The SAT

Admission to most US colleges is based on the SAT-1(henceforth referred to simply as SAT) scores and some colleges even ask for subject test scores in Math (Level2) and any 1 of the science branches. Contrary to most popular beliefs, the SAT too requires a fair amount of preparation. Therefore, I believe the best time to prepare for and give your SAT is in Class XI as none of the class XI syllabus is included in class XII and you would also have a lot of free time.

The SAT basically consists of three sections- Critical Reading, Math and Written Skills + an essay. It is a long test over 4hours in duration and has timed breaks in the middle. All the details about the SAT can be found on www.collegeboard.org or for starters on its wikipedia page-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAT

The best book to prepare for the SAT is Barrons(published in India by Galgotia Publications) and can be found at any leading bookstores. The Barrons book is tougher than the actual SAT and is a great tool to score well at the test. I got my copy from the Sterling Book House, Mumbai.

To take the SAT or any of the subject tests, it is necessary to have an account on the collegeboard website. Registering is an easy enough process and the site is user friendly. Most US colleges accept SAT scores (both SAT-1 and the subject tests) till the December test date in your class12 year. That means you would have the whole of 11^th and also a few test dates in 12^th to give your SAT and subject tests.

After registering for the SAT, you can send your scores for to 4colleges for free till a particular deadline.

Most colleges have a list of the average SAT score on each of the three sections for the previous years’ accepted students on their website. The collegeboard also provides a similar list for all colleges. These should provide a fair measure as to how much you should score on the SAT to have a decent chance of getting accepted. Mostly, those who are applying even for financial aid should be above the mean scores to have any chance of being accepted.


The Application process: http://engineeringfornris.blogspot.com/2011/05/actual-processcommonapp.html