What's on the SSAT?
- Quantitative (Math): Composed of math computation.
- Verbal: Vocabulary and analogy questions.
- Reading: Reading passages.
- Writing Sample: The writing sample is not scored, but schools use it to assess writing skills.
- Experimental: Mixed content questions (verbal, reading, and math). This section does not count toward reported scores.
SSAT Sections
Total Duration: 3 Hours, 10 Minutes*
*Students taking a paper SSAT in a room with other testers must sit for the entire time allotted to each section. Students in all other testing modes, or those taking a paper SSAT alone, may end a section before the time expires.
Part 1: Writing Sample
Students have 25 minutes to write an essay, choosing between a personal or general question prompt. Writing samples aren't scored, but they are provided to the schools that you opt to receive the SSAT score report, helping them assess the student's writing abilities. Parents may obtain a copy of the writing sample as a separate purchase.
Part 2 & 5: Break
Students are allotted two ten-minute breaks.
Part 3 & 7: Quantitative (Math)
- Number of questions: 50 in two 30-minute sections
- What it measures: Ability to solve problems involving arithmetic, elementary algebra, geometry, and other concepts
- Scored section: Yes
- Time allotted: 30 minutes for each section of 25 questions
- The quantitative (mathematics) section of the Upper Level SSAT measures your knowledge of algebra, geometry, and other quantitative concepts.
Students aren't permitted to use calculators in this section.
Part 4: Reading Comprehension
- Number of questions: 40
- What it measures: Reading ability and comprehension
- Scored section: Yes
- Time allotted: 40 minutes
- Topics covered: Reading passages ranging in length from 250 to 350 words
After reading each passage, students are asked about its content or the author's style, intent, or point of view. The SSAT uses two types of writing: narrative, which includes excerpts from novels, poems, short stories, or essays; and argument, which presents a definite point of view about a subject.
Reading passages come from:
- Literary fiction
- Humanities (biography, art, poetry)
- Science (anthropology, astronomy, medicine)
- Social studies (history, sociology, economics)
Questions related to the passage ask students to:
- Recognize the main idea
- Locate details
- Make inferences
- Derive the meaning of a word or phrase from its context
- Determine the author's purpose
- Determine the author's attitude and tone
- Understand and evaluate opinions and arguments
- Make predictions based on information in the passage
Part 6: Verbal
- Number of questions: 60; 30 synonyms and 30 analogies
- What it measures: Vocabulary, verbal reasoning, and ability to relate ideas logically
- Scored section: Yes
- Time allotted: 30 minutes
- Topics covered: Word similarities and relationships through synonyms and analogies
The verbal section asks students to identify synonyms and interpret analogies. Synonym questions test a student's vocabulary strength, while analogy questions measure the ability to logically relate ideas to each other.
Synonyms are words with the same or nearly the same meaning as another word. For example, fortunate is a synonym for lucky, tidy is a synonym for neat, and difficult is a synonym for hard. Synonym questions ask students to choose the answer word with a meaning similar to the prompt word.
Analogies are comparisons between two things with similarities. These comparisons play an important role in improving problem-solving and decision-making skills, perception and memory, communication and reasoning skills, and reading and vocabulary. Analogies help students process information actively, make important decisions, and improve understanding and long-term memory. Considering these relationships stimulates critical and creative thinking.
Part 8: Experimental
The experimental section quality tests future SSAT questions to ensure they are reliable, secure, and acceptable.
- Number of questions: 16
- Scored section: No
- Time allotted: 15 minutes
- Topics covered: This section contains six verbal, five reading, and five quantitative questions
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