Every SAT test includes one 25-minute “experimental” section where the College Board tests new questions and material. It could be a math, reading or verbal section. The trouble is that you will not know which section is “experimental”, so you’re better off treating EVERY question like it counts!
The Dreaded SAT Experimental Section (transcript)
Officially the dreaded SAT experimental section is called the variable section. The first section is going to have essays that are 25 minutes long. The essay will then be followed by another six 25 minute sections. There are then two 20 minute sections and one 10 minute section.
One of those multiple choice 25 minute sections is going to be an experimental one. The people who administer the SAT need to test questions for future exams. This is to see if enough people get them right and/or wrong. So they use you as guinea pigs!
Since one of those sections is going to be experimental, it does not count toward your grade. It’s very difficult to pick out the experimental section, but I’ll give you a little bit of a tip:
If you get to a section that seems really weird or has questions that you haven’t seen before and it’s somehow different from the rest, it’s probably the experimental one. Don’t panic. Stay positive. Just tell yourself it’s the experimental one and move on.
Now, if you get three 25 minute critical reading sections, one of them will have been the experimental one. If you get three 25 minute math sections, one of them will be the experimental one. And if you get two 25 minute writing sections, you’ll know one of those will be the experimental section.
So it’s kind of hard to tell which one it is until you’re almost finished, but if you get to one that’s weird and totally throws you off, don’t think “Oh my gosh, the whole thing’s going down the tube now!†Tell yourself “You know what, that one was weird, that one was harder than I expected. It’s probably the experimental oneâ€. Stay positive. Keep moving. That’s the way you maximize your SAT score.
Karl Schellscheidt
ePrep
www.eprep.com
Copyright 2006 — All Rights Reserved, ePrep, Inc.
May 3rd, 2008 at 5:04 pm
Hi I just took the test today and was kind of hoping one of the math sections with the grid ins
was the experimental section, is this possible?
Thank you!
May 4th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Ariel,
It is possible, but only if you had two 25-minute sections with grid-ins. Did you?
June 7th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
i just took my SAT today, and i know one of the reading sections was experimental because i had two with double passages. the first had 24 questions, and the second had 23 questions. i really messed up the first one and am hoping it’s the experimental, but i doubt it since only the first one had the 24 questions. does the sat reading section always have 67 questions in total, or can it vary a little bit?
i guess what i’m asking is, is it possible for the 23 question one have counted? or is it definitely experimental.
thanks.
June 8th, 2008 at 6:45 am
Vivian,
As far as I know, the 25-minute CR sections always has 24 questions. It seems odd that they would add a section with only 23. My gut tells me that the 23-questions section was the experimental one, but I could be wrong. In any case, don’t stress over it. There’s nothing you can do anyway. It’s June; think summer!
June 9th, 2008 at 5:48 am
hi, I just took my SAT I on June 7th. I had this easy writing section right after the essay section and I had this extra writing section for my sixth section. and the second writing section was relaly really hard. Does that mean the sixth section was the experimental b/c it was harder?
June 9th, 2008 at 7:31 am
Jay,
Based on your account, I am 99% sure that the sixth section was the experimental one. Let me know if you can figure it out, when you receive your scores. Thanks.
June 9th, 2008 at 9:35 am
For the June test,
Reading Experimental: you had this one if you had a passage about cameras in the courtroom
Math Experimental: First question of the math experimental was about which number was the lowest
Writing Experimental: If you had 3 writing sections, then you had the writing experimental
June 9th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Thanks, Brendan. I remember those problems. How are you so sure, by the way?
