If you wish to study in the US for an undergraduate associate program or bachelor’s degree you need to prepare yourself for the entrance exams you need to endure to qualify and achieve premium education offered by US Colleges and Universities. The Educational Testing Service (ETS) is a non profit organization that provides assessment tests based on extensive research. Among the tests they administer are TOEFL, TOEIC, GRE and The Praxis series in more than 9,000 locations worldwide. Their work encompasses research, assessment, test administration, test scoring and instructional products and services.
Here are some of the tests required for college applicants.
Scholastic Aptitude Test
Scholastic Aptitude test or (SAT) is needed by undergraduate applicants. It has seven sections on verbal, math and experimental. Admission decisions are dependent on SAT scores that is why it is important to prepare for this exam. The test lasts for 3 hours with the following different type of exam questions: analogies, critical reasoning, sentence completion, problem solving and quantitative comparisons.
Graduate Management Admission Test
The Graduate Management Admission Test or (GMAT) is required by most business schools in the US. It is administered by the ETS and they also administer the GMAT Computer Adaptive Test or (GMAT-CAT). You can check their website for more information. The exam consists of multiple choice sections both quantitative and verbal and an essay section called AWA, Analytical Writing Assessment which is administered first. The AWA includes two writing tests lasting 30 minutes each typing the essay into a word rich text program in the computer.
Graduate Record Exam
The Graduate Record Exam is administered to students who want to study graduate or Post-Graduate in the US. This test helps administrators to measure and gauge the intellectual capability of students coming from different colleges and universities. Most undergraduates are screened through their academic scores and analytic skills to further evaluate their capability to pursue a Master’s program.
Test of English as a Foreign Language
The Test of English as a Foreign Language is a test for students who are not native English speakers. In order to pursue Graduate or post- graduate study in the US one’s English proficiency needs to be assessed. TOEFL is required for more than 2,500 universities and colleges in the US and is also a standard test in admitting foreign students in other countries like Canada and UK.
Most of these tests are administered using a computer called Computer Adaptive tests. It only takes basic knowledge of computer to undergo this kind of test. In the CAT, there is a large database of questions where the computer randomly chooses from different levels of difficulty. The first level is always intermediate and from your answer the computer will determine the difficulty level of the next question. Before hitting the next button you must be very sure of your answer as you cannot go back and change it.
