A levels and the SAT
The SAT for A-level students
A-level students applying to the United States are adding a test their school does not teach to a timetable that was not built for it. Most of them know more than enough. What they lack is the format, the conventions and a sensible date.
When to sit it
A-level examinations run through May and June of Year 13, and many schools set internal examinations in the summer term of Year 12. Both sit on top of the SAT’s May and June dates. US applications are also earlier than UK ones feel: many early deadlines fall at the start of November of Year 13 and regular deadlines around the turn of the year.
Working backwards, the plan that holds up is to prepare across Year 12, take a first sitting in the spring of Year 12 or at the very start of Year 13, and keep a late autumn sitting for a resit. A student who starts thinking about the SAT in the autumn of Year 13 has one attempt and no margin. The test date table shows each sitting with its registration deadline.
What A levels cover, and what they leave out
| Student | Usually comfortable | Usually the gap |
|---|---|---|
| Taking A-level Maths | All of the algebra and functions; most of the geometry | Percentages, ratios and data questions from GCSE; wordy problem set-ups; speed |
| Not taking Maths past GCSE | Arithmetic and basic algebra | Advanced Math: quadratics, functions, exponentials, all needing a proper rebuild |
| Taking an essay subject | Reading arguments, weighing evidence | Punctuation rules as rules; the one-answer habit |
| Taking sciences only | Data, graphs, quantitative reading | Literary and humanities passages; vocabulary in context |
Generalisations, to be checked against a first mock.
The gaps a British curriculum leaves
- Punctuation taught as a system. The SAT’s Standard English Conventions questions test a short, fixed list of rules for commas, semicolons, colons and dashes. British schools rarely teach these explicitly, so students answer by ear and drop marks they need not. Learned as rules, they are among the fastest marks on the paper. Spelling is not tested, so British spelling costs nothing.
- Multiple choice at speed. A levels reward method marks and written reasoning. The SAT gives no credit for working and about a minute and a half per Math question, so a correct method finished late is worth nothing.
- Students who stopped maths at sixteen. Half the SAT total is Math. A student taking three essay subjects needs a planned return to algebra, and that takes longer than polishing a Maths A-level student, so it should start early in Year 12.
- The calculator. Desmos is built into the test app and behaves differently from the scientific calculator A-level students carry. The Math page covers how to use it.
How lessons run alongside A levels
Altair Prep teaches A-level students one to one and online, at a fixed weekly time after school. Lewis Watson teaches every lesson and both halves of the test, and as a full-time tutor since 2015 he also knows the A-level courses the student is sitting alongside it. Homework is marked between lessons and full mocks are sat in Bluebook, the app used on test day. Rates are on the fee sheet. Students at boarding schools usually take lessons in a free period or early evening.
Common questions from A-level students
When should an A-level student take the SAT?
Aim for a first sitting in the spring of Year 12 or at the very start of Year 13, and keep a late autumn sitting for a resit. A-level examinations fill May and June of Year 13, and many US early application deadlines fall at the start of November, so a first attempt in the autumn of Year 13 leaves no room for a second.
Is A-level Maths harder than SAT Math?
In content, yes. SAT Math stops well short of A-level material: there is no calculus, and the hardest topics are quadratics, functions, exponentials and some trigonometry. What makes SAT Math difficult is different: dense wording, about a minute and a half per question, no method marks, and a good deal of percentage, ratio and data work that A-level students last practised at GCSE.
Can I take the SAT if I do not take A-level Maths?
Yes, and many successful applicants do, but plan for it. Math is half of the 1600 total, and its Advanced Math questions go beyond GCSE in places. A student who stopped maths at sixteen should allow extra months for algebra and functions specifically, and should start that work early in Year 12.
Does Altair Prep teach A-level students?
Yes. At Altair Prep, Lewis Watson teaches A-level students one to one online, in the UK and at British-curriculum schools abroad, after school or in a free period, including students at boarding schools. He teaches both the Math and the Reading and Writing halves himself, and plans each student's preparation around their A-level examination dates and their US application deadlines.
Fitting the SAT around A levels?
Tell Lewis which year the student is in, their A-level subjects and the universities in mind. The intro call and the trial lesson are both free.
Prefer email? Write to lewis@altairprep.com.
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