June 9th, 2008 at 6:02 pm
hi, it turns out that you’re right about the sixth section being the experimental section ( I just checked collegeboard right now). But I still have a few more questions. I have many SAT preparation books and I checked all of their Scoring Sheets but somehow my friends’ scores didn’t really apply to the Score Sheets. For example, my friend got an 8 on the essay and missed about 2 – 3 questions on MC but got around 690. ON the Score guides, he should have gotten some thing around 750. SO..I’m kind of confused, but I still know that the scores are based on its curve but i think its still kind of weird for the score to be that low. And can you tell me what I would get if I get an 8 and miss 0 – 2 questions on the writing section? THANK U SO MUCH
July 2nd, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Hey, is it possible for collegeboard to mess up my SAT scores? As in, switching it with someone else’s or grading it incorrectly? b.c. my SAT scores were a lot lower than I expected. I’m still waiting for the full report but after that can I ask collegeboard to recheck my answers?
July 3rd, 2008 at 8:05 am
Kaisen,
It is entirely possible that the College Board made a mistake. If the full report strengthens your suspicions, you should definitely follow up with a College Board representative.
July 6th, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Hi, I am a hispanic student who moved from guatemala when I was 10 years old knowing no english at all. I am now going to be a senior who hope to get into a few Ivy league schools (all actually except Dartmout and Cornell). I took the SAT test in May of my junior year and got CR-670 Math-550 (kind of bad I know) and Writing-720. I am involved in NHS, Student Council, Renaissance (a Jostens’ sponsored club), Interact (Rotary sponsored), plus a lot of community service hours and an after school job. This fall is my last chance to really showcase my abilities and strengths. I have a 4.0 unweighted, 4.7 weighted, all honors and a.p. classes (my school offers very few a.p. courses but I will take all of the ones available). Also, I need help deciding which subject tests to take. Would it look bad to take the spanish subject test because I’m fluent in spanish? What advice could you give me on improving my chances for such top tier schools?
Thank you so much and I appreciate any advice you can give me.
July 7th, 2008 at 7:47 am
Maria,
If you go nuts reading and studying vocabulary over the summer, you should be able to bump your CR score up into the 700s. The math, however, is the score that really concerns me. Someone as smart as you should be able to score somewhere north of 650. While I have been relatively modest about pushing ePrep products and services, I do think that an ePrep program can guide you through the process of improving your math score. You may want to start with the free trial. Whatever you do, just don’t give up on yourself. Self confidence and the willingness to work will make all the difference.
As far as SAT subject tests go, you should definitely take a math in addition to Spanish. Let’s face it, there’s a big difference between speaking a language fluently and scoring high on a written test that covers grammar, etc.
Keep up the good work! Hope to hear from you again soon.
July 8th, 2008 at 12:25 am
Thank you so much Karl. By the way, I took the practice SAT Subject Tests yesterday and got 800 in Spanish (I got all questions correct) and 720 in U.S. History. I really don’t understand how I can’t score higher in math since this is one of my best subjects in school. How well do you think I could do on the math subject one considering my math score in the SAT?
July 8th, 2008 at 12:39 am
Thank you so much Karl. By the way, I took a practice subject test yesterday in spanish and I got an 800 (I got all questions correct) and a 720 in U.S. History. Regarding my math, I really don’t know why my score is so low since math is one of my best subjects and I will be taking ap calculus next yr. Do you think I could be able to bring it up into the 700’s by the Oct. test date? And considering my math score in the SAT should I take a subject test in it?
July 8th, 2008 at 2:01 am
Sorry for the double comment! I thought the first one didn’t go through :=)
July 8th, 2008 at 7:49 am
Maria,
You should be able to score very high on the math level 1 subject test. It is very similar to the kind of test you would get in school. In other words, it is much more straightforward than the math on the SAT reasoning test.
That being said, you should definitely do a couple of practice tests before you take the real one.
Good luck.
September 29th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
It is not fair that students pay for the collegeboard SAT test
and still have to undergo the experimental section. It is wearing away
the students brain. They do not practice for 3 hours and 45 mintures. They p
practice for 3 hours and 20 minutes. Students are not used to this
timing for the real test. COLLEGEBOARD SHOULD PAY STUDENTS
TO TAKE THE EXPERIMENTAL SECTION. It is not a fair advantage
to the students.
