Using the process of elimination on the SAT and ACT can lead to success. Starting the academic year in sixth form means one of two things: either you are just starting Year 12/L6 and you are getting started on those testing plans or you are going into Year 13/U6 and you might be taking the SAT or ACT one last time. Either way, testing can seem like a daunting task. These exams are very different from exams in the UK. The main difference is that most of the questions are multiple choice. Elimination is a key tool to help you succeed across all sections of the test.

When you start any section, make sure to write down all working out and keep track of your thinking. On the SAT, while it is still paper, this means annotating your test paper. For the online ACT, this means using the tools at your disposal. You can read about some of the ACT online tools here. Keep an eye on our blog as we will be posting an update about the online SAT!

When you are going through the answer choices, remember that an answer choice is more likely to be wrong than right. For most questions, there are four answer choices (except on the ACT Maths section where there are five). This means that the probability of an answer choice being right is 25% and the probability of it being wrong is 75%. That’s quite a big difference! Students can waste a lot of time going through each answer choice and trying to see why it might be right. Reverse this thinking! Go through the answer choice and see why it might be wrong. When you decide that an answer choice is wrong, cross it out. Doing this will stop your brain from automatically including it when you are reviewing the question.When you are evaluating an answer choice, remember that for an answer choice to be correct, every single word needs to be true and needs to answer the question. This is especially important in the reading section. Often students are distracted by answer choices that are only partially true but might be more detailed. Take the following as an example:

Question: The central idea of the fourth paragraph is that:

1. European countries excel at public transportation
2. Some public transportation systems are superior to travel by private automobile
3. Americans should mimic foreign public transportation systems when possible
4. Much international public transportation is engineered for passengers to work while on board.

Now the student determined that the fourth paragraph was about the benefits of public transportation. Using elimination, we can determine that A and C are incorrect because the central idea was not about European countries excelling nor was it about American transportation. D seems like a tempting option because it offers an example and seems more detailed. However, this does not answer the question! The question is asking about the central idea and not an example in the paragraph. B is therefore the correct answer.

At Vela Education, we work with many experienced tutors alongside the advising process. Testing can be vital to a student’s application. If you aren’t sure whether you should be testing, you can schedule a strategic consultation. Whatever your questions, Vela Education is here to help!