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SAT Physics: Pattern, Syllabus, Questions, Tips, and Practice Papers
SAT Physics is a one-hour multiple-choice test on physics. The purpose of the SAT Physics subject test is to evaluate a candidate's grasp and understanding of the subject. The test also evaluates the candidate's aptitude for using these concepts to solve a range of problems. SAT physics tests have 3 distinct types of questions: recall questions, single-concept questions, and multiple-concept questions. The SAT subject test has a score range of 200-800.
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SAT Subject Test Physics Pattern
The SAT subject test physics has the following exam pattern for the SAT Physics test:
- The SAT Physics exam is an hour, consisting of 75 multiple-choice questions.
- There are five options for each question. It is important to note that the questions have different forms.
- There are stand-alone SAT physics questions as well as questions that are a part of a larger group.
- The time available to the examinee is quite constrained. It shouldn't take more than a minute or a few seconds to answer each SAT physics question.
- There aren't many difficult questions on this test because cracking the SAT physics subject test does not have much time allotted for it. The method of solving challenging calculative issues does not need to take a lot of time.
SAT Physics Syllabus
SAT physics subject test exam mainly assesses the first-year of university fundamental Physics knowledge. Along with logical and problem-solving aptitude and lab sessions for physics. SAT physics subject test pattern and syllabus include:
- Mechanics
- Electricity and magnetism
- Waves and optics
- Heat and thermodynamics
- Modern physics
- Miscellaneous Questions
SAT Physics Subject Test: Topics and Sub-topics
SAT subject physics topics include:
| Areas | Sub-Areas |
|---|---|
| Mechanics(36-42%) | Kinematics - Velocity, acceleration, motion in one dimension, and motion of projectiles. |
| Dynamics - force, Newton’s laws, statics, and friction | |
| Energy and momentum, potential and kinetic energy, work, power, impulse, and conservation laws | |
| Circular motion, uniform circular motion, and centripetal force | |
| Simple harmonic motion, mass on a spring, and the pendulum | |
| Gravity – law of gravitation, orbits, and Kepler’s laws | |
| Electricity and Magnetism(18-24%) | Electric fields, forces, and potentials, Coulomb’s law, induced charge, field and potential of groups of point charges, and charged particles in electric fields |
| Capacitance, parallel-plate capacitors, and time-varying behavior in charging/ discharging | |
| Circuit elements and DC circuits, resistors, light bulbs, series and parallel networks, Ohm’s law, and Joule’s law | |
| Magnetism, permanent magnets, fields caused by currents, particles in magnetic fields, Faraday’s law, and Lenz’s law | |
| Waves and Optics(15-19%) | General wave properties – wave speed, frequency, wavelength, superposition, standing wave diffraction, and Doppler effect |
| Reflection and refraction, Snell’s law and changes in wavelength and speed | |
| Ray optics, image formation using pinholes, mirrors, and lenses | |
| Physical optics, single-slit diffraction, double-slit interference, polarization, and color | |
| Heat and Thermodynamics(6-11%) | Thermal properties, temperature, heat transfer, specific and latent heats, and thermal expansions |
| Laws of thermodynamics – first and second laws, internal energy, entropy, and heat engine efficiency | |
| Modern Physics(6-11%) | Quantum phenomena, photons, and photoelectric effect |
| Atomic, Rutherford, and Bohr models, atomic energy levels, and atomic spectra | |
| Nuclear and particle physics, radioactivity, nuclear reactions, and fundamental particles | |
| Relativity, time dilation, length contraction, and mass-energy equivalence | |
| Miscellaneous(4-9%) | History of physics and general questions that overlap several major topics |
| Analytical skills – graphical analysis, measurement, and math skills | |
| Contemporary physics – astrophysics, superconductivity, and chaos theory |
SAT Physics Question Types
SAT physics paper shows 3 types of questions:
- Recall questions (fundamental knowledge is required for this and 12-20% of SAT physics questions are of this type)
Example:
- Single concept questions (compact subjective knowledge is required for this and 48-64% of SAT physics questions are of this type)
Example:
- Multiple concept questions (ability to connect ideas of different concepts of physics is required for this and 12-20% if SAT physics questions are of this type)
Example:
Candidates can get the idea of each question type by going through the SAT exam physics online practice test.
Important Point to Remember
Cracking the SAT physics subject test will be easier if the below few points are kept in mind:
- SAT Physics subject test is conducted in the month of August, October, November, December, May and June.
- Calculator is not allowed in SAT 2 Physics, no matter how hard the question is.
- Problem solving needs to be in simple numerical calculations
- Measurements will be expressed in the metric system.