September 30th, 2008 at 8:13 am
I understand why ETS wants and needs to experiment with new SAT questions, but I agree that, in some ways, it is unfair to students.
October 3rd, 2008 at 10:33 pm
That’s scary… I’m not going to stress about it though. Not really a point. Haha, I’m taking this tomarrow so I’d better get some sleep
Shame on me for not even knowing the different parts of this thing eh? Oh well, if you see this tonight throw up a quick prayer for me!
October 4th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Hey, I just took my SAT today and was trying to determine
whether I missed a question on the experimental section.
Last SAT I only omitted 1 question and got the rest correct.
I was really happy about this until I found out how much more
of a chance you have of getting scholarships with a full 800.
So this time I had a problem in a grid-in that I guessed on in
a vain attempt to reach for an 800. I believe that I got this
question wrong, and also that it is the only question holding
me back from 800. Yet when asking my friends about the question
(I know, sinful) very few of them had received this question.
Furthermore, I had 2 grid-in math sections, which I think means
that one was an experimental section (not sure). I just wanted
to know whether any of that information can be used to assess
whether or not that question was in the experimental section.
October 4th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Hey, I just took my SAT today and was trying to determine whether I missed a question on the experimental section. Last SAT I only omitted 1 question and got the rest correct. I was really happy about this until I found out how much more of a chance you have of getting scholarships with a full 800. So this time I had a problem in a grid-in that I guessed on in a vain attempt to reach for an 800. I believe that I got this question wrong, and also that it is the only question holding
me back from 800. Yet when asking my friends about the question (I know, sinful) very few of them had received this question. Furthermore, I had 2 grid-in math sections, which I think means that one was an experimental section (not sure). I just wanted to know whether any of that information can be used to assess whether or not that question was in the experimental section. Thanks. (sorry about the repost, the other one was spaced improperly).
October 4th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
Hey Ryan, I ju, st took the SAT too today. Was your test booklet black? Then I think the experimental section was the fourth one.. mine was critical reading.
October 4th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
Oh wait one more question. Since I guessed that it was the experimental section, I didn’t even bother to read the passage or anything. Is collegeboard going to penalize me for that, if it does turn out that the fourth section was experimental? (I just bubbled in random circles)
October 5th, 2008 at 8:21 am
Joseph,
You cannot and will not be penalized for your effort (or lack thereof) on the experimental section. I like the fact that you figured it out and bubbled in random answers. Awesome.
Good luck!
October 5th, 2008 at 8:28 am
Ryan,
The math you describe was probably the experimental section. Good luck. I really hope you did it.
October 23rd, 2008 at 4:11 am
Okay So Most people are supposed to get their scores back today for the October 4th test…
But somehow I fell into that small percentage of people who didn’t get them yet. During the test, I had a little piece of paper on my desk, and on it, i had the number 1-10 with the Sections(I was trying to see which one was experimental). like 1Essay, 2Math, 3 CR, so on. The proctor was walking by and saw the paper, and she took it away. During the break, another proctor came in and asked for my ID. I asked her if I was in trouble and she told me that I wasn’t and my score was not gonna be affected and that she needed to attach “something” to my test… So does this mean i’m in trouble? Any advice ? Can they penalize me for this? Is my Score gonnna be canceled ? I”m kind of scared… since most ppl got their scores…
October 23rd, 2008 at 7:53 am
Kevin,
Even though you were merely trying to track the sections in order to identify the experimental section, ETS is probably going to check your answer sheet against those of the students seated near you on test day. Don’t worry; this is standard operating procedure. The bottom line is that you have nothing to worry about. You may just have to wait a few extra days for your scores. I know it’s difficult, but try to be patient.
October 23rd, 2008 at 9:14 am
thank you for your respond. Does this type of stuff happen often? And how would they even know who sat near me during the test? Should I call them right now or just wait a week like they told me to. THis is driving me nuts! Thank you.
