The Shsat test is a subject-specific exam that determines whether or not you can get into the college of your choice. It’s one of the most important exams in high school, and it’s not as bad as people make it out to be! In this post, we’ll go over all about the syllabus, so if you’re looking to prepare for this challenging yet rewarding test, keep reading.

What does shsat cover?

Shsat covers math problems from algebra up through calculus; English grammar questions including usage and punctuation; science with biology and chemistry.

-Math problems

Geometry

Algebra I & II

Trigonometry

Calculus I & II

Math Analysis, Combinatorics, and Probability Theory (if not taken in higher-level math course)

Precalculus

– Social Studies

U.S. History or World Cultures and Geography: one of these subjects must be covered on the test; choices include Western Civilization, Modern European History, African-American History, Latin American history…etc.; all other social studies are optional but may appear if they’re part of your school’s curriculum. The teacher will let you know which subject is required for shsat.

– English

The shsat test covers all four of the basic English skills: reading comprehension, sentence structure, usage, and punctuation. Reading comprehension will be a large part of your score; it’s hard to answer questions about grammar if you can’t read! It may have science passages in it as well. There are occasional math problems on this section too so make sure you review those before taking the exam.

– Quantitative Reasoning

This is one of the most difficult sections because there are no visuals or graphics that accompany these “fill in the blank” type questions which mean they’re harder to visualize sometimes but good luck with everything! You’ll need to know algebraic manipulations for starters and how to solve more complex equations than you may have seen in your math class.

– Writing

The shsat writing section is the easiest of all four tests because it’s just one essay question; you’ll need to write about why a person should or shouldn’t be allowed to vote, and then justify your opinion with at least two reasons. The only thing that can get tricky here are wordy sentences so make sure yours are concise.

– Speaking

This is the hardest section of all because it’s completely unscripted and arbitrary; you’ll need to answer questions in English without any help as fast as possible. You can’t prepare for this part, but just know that if you’re a good speaker then you have an advantage over other test takers who aren’t!

– Reading Comprehension

The reading comprehension section will require students to read passages from books or articles, comprehend what they are reading, and then give answers about their understanding of the passage. The following subjects may be covered: social science (e.g., psychology), natural sciences (e.g., biology), or humanities (e.g., Ulysses). Students might also encounter short passages with both a passage and questions about it or passages with short answer questions.

– Science

The shsat science section will have two parts: biology and chemistry, but you can take both during the same sitting if you would like to; there are no calculators allowed on this part of the test so you’ll need to know your formulas beforehand. There may be math problems in these sections as well!