SAT Physics Preparation Tips
SAT physics subject test helps those candidates to stand out who are aspiring to pursue a science or math-related program. Here are some SAT preparation tips to follow to score better in SAT Physics:
- Preparation from authentic study materials to remember the knowledge they have learned. Students must also revisit concepts and solve problems as often as they can.
- Students may be able to enhance their test pace and time management by timing themselves while taking practice exams.
- Students must mark their erroneous answers from the practice test and analyze what went wrong. Did they not grasp the concept, did they misread the question, or did they make a careless mistake?
- To answer many physics problems, formulas are needed. To tackle SAT physics problems, students will need to be familiar with the formulae that describe physical connections.
- Every wrong attempt gives students ¼ negative points. To avoid such problems, candidates must use the elimination process to get the answer.
- Avoid spending too much time on one question, and skip if the question is confusing.
SAT Physics Books
Given below are the authentic Physics preparation books for SAT to enhance better scores. These books comprise SAT physics questions with solutions from physics SAT past papers for better SAT scores:
- Barron’s SAT Subject Test Physics - Check PDF
- The Official SAT Subject Test in Physics Study Guide - Check PDF
- Cracking the SAT Physics Subject Test – Princeton Review - Check PDF
- Sterling Test Prep – SAT Physics Practice Questions
- McGraw Hill’s – SAT Subject Test Physics
- SAT II Physics Guide Book-Check PDF
SAT Physics Practice Papers
SAT Physics practice papers guide the candidates in learning the concepts, problem-solving, and reasoning skills. During preparation, the candidate must study from the answer keys provided in the SAT physics practice papers. They will be able to know the mistakes behind their incorrect answers.
Candidates must be able to work with equations, interpret a graph, understand the metric system to perform well on the SAT Physics test. There are some physics subject test practice topics like trigonometric identities, calculus, three-dimensional vectors and graphs, and physical constants. Take SAT Physics practice exams and study the SAT Physics test questions for better preparation and SAT scores.
SAT 2024 : 5 Answered QuestionsView All
Ans. People with scores of 1500 or higher often aim for the IIM Ranchi IPM program. With a score of 1160, you may not be in a strong position to get a call from IIM Ranchi, but if you have strong extracurricular activities and good academic performance in the past (e.g. in 10th and 12th grade), you may still have a chance. If you do not receive a call from IIM Ranchi, you can still try for the IIM Indore IPM-AT program. You must keep in mind that IIM Ranchi may also consider applicants for the IIM Indore IPM-AT program. It's worth giving it your best effort. Read more
Ans. IIM Ranchi has not disclosed a specific cutoff score for the SAT for admission to their Integrated Program in Management (IPM) program. However, according to an interview with the IIM Ranchi IPM admission panel, students who score highly on the SAT may be invited to participate in a personal interview. It is worth noting that this information is based on assumptions and research, and a score of 1400+ on the SAT may be considered a safe bet for admission consideration. However, it is also possible that a score of 1350+ could be sufficient if luck is on your side. Read more
Ans. I am willing to give you my honest opinion in this regard. Your score is good but not at par with the competition posed during IPM admissions. I have seen scores higher than this while attempting to get admission to the IPM program. But don’t let this discourage you as Indore also conducts an aptitude test IPMAT and admission is based on that too. You can work on this exam and compensate for your past low scores. Another option to compensate for your low marks is to upgrade your extracurricular background. IIM Indore actively considered extracurricular activities during admissions. But in the end I will still ask you to depend on IPMAT mostly for your admission Read more
Ans. IIM Ranchi offers an IPM Program based on SAT / IPMAT Scores. The Expected Cutoff for IPM via SAT is 930. Apart from this, we don’t have many criteria to base this admission on. So the benefit of the doubt goes to applicants having SAT scores soaring at about 1100–1600. The admission criteria for other programs are more flexible as it is based on parameters such as 10,12, UG scorecards. So it’s highly unlikely that even high marks will get you into IIM Ranchi. Read more
Ans. The admissions to the IPM Program are based on SAT / IPMAT Scores. The Expected Cutoff for IPM via IPMAT is 265 / 300. SAT Expected Cutoff for IPM Admission 2023 is as follows: Category SAT Cutoff General 1350 Other Backward Classes (OBC) 1050 Emotionally Weaker Sections (EWS) 1030 Scheduled Caste (SC) 930 Scheduled Tribes (ST) 930 Differently Abled (DAP) 800 Read more
*The article might have information for the previous academic years, which will be updated soon subject to the notification issued by the University/College
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