October 23rd, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Kevin,
There is a seating chart created for each classroom.
While what happened to you does not happen “often,” it is not “unusual” either.
You should just wait the week. I know it’s hard, but try not to think about it.
October 23rd, 2008 at 7:26 pm
I appreciate your responses, Karl. But I must warn you that there was not a seating chart for my classroom; everyone sat anywhere they wanted… So what in the would could they be doing with my test??? What do you mean it’s not “unusual”? Do people actually get caught with papers like that? Thank you sir. (I know you’re telling me to not worry but I just have a horrible feeling deep inside, as if they would cancel my score or something like that…)
p.s. I didn’t even try in the experimental section..
October 24th, 2008 at 8:41 am
Kevin,
What I meant was that it is not unusual for ETS to review a students answers. This is done routinely for various reasons. Again, be patient. Based on what you told me, things will be fine.
October 25th, 2008 at 11:02 am
I called Collegeboard yesterday and the lady told me that I was going thru an “exception” process and she doesn’t know why. Also she said i’ll be getting the result in 10 to 14 business days… Is this happening cuz I barely did my experimental section? I hope they dont accuse me of cheating cuz of that!
October 25th, 2008 at 8:35 pm
Kevin,
Skipping (or doing poorly on)the experimental section cannot affect your score. In other words, you cannot get into trouble because you successfully identified the experimental section during the administration of the full test. Let me know what happens.
November 1st, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Hi,
I just took the SAT today and I think (or hope) I missed only one question on
the entire test–it was a transformations question that wasn’t
immediately obvious to me (but I did manage to solve it later).
Now, I’m fairly sure that I had a mathematics experimental
section on the test, since there were 4 math sections. Two of
these sections appeared consecutively (i.e. one right after
the other); the latter of these two consecutive sections
was a grid-in section and the only one of its kind,
so it can’t be the experimental section. The other one, however,
might be.
My question is: does the fact that these two sections
appeared consecutively have any bearing on whether or not
one of them is the experimental section? The question I missed was
not on either of these sections (it was on another 25-minute math
section).
Thanks,
Steven
November 3rd, 2008 at 7:54 am
Steven,
If there were 4 math sections, I agree that one of them had to be the experimental. Since it could not have been the one with free-response questions, I also agree that it had to be one of the other two 25-minute sections. While there is no clear rule, my best guess is that the one you suspect (the one right before the free-response section) was indeed the experimental section.
Good luck.
November 8th, 2008 at 2:07 pm
Hello Karl. So two weeks have passed since I called Collegeboard. I guess I’ll wait one more week as they told me to. But is it possible for them to make me extra weeks or simply say “oh sorry your score has now been invalidated” because that’d be outrageous. I’m pretty nervous.
November 9th, 2008 at 9:08 am
Kevin,
Try to be patient this last week. If you don’t hear from the College Board by the end of the week, call or send an email. Let me know what happens. If there is any way I can help, I will.
November 10th, 2008 at 3:31 am
Well, the Collegeboard lady said 10 to 14 business days. 10 business days had passed on last friday.. What I’m wondering is do this Monday and Tuesday count as business days or holidays? I know I should just be patient and all but the thing is Nov 15 is the deadline for this college I want to get into b/c of it’s good program. The program requires minium 600 in CR and I haven’t broken it yet… I know , I didn’t know my schedule would get this messy… anyways i really appreciate your support, thanks!
November 10th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Kevin,
I think you should have one of your parents call. Often times, adults have more success in situations like this. Let me know what happens.
November 13th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
Hey Karl. Oh FINALLY I received a mail from ETS today. It said that ETS is considering canceling my scores because it was reported that I had a note on my desk during the administration of the test. ETS haven’t yet made a final decision concerning this matter and asked me to provide them any info that will help explain the situation. So I sent them an email explaining what and why I had the note and how insignificant it was. Hopefully, I will receive my scores. I should right?? I mean, is there any reason that they would just cancel it?
