The Math section of the SAT exam is designed to assess students’ skills in mathematics, analysis, problem-solving, flexibility, and more. The section consists of 2 modules and includes a total of 44 questions. In the Math section, you will encounter two main types of questions: multiple-choice and student-produced response questions. Let’s take a closer look at each of these types.
Multiple-Choice Questions
There are 33 multiple-choice math questions on the SAT exam. These questions should look familiar to you, as you have likely encountered them in many other tests. The main difference is that in the SAT, each multiple-choice question has four answer choices—unlike the five you might be used to in other tests. Of course, each question has only one correct answer.
Student-Produced Response (Grid-In) Questions
Previously known as grid-in questions, these are open-ended questions that require the student to enter their own answer. They make up 11 of the 44 questions in the Math section. Due to changes introduced with the digital format of the exam, once you calculate your answer, you can type it directly into a response box on the computer screen. Unlike before, your answer can now be a negative number. It’s important to follow some key rules for these types of questions:
- If you find more than one possible answer, enter only one.
- A positive answer may be up to 5 digits in length. A negative answer may be up to 6 characters, including the minus sign.
- If you get a fractional answer like 175/3216 that exceeds the character limit, you may simplify the fraction or express it as a decimal equivalent.
- If the decimal is too long, round it to the fourth decimal place.
- Enter mixed numbers as improper fractions or decimal equivalents.
- Do not include symbols such as commas, percent signs, or dollar signs in your answer.
