Admission Exams
Which Tests Do You Need?
The American system of education relies on various standardized tests, which students must take in order to apply to a particular university or program.
As well as your high school qualifications, most US universities require one of two aptitude tests to evaluate your academic level prior to acceptance: the SAT or the ACT.
SAT
The SAT is an an entrance exam which is made up two sections: Math, and Verbal (the verbal section is comprised of Critical Reading, and Writing.) Each section is graded with a score ranging from 200-800. The score from both of these sections are added together to give you a total SAT score out of 1600 points.
To find out more about the SAT, take a practice test, or register for the next testing date visit sat.collegeboard.org.
ACT
The ACT measures English, Math, Reading, and Science, and is scored differently than the SAT. Each of the these four sections is scored out of 36 points, the average of these four scores will then make up your composite score. This is the score that colleges will look for in your application.
For more information on the ACT, to practice the test, or register for the next testing date visit actstudent.org.
English proficiency
For those applicants who come from a country where English is not the native language, they will also have to submit a further exam score to prove their English proficiency ahead of studying in America. As with the admissions exams, students have two options: TOEFL or IELTS
TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)
The TOEFL test measures receptive and expressive skills equally: half of the total score on the test is based on reading and listening abilities, while the other half is based on speaking and writing abilities. The internet-based format, is approximately 3 to 4 hours long and your score is valid for two years.
To find out more information about the TOEFL or to register for your exam visit http://www.ets.org/toefl.
IELTS (International English Language Testing System)
The IELTS exam is designed to assess the language ability of candidates, testing them across four different sections: Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. Upon completing the exam applicants will receive an overall score between 1 and 9. Half scores such as 5.5 are possible. Universities often seek applicants to have a score of 6.0 and higher. There are currently over 500 IELTS test centres, in over 120 countries.
To find out more information about the IELTS exam or to register for your exam visit https://www.ielts.org.
We will help all of our applicants to register for the required exams to ensure that they are eligible for admission to their future university.
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