November 14th, 2008 at 10:19 am
Kevin,
ETS is not a rational entity. In other words, do not expect a reasonable decision. If you get one, great, but don’t expect it. Good luck. Keep me posted.
By the way, I do subscribe to the adage that “honesty is the best policy.” I hope you are ultimately rewarded for your honesty.
December 1st, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Hey Karl, unfortunately, after waiting 2 months, I got a mail saying that my Oct SAT score has been canceled…(why couldn’t they told me earlier?!?!) haha. Anyways, I found this one article online by Jay Rosner from Princeston Review, and it said that I could claim my questioned score even if I get 300 points below my questioned score, in a “private” test. (100 pts each section)
Is this true? because honestly it sounds too good to be true. I’d appreciate it if you can tell me anything you know about it or maybe ask someone you know about it. Thank you so much.
p.s.
I’m going to call them tomorow to ask for my questioned score and this whole process, but i’m jus scared that it might not be true or they would simply lie to me about it.
December 1st, 2008 at 7:17 pm
Kevin,
I have worked with only two students whose scores were canceled. They too were given the opportunity to retake the SAT privately. Neither of them took advantage of the offer, however, because they were seniors and time was running out for them.
I think you should do the retest, if given the opportunity. Let me know what you decide.
December 1st, 2008 at 7:35 pm
I am a senior myself, but I don’t understand why they haven’t taken the advantage of the offer. I mean, couldn’t they have received the higher score if they scored within 300 points from it? Or is that not valid? And I will retake the test for sure if the 300pt thing is valid , if not, then still I’ll probably take it.
December 1st, 2008 at 7:40 pm
p.s.
may i ask why their scores were canceled? I want to set up an apointment ASAP so I can get the score fast… it did say I can register for the test again, so i’m assuming that means I can retake the test..
December 2nd, 2008 at 8:12 am
After working very hard to prepare, both students achieved significant score increases. Rather than acknowlege that intense preparation can increase scores dramatically, ETS suspected the students of cheating. That’s why their scores were canceled. I felt bad for them. They worked hard and deserved their high scores.
December 2nd, 2008 at 10:30 am
doesnt ets have to have some legit evidence??? thats bad… did they know about the 300 pts thingy?
December 2nd, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Sorry, Kevin. If forgot to mention that the scores that were canceled were January scores and by the time the seniors were offered a retest opportunity, colleges were already making admission decisions.
I haven’t heard of the 300-point retest rule before, but it makes sense.
December 2nd, 2008 at 8:53 pm
Yeah, I think that 300 pts thing is valid ( I jus read it in ETS website), BUT it’s not for my case apprently because my case involved “misconduct.” They’re being so harsh. They could’ve overlooked this, I mean, I wasn’t trying to take a test question home or cheating off a person next to me or anything like that… but I’m gonna ask them about it tomorrow, if I can still retake the test even if I cant claim my high questioned score.
December 2nd, 2008 at 10:15 pm
I agree 100%, Kevin. ETS is being harsh — “cruel and unusual punishment” in legal jargon.
Let me know what happens.
December 4th, 2008 at 9:19 am
I can’t believe this *#*!@. Do you know what they’re telling me. They won’t even tell me what my score was, but I can “walk in” for the test that’s coming on this Saturday. I’m sure they know I”m a senior so they’re trying their best to ruin mmy life. I don’t even know what I”m going to do. Now that I missed the #&@*#* registration, I might not be able to take the test at all.
December 4th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
I feel your frustration, Kevin. Chance are, however, that you will be able to “walk on” this Saturday. All test centers are prepared for walk-ons.
If you are at all considerig taking the SAT in January, let me know. I will make ePrep for the SAT available to you at no cost. It is the least I can do.
I know it’s difficult, but try to stay positive. The other option, by the way, is to take the ACT on December 13th. You should at least consider it.
