Format of SAT II Math IC

Format of SAT II Math IC

SAT II Math IC is a one-hour test composed of 50 multiple-choice questions. The instructions for the test are very simple; you should memorize them so you don’t waste time reading them on the day of the test.

For each of the following problems, decide which is the BEST of the choices given. If the exact numerical value is not one of the choices, select the choice that best approximates this value. Then fill in the corresponding oval on the answer sheet.

Have you read the directions? Have you memorized them? Good. Now here’s some specific information about the test’s format:

• The 50 questions progress in order of difficulty: the easiest questions come first, the moderately difficult questions are in the middle, and the hardest questions are last.
• You can skip around while taking the test. The ability to skip the occasional question is helpful, as we explain in the next chapter.
• All questions are worth the same number of points, no matter their difficulty.

The Calculator

Unlike the SAT I, in which a calculator is permitted but not essential to the test, the Math IC test demands the use of a calculator. In fact, that’s what the “C” in IC stands for. Some questions on the test are specifically designed to test your calculator-using skills.

It is therefore wise to learn all the essentials about calculators before taking SAT II Math IC. First, make sure you have the right type of calculator. Virtually any calculator are may be used during the test, including programmable and graphing calculators. Laptops, minicomputers, or any machine that prints, makes noise, or needs to be plugged in are prohibited.

Whatever calculator you use for the test should have all the following functions:

• Exponential powers
• Base-10 logarithms
• Sine, cosine, tangent

Make sure you practice each of these functions on your calculator before taking the test. We tell you more about how to use calculators for the test in the next chapter.

Scoring SAT II Math IC

Scoring on the SAT II Math IC is the same as the scoring for all other SAT II tests. For every right answer, you earn one point. For every wrong answer, you lose ¹/₄ of a point. For every answer left blank, you earn zero points. These points combined equal your raw score. ETS converts your raw score to a scaled score according to a special curve tailored to the particular test you take. We have included a generalized version of that curve in a table below. Use this table to convert your raw scores on practice tests into an approximate scaled score.

Average Raw Score	Scaled Score	Average Raw Score	Scaled Score
50	800	18–19	480
49	780	17	470
48	770	16	460
47	760	15	450
46	740	14	440
45	730	13	430
44	720	12	430
43	710	11	420
42	700	10	410
41	690	9	400
40	680	8	390
39	670	7	380
38	660	6	370
37	650	5	370
36	640	4	360
35	630	3	350
34	610	2	340
33	600	1	330
32	590	0	330
31	580	–1	320
30	570	–2	310
29	560	–3	300
28	550	–4	300
27	550	–5	290
26	540	–6	280
25	530	–7	270
24	520	–8	260
23	510	–9	260
22	510	–10	250
21	500	–11	240
20	490	–12	230

As you can see, this curve is not very forgiving. Getting just one question wrong will lower your score by 20 points. Reiterating what we said earlier, you can miss a bunch of questions on the Math IIC and still get the same score you would receive on the Math IC if you missed just one. For example, a raw score of 41 on the Math IIC test receives an equivalent scaled score as a raw score of 49 on the Math IC test.

But all is not hopeless on the SAT II Math IC. On a 50-question test, you could score:

• 780 if you answered 49 right, 0 wrong, and left 1 blank
• 740 if you answered 46 right, 0 wrong, and left 4 blank
• 700 if you answered 43 right, 4 wrong, and left 3 blank
• 650 if you answered 39 right, 8 wrong, and left 3 blank
• 650 if you answered 38 right, 4 wrong, and left 7 blank
• 600 if you answered 35 right, 8 wrong, and left 7 blank

These sample scores suggest that when taking the test, you shouldn’t imagine your score plummeting with every question you can’t confidently answer. Don’t get unnecessarily wound up if you run into a difficult question; the key to doing well on SAT II Math IC is to follow a strategy that ensures you will see and answer all the questions you can, while intelligently guessing on those slightly fuzzier questions. We discuss these strategies in the next chapter.

Introduction to SAT II Math IC

The key to success on any test is simple: know your subject. But just knowing the material isn’t enough to guarantee a good score on SAT II Math IC—if you walked into an exam completely blind, with no preparation besides having read a textbook, and no knowledge of how you’d even be tested, you might spend so much energy trying to figure out how to take the test that you’d only get halfway through it.

That’s where this chapter comes in handy. We’ve broken down the Math IC by content and format, giving you a behind-the-scenes look at how your exam is written, organized, and scored. You’ll know what to expect before you even enter the testing room.

Content of SAT II Math IC

The Math IC test covers a variety of topics. ETS, the company that writes the test, provides the following breakdown of coverage:

Topic	Percent of Test	Usual Number of Questions
Algebra	30%	15
Plane Geometry	20%	10
Solid Geometry	6%	3
Coordinate Geometry	12%	6
Trigonometry	8%	4
Functions	12%	6
Statistics and Sets	6%	3
Miscellaneous	6%	3

This breakdown is accurate, but it is too broad to help you direct your studying in any meaningful way. That’s why we created this more detailed breakdown of the test:

Topic	Percent of Test	Usual Number of Questions
Algebra	30%	15
Arithmetic	1–3%	1
Equation solving	18–22%	10
Binomials, polynomials, quadratics	5–7%	3
Plane Geometry	20%	10
Lines and angles	3–5%	2
Triangles, polygons, circles	14–18%	8
Solid Geometry	6%	3
Solids (cubes, cylinders, cones, etc.)	7–9%	4
Inscribed solids, solids by rotation	1–3%	1
Coordinate Geometry	12%	6
Lines and distance	7–9%	4
Graphing	1–3%	1
Conic sections (parabolas, circles)	3–5%	2
Trigonometry	8%	4
Basic functions (sine, cosine, tangent)	3–5%	2
Trigonometric identities	1–3%	1
Functions	12%	6
Basic, compound, inverse functions	7–9%	4
Graphing functions	1–3%	1
Domain and range of functions	1–3%	2
Statistics and Sets	1–3%	2
Mean, median, mode	6%	3
Probability	1–3%	1
Permutations and combinations	1–2%	0.5
Group questions, sets	1–2%	0.5
Miscellaneous	6%	3
Arithmetic and geometric series	1–2%	0.5
Logic	1–3%	1
Limits	1–2%	0.5
Imaginary numbers	1–2%	0.5

This book is organized according to these categories, allowing you to focus on each topic to whatever degree you feel necessary. Also, each question in the practice tests at the back of this book is grouped by the above categories, so that you can very precisely identify your weaknesses and then use this book to address them.