About the Math SAT

The SAT has three math sections two 25-minute sections and one 20-minute section.
There are two types of questions: 44 multiple choice and 10 student-produced response questions
(grid-in questions).
For the student-produced response questions:
- Some problems may have more than one correct answer. Write just one answer.
- The answers will always be positive.
- Mixed numbers must be written as an improper fraction or a decimal.
- If a decimal answer has more digits than the number of grids (4 grids), round or truncate
the answer to fit the grids.
- No points are lost for wrong answers! Make an educated guess when necessary.
The SAT math covers concepts from Algebra1, Geometry and Algebra2.
These concepts can be divided into 4 large categories:
1. Numbers and Operations properties of integers, arithmetic word problems, number
lines, squares and square roots, fractions, rational numbers, factors, multiples, prime
numbers, remainders, ratio, proportions, percents, sequences, sets, counting, logical
reasoning
2. Algebra and Functions operations on algebraic expressions, factoring, exponents,
evaluating expressions, solving equations, absolute value, inequalities, quadratic
equations, rational equations and inequalities, direct and inverse variation, word problems,
functions, domain and range, graph of functions
3. Geometry and Measurement geometric notation, points and lines, angles, triangles,
special triangles, quadrilaterals, area and perimeters, other polygons, circles, solid
geometry, geometric perception, coordinate geometry, transformations
4. Data Analysis, Statistics and Probability data interpretation, mean, median, mode, range,
probability, geometric probability
Students should also know skills, tips and strategies along with the math concepts.
Even if students know how to solve a problem but they may misinterpret a part of the question or
make a careless mistake.
General tips and strategies for students:
Manage your time. All questions are worth the same number of points. If you need a lot of time
to answer a question, move on and come back to it later.
The questions are generally arranged by the level of difficulty. Easy questions are at the
beginning of the section and hard questions are at the end of each section. If you find yourself
spending too much time on an easy question, you may be misinterpreting the problem. Likewise,
if a difficult problem seems too easy, you may want to look over that question again.

Read the question carefully. Look for key words such as not, except, only, etc. Be careful with
units and signs. The incorrect answers often include answers that would be correct in case of a
mistake or misinterpretation of the question. Read all answer choices. The popular wrong
answers are often placed above the right answer.
Write in your test booklet. Mark what you need to answer and other important information that is
given in the question. Eliminate answers you know are wrong (i.e. decimal or fraction answers
when the problems asks for an integer). Do your work in the booklet when necessary.
Diagrams and charts are extremely useful in organizing data or understanding a complicated
problem. If a diagram is provided, feel free to mark and label the values provided in the problem.
If there is no diagram or chart, draw one yourself. The drawings do not need to be perfect as long
as it helps you understand the question. Just writing out certain parts or values in the problem can
help if you are stuck.
Simplify! SAT questions are not designed to make you do unnecessary, long calculations.
Although a calculator is recommended, every question on the SAT math can be solved without a
calculator. So if you end up using a complicated function or formula, you may have made a
mistake somewhere along the way.
Memorize common values. Certain formulas, concepts, or values come up over and over again
on the SAT. Memorize these so you do not spend time calculating them.
Ex: special triangles (30-60-90 triangles), exponents of base 2 and 3 (23 = 8, 24= 16, 33= 27)
When you have forgotten how to answer a question, work backwards. Start with choice C which
is often the median value. If choice C is too large, try choices A and B. If choice C is too small,
try choices D and E. This can help you save time rather than going through each answer choice
one after another.
Use simple numbers when plugging in values such as 0, 1/2, 1, 2, 10 or 100 (for percents). Be
careful when using 0 and 1 while these are easy numbers to work with, they have certain
properties so they may not be the best number to use in every case.