Let me know what you decide. In the meantime, hang in there.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:34 pm
No, Thank you Karl. But I’m appreciate your thought. I’m gonna study my butt off these next two days and hopefully I break 600 in Critical Reading, maybe even 2100. And nahhh, no ACT for me. But once I get my new score, I’ll tell you how I did. Thankss, it’s been a pleasure talking to you last two months.
December 8th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Keep me posted, Kevin. Thanks for the note.
December 16th, 2008 at 3:37 am
Hey, I filled out my registration form there and sent it with a check of 83 dollars which I think is the overall fee for the standby registration (38 + 45= 83). Oh and my guess on experimental section was right, once again, haha but no note or anything bad this time, so I’m good to go. But do you think my score will be delayed because my testing was a standby? I really need to get my score fast! thanks
December 16th, 2008 at 8:17 am
Kevin,
Good stuff. Sometimes standby scores are not available online but they are usually sent via mail along with the others. Good luck. Let me know what happens.
December 23rd, 2008 at 6:32 am
hey karl, I just got my score today. I stayed up til 2am for it. haha anyways
i actually did pretty good for only studying for a day. I got 2080. 770Math, 650 CR and 660 in writing. The schools i wanna get into take highest subscores from each tests, which means that they’ll let me have 2110, b/c I got 800 in math a while back. i’m pretty satisfied with my score. thanks again, !!
December 23rd, 2008 at 8:21 am
Great job, Kevin. I’m glad it all worked out in the end. Happy Holidays!
January 2nd, 2009 at 1:23 pm
Karl I need your advice desperately. For Columbia, I filled
both part 1 and 2, but now I noticed that one of the downloadable forms
are due the 2nd, and I didn’t fill that in. I’m stressed out
because I don’t want to spend a year home before applying again.
Do you think there is a a chance they’ll accept it one week after?
Please respond me as soon as possible. Thanks in advance.
BTW I’m talking of the secondary report.
January 3rd, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Stephanie,
Sorry for the delayed response. I was out of the office yesterday.
I think your best bet is to call the admission office on Monday. I am sure stuff like this happens all the time. Just let them know what happened and be very apologetic. I’m sure they’ll cut you a break. (Rather than delay things a week, by the way, I would offer to send the secondary report via overnight courier or by fax.)
Let me know how it goes.
February 1st, 2009 at 10:29 pm
Karl,
I took the SAT in January. However, I ended up sending collegeboard a fax canceling my score. The problem is that I’m not sure if they actually canceled it because when I log
into my collegeboard account it says “You have 2 day(s) to add or change recipients for your January 2009 scores. Just click “update Score Recipients” next to your test.” which would make no sense if the score was actually canceled. Was I supposed to get an email or something confirming that my score was canceled? Does this mean it wasn’t?
Any help you could give me would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
Mai
(sorry if there are any typos, for some reason my computer won’t display the whole message)
February 2nd, 2009 at 9:37 am
Mai,
Based on the information you provided, it seems the College Board did not cancel your scores as you requested. The good news, however, is that it doesn’t matter.
As of March, the College Board is implementing a new policy called Score Choice that allows students to send colleges scores from specific test dates. Furthermore, Score Choice will apply retroactively.
The bottom line is that when you go to send your scores to colleges next year when you are applying, you can ignore your January 2009 scores and send scores from other test dates.
I hope my thoughts were clear and help put you at ease. Please do not hesitate to post follow-up questions.
March 14th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Karl,
I just took the SAT recently and am curious.
A comrade and I were talking about the
experimental section and while he claims that
he had a second math sectionwith grid responces,
I only had one but I’m certain that there were two
critical reading sections with the exact same
formats (thus I feel that one had to be the exp sec)
Is it possible for us, who took the SAT on the same
date to have different experimental sections? Does
collegeboard do that or do they not do that?
Thank you,
Charles.
March 14th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
Karl,
I just took the SAT earlier today. After talking with my
friends, I know for a fact that I missed a math question.
