essay, students are asked to present and support a point of view on a specific topic/issue. While the essay is not expected to be perfect—it is meant to be a polished first draft—it is the student’s only chance to demonstrate his/her writing aptitude.

The three types of multiple-choice questions are:

• improving sentences,
• identifying sentence errors, and
• improving paragraphs.

All SAT writing questions measure the student’s ability to:

• communicate and express ideas clearly and effectively,
• improve a piece of writing,
• identify grammatical errors, and
• recognize and understand grammatical elements and structure.
  
  

Our Approach to SAT Tutoring

For many students and parents, the SAT is a daunting task, whose impact on college admissions often intimidates students and parents alike. At Med School Tutors we understand the anxiety you are experiencing; we went through it ourselves. Fortunately, the SAT is teachable and, with proper preparation, it offers students the unique opportunity to make a powerful impression on admissions committees.

Our SAT preparation program typically includes:

• An In-Person Consultation – this allows us to familiarize ourselves with you, your strengths and weakness, your learning habits, and your short- and long-term goals.
  
  
• A real SAT diagnostic test – having thoroughly reviewed the test results, you and your educational consultant will discuss personal areas of difficulty and reasonable goals, working together to develop a comprehensive strategy to dramatically improve your scores.
  
  
• Access to our exhaustive collection of SAT materials which provide comprehensive notes and problem sets covering all relevant SAT subject matter and strategies.
  
  
• A comprehensive review of all subject matter tested on the SAT including math topics, grammar rules, and critical reading skills.
  
  
• Disciplined instruction in test-taking strategies and techniques necessary for conquering SAT questions from all sections of the test.
  
  
• Weekly vocabulary assignments and quizzes.
  
  
• Practice, practice, practice – we provide a virtually limitless supply of real practice SATs for students to hone their testing skills and strategies.
  
  
• In-depth review of each practice test – this allows us to constantly re-evaluate your test-taking skills and thereby continually adapt our tutoring strategy to your progress.

The SAT is an aptitude test, and, thus, our approach emphasizes critical thinking, problem-solving, and test-taking strategies for each section of the test. Students will learn how to quickly narrow down multiple-choice questions by eliminating the wrong answers; efficiently read critical reading passages; confidently approach the broad spectrum of math problems; and construct a lucid, direct, and distinguishable essay. 

Through a combination of frequent sessions, homework assignments, and regular practice tests, students will continuously review the material and refine their test-taking skills, while simultaneously bolstering their test-taking endurance and confidence, so they may excel on test day.

Our SAT Tutors

Med School Tutors instructors are experts at the SAT and have scored exceptionally high on their own SATs, a key factor in their acceptances to schools such as Yale, Princeton, Georgetown, and Columbia, among others.

Our SAT tutors have spent time reviewing, reevaluating, and, most importantly, teaching all of the material and strategies needed to master the SAT, and they are especially capable of explaining the SAT’s unique style of questioning.

Finally, our tutors are adept communicators, explaining the test in ways that will make sense to you. Your instructor is carefully selected to match your particular needs and temperament, ensuring that your tutor is able to inspire and motivate you with methods and explanations that “click.”

At Med School Tutors, our goal is to achieve superior results, for both the short- and long-term. We envision strengthening your grasp of, and securing your mastery over, the SAT as a way to hone your analytical skills and improve your learning habits—laying an invaluable foundation for your future success.

Further Information

For additional information, or to register for Med School Tutors’ customized program, click here.
OR…
Call Med School Tutors today to schedule your exclusive in-person consultation.