The SAT is an aptitude test that measures your ability to learn.  It now has three component areas:  Writing, Critical Reading, and Math.  With the addition of the Writing section, the SAT got even longer.  There are seven 25-minute section, two 20-minute sections, and a 10-minute section.  Students are given a score in each of the three areas.  These are added together for an overall score.  The math section goes through what the College Prep student learns in his or her junior year of high school and is highly Algebra I, Euclidian Geometry, and Algebra II.  It includes a large amount of reasoning and analogies.  Scoring the SAT Reasoning Test is a two-step process. First, a raw score is calculated: one point is added for each multiple-choice question answered correctly. Unanswered questions receive no points. For multiple-choice questions answered incorrectly, 1/4 point is subtracted. No points are subtracted for incorrect answers to the SAT math questions requiring student-produced responses. Questions in the SAT equating section do not count toward the score. Next, the total points answered wrong are subtracted from the number answered correctly. If the resulting score is a fraction, it is rounded to the nearest whole number—1/2 or more is rounded up; less than 1/2 is rounded down. Then, the raw score is converted to the College Board 200-to-800 scaled score by a statistical process called equating. Because of the way the SAT is scored, it is not to your advantage to guess, as incorrect answers are deducted from your score.  The SAT is recommended for the College Prep student who is planning to attend a four-year university immediately following graduation.  The SAT is not recommended for students who do not have the appropriate math background.  The SAT is accepted by any four year school in the state of Georgia .

The ACT is also an aptitude test, but is formatted like an achievement test much like the graduation tests.  It tests what you have been taught and your ability to recall facts.  The ACT has four required sections:  English, Math, Reading , and Science.  There is also now an optional essay that is used to calculate a Writing score. Unlike the SAT, where each subject area is divided into three sections, the ACT uses just one section for each subject tested.  The first section is English, which is 45 minutes, then Math (60 minutes), Reading (35 minutes), and Science (35 minutes).  The optional essay, administered at the end of the ACT, takes 30 minutes.  Scoring is based on the number of correct answers in each section.  The section scores are averaged together to get the composite score.  The essay is not included in the composite score, but is graded and combined with the English score to create a Writing score.  Because of the way the ACT is scored, it is to your advantage to make an educated guess when you do not know the answer because incorrect answers are not counted.  The ACT is accepted by any four year school in the state of Georgia .  The ACT is not recommended for students planning to attend a technical college or two year college, unless the two year college requires an ACT score.

The ASSET test is the placement test used by the technical colleges to determine placement in their programs.  Once you apply to a technical college, that college will send you information about this test.  The ASSET test and tutoring for it are free of charge.  If you know that you are going to a technical college after high school, this is the test for you.