Additionally, it is possible that I may have missed 1-2
writing questions and 3-4 reading questions. As such,
what is the maximum possible score I can have? Can I still
get at least a 2350?
Thanks,
Jacob
March 14th, 2009 at 8:03 pm
Jacob,
If everything else went well (i.e., if you answered every other problem correctly), you can still get a 2350. (One miss in math can still turn out to be an 800; one or two misses in writing can still be an 800 (assuming you aced the essay); and, believe it or not, three or four misses in critical reading can still be an 800). It all depends on how everyone else did. Good luck.
March 15th, 2009 at 7:03 am
Charles,
It is absolutely possible that you and your comrade had different experimental sections. It happens all the time.
March 15th, 2009 at 8:29 pm
If there are two grid-in sections, one of them is for sure an experimental section right?i thought it was much more difficult than usual.
March 15th, 2009 at 8:52 pm
Hey I took the SAT yesterday and have told the collegeboard to send my scores to Harvard, Stanford, etc. I’m not sure how I did. Should I prevent them from sending my score to these schools or let them send my scores even if I could possibly do better on another SAT in the future?
March 16th, 2009 at 8:54 am
Tyler,
Yes. If there were two grid-in sections, one was definitely the experimental section. It was most likely the one that you thought was more difficult.
March 16th, 2009 at 8:56 am
Shaun,
I think you should let the College Board send the scores. Stanford has openly rejected Score Choice and Harvard typically considers the highest overall combination anyway. I hope this helps. Good luck.
March 16th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
karl, you’re the man, just letting you know.
it’s nice to have someone give pretty quick feedback. what you’re doing is greatly appreciated
April 23rd, 2009 at 8:07 pm
Hi
I have never done an offcial SAT test, and my first one is coming up on may 2nd. After doing several practice tests, I realized that I tend to spend more time on the math section than on the CR section. I am wondering if i could spend an extra five to ten minutes on the math section during the exam? Or do i absolutely have to follow the 25 minute rule for each section?
Any advice will help alot, thanks!!
eric
April 26th, 2009 at 7:07 am
Eric,
Unfortunately, you have to follow the timing rules exactly. You may only spend 10, 20, or 25 minutes on each section, as directed.
June 6th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Hi
I took the SAT Reasoning Test today and sections 3,5, and 7 were all math, which means that one of those sections was the experimental section. Section three was the grid in questions, so I doubt that one was the experimental one. Section five had about 20 questions, give or take, and I had to skip four- those questions seemed very hard to me and not as easy as the questions we had studied in my Kaplan course. Section seven was very easy to me. Is it probable that section 5, the harder one, or section 7, the easier one was the experimental section?
June 6th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
oh and also, I changed a few of my answers and tried to erase my intial answer as hard as I could. on some of them, though, there was still a visible shaded area after i tried erasing it. do you think the scantron will pick up my initial answer or the answer that i ultimately decided on
June 7th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Lena,
The experimental section was probably the harder one. If you made an effort to erase, you should be okay.
June 23rd, 2009 at 4:10 pm
Hi Karl! You are right… I just checked the collegeboard website and section 5 was the experimental section. Thanks again!
December 6th, 2009 at 6:50 pm
hi i just took the SAT today and i had 3 math sections. the
second and third section were math. one was multiple choice
and the other was a fill in.and then the 3rd to last
section was also math. however, the last math section i took
had 16 questions and i believe purely algebra. is it possible
that that’s the experimental
December 7th, 2009 at 8:36 am
Kelly,
The experimental is usually a 25 minute section. A math section with 16 questions sounds like a 20 minute section. I doubt it was the experimental one, although all algebra does sound suspicious. When your score report is made available next week, you should be able to figure it out for sure. Good luck.
December 11th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
karl,
i gave my SAT xam on the 7th november….but didnt receive my
score yet……all my friends got it …….how will i know my
score has been cancelled….does college board cancel scores
without noticing ?
December 13th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
Afif,
I your scores were canceled by the College Board, you would know by now. Were you a walk-on on test day. Walk-ons usually get their score in the mail only.
There is nothing wrong with contacting the College Board to see what’s going on. Please let me know what happens.
December 15th, 2009 at 11:42 am
karl…….can u give me ur email address…..i will mail u
what ETS has send me…..they are asking me to give 2 weeks..
itz totally ridiculous…..everyone got the score….if i dont
get the score..i will miss the application deadline….
December 15th, 2009 at 11:45 am
and yeah…….i didnt registered late….i walked on the date…
December 15th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Afif,
Don’t worry about the application deadline. Scores are commonly reported by the College Board after application deadlines. The scores just need to get to the colleges before they make their admission decisions.
December 15th, 2009 at 11:57 am
correction…..dint walk on*
December 16th, 2009 at 9:47 am
Got it, Afif.
December 30th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
Hi Karl,
How important do you think the writing section is on the sat
for schools like columbia and cornell. Because some of my friends
just skipped the writing section and did the essay and focused
completely on the math and reading section, which I think is
unfair
January 18th, 2010 at 2:13 pm
Sam,
Your friends took a big chance. My understanding is that Columbia averages the critical reading and writing to create a “verbal” score for applicants. I am not sure what they do at Cornell, but I’m sure writing scores are not ignored completely. If you tried your best on each section, you definitely did the right thing. Good luck.
January 24th, 2010 at 5:50 pm
hey i took the jan sat and section 6 and 7 were writing. I
great at improving paragraphs (miss 0) but section6 improv
paragraphs was a lot harder than section 7 (cant tell details but
some ppl had sections in different order) due to the paragraph being
easy to understand and etc. The questions for both passgaes were similiar
like where should thise sent go, what to add, what sent to add,
. what would the exp section be the HARDER one or EASIER one.
The hardier one was harder b.c. the reading was complicated but it could be b.c. i was a
little rushed
January 25th, 2010 at 11:00 am
anymotu,
The experimental section usually seems different, not necessarily harder or easier. Given your description, my guess is that the experimental one was section 6.
March 13th, 2010 at 1:19 pm
hey i took my sat today. i had an experimental math. but there was this one section that i had that some of my other friends didn’t have. does that mean this section was my experimental section?
March 13th, 2010 at 1:38 pm
Eric,
If you had 3 twenty-five minute math sections, one of them was experimental.
If you had 3 twenty-five minute CR sections, one of them was experimental.
If you had 2 twenty-five minute multiple-choice Writing sections, one of them was experimental.
If one of the extra math sections seemed unusually hard, easy, or different, it was likely the experimental. The fact that your friends had a different section is not the determining factor.
March 13th, 2010 at 11:41 pm
Where can I find out which section is the experimental one from the March 2010 SAT?
March 13th, 2010 at 11:52 pm
To Brielle: There were different versions of the exam.
Personally, I’m really hoping that my version had experimental writing, because I really spaced out during one of the sections. But I have a poor memory, so I can’t remember how many of each category section that I had, so I guess I’ll have to wait or never realize. D:
March 14th, 2010 at 12:49 am
I remember last time I took the test that they had a thing on college board that told you but I can’t find it this time
April 1st, 2010 at 6:16 pm
Why exactly is there an experimental section on the SAT? What do people do with the results of an experimental section? Just curious.
April 4th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
Sara,
The experimental section allows the testmakers to test questions, and question types, for future exams. If everyone gets an experimental question wrong, for example, it will not be used on a future test.
June 5th, 2010 at 2:01 pm
I just SATs today and it go me thinking about colleges. Do you know what college cherrypick your best sections from all of your test dates and compile your best possible score?
Thanks
June 6th, 2010 at 8:19 am
Matt,
Most colleges cherrypick your best sections. For example, Stanford University clearly states on its web site that the admissions office will consider a students best combination of scores.
As you create and modify your college list, you should visit the web site of each school on the list and search for information on the SAT-score-review policies. Good luck.