Swedish Scholastic Aptitude Test
Encyclopedia
The Swedish Scholastic Aptitude Test (abbreviation SweSAT; Högskoleprovet in Swedish
) is a standardized test
used as one of the means to gain admission to higher education
in Sweden
. The test itself, which is administered by the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education
, is divided into five sections and contains 122 multiple-choice questions. All sections are taken in one day, a Saturday in April (Spring test) or October (Fall test), lasting between 7½-8 hours including breaks between each section and a lunch break. Apart from the English language
reading comprehension
test, all sections are taken in Swedish
. The result on the test is normalized to a scale between 0.0 and 2.0, with 0.1 increment
s. About 0.6% of the test-takers are awarded 2.0, which is the highest grade. Usually, 109 or 110 marks (out of 122) are required for 2.0. The average normated score for the test is normally around 0.95, with the test being normalised so that approximately one third of test-takers receive a score in the range 0.9-1.1.
The questions and answers to the test are posted the same day as the exam in the evening newspapers and the following day in morning newspapers. Solutions can also be found in SVT
s text-TV
, online on the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education's website, studera.nu, and the official Högskoleprovet website.
The test-takers are allowed to mark down their answers on an additional provided answer sheet in addition to the sheet that they hand in to test supervisor. The test-takers are allowed to bring this with them after the test is concluded, and can use it to check their answers against the test key which are published on the internet, teletext
and newspapers after the test is completed. This only allows the test-takers to find out their raw score
, as opposed to the normalized score which is used for university applications, but by comparing this results to the normalisation tables of prior tests an accurate estimate can be made.
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
) is a standardized test
Standardized test
A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a...
used as one of the means to gain admission to higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. The test itself, which is administered by the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education
Swedish National Agency for Higher Education
The Swedish National Agency for Higher Education, or Högskoleverket is a Swedish government agency. It is in charge of inspecting and promoting higher education sector activities, through follow-up and evalutation of higher education, quality assessment, initiatives for updating teaching methods...
, is divided into five sections and contains 122 multiple-choice questions. All sections are taken in one day, a Saturday in April (Spring test) or October (Fall test), lasting between 7½-8 hours including breaks between each section and a lunch break. Apart from the English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
reading comprehension
Reading comprehension
Reading comprehension is defined as the level of understanding of a text. This understanding comes from the interaction between the words that are written and how they trigger knowledge outside the text. ....
test, all sections are taken in Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
. The result on the test is normalized to a scale between 0.0 and 2.0, with 0.1 increment
Increment
An increment is an increase of some amount, either fixed or variable. For example one's salary may have a fixed annual increment or one based on a percentage of its current value...
s. About 0.6% of the test-takers are awarded 2.0, which is the highest grade. Usually, 109 or 110 marks (out of 122) are required for 2.0. The average normated score for the test is normally around 0.95, with the test being normalised so that approximately one third of test-takers receive a score in the range 0.9-1.1.
The questions and answers to the test are posted the same day as the exam in the evening newspapers and the following day in morning newspapers. Solutions can also be found in SVT
Sveriges Television
Sveriges Television AB , Sweden's Television, is a national television broadcaster based in Sweden, funded by a compulsory fee to be paid by all television owners...
s text-TV
Teletext
Teletext is a television information retrieval service developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s. It offers a range of text-based information, typically including national, international and sporting news, weather and TV schedules...
, online on the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education's website, studera.nu, and the official Högskoleprovet website.
Sections
The test is divided into 5 sections. Each are given in sessions lasting 50 minutes, with the exception of the ELF and ORD sections being grouped into one session (35 and 15 minutes, respectively). One of these sections is given twice, with only one of these being counted towards the test-takers' total scores and the other section is being used to evaluate questions for future tests, with the test-takers being unaware of which section is being counted towards their total.- DTK – Diagrams, Tables and Maps. This subtest measures the ability to interpret diagrams, tables and maps. The questions demand both the ability to identify information and to analyse data from different sources. This subtest consists of 20 questions out of the total 122. (50 minutes)
- ORD – Vocabulary. This subtest tests awareness of the meaning of words and concepts. The words may be of Swedish or foreign origin. They may also be archaic or words that have come into use in Swedish in recent years. Some words are dialectal. The items are taken from many different subject areas, and may also include widely used technical terms. This subtest consists of 40 questions out of the total 122. (15 minutes)
- LÄS – Reading Comprehension. This section tests the ability to understand five different texts in Swedish. The questions require the capacity to perceive details in the text and also to draw conclusions from the text as a whole. This subtest consists of 20 questions out of the total 122. (50 minutes)
- ELF – English Reading Comprehension. The ability to read and understand a non-fictitious text (often picked from newspapers or magazines) in English is tested in this section. It contains both long and short texts. One of the longer tests is a "Cloze test", which contains gaps where words have been omitted. The emphasis of this subtest is on the capacity to perceive information, follow an argument and draw conclusions on the basis of the text in English. This subtest consists of 20 questions out of the total 122. (35 minutes)
- NOG – Data Sufficiency. This section involves deciding whether enough information has been provided to solve a problem in arithmetic or geometry. The items require some mathematical skills, but is primarily aimed at testing the ability to draw logical conclusions. This subtest consists of 22 questions out of the total 122. (50 minutes)
The test-takers are allowed to mark down their answers on an additional provided answer sheet in addition to the sheet that they hand in to test supervisor. The test-takers are allowed to bring this with them after the test is concluded, and can use it to check their answers against the test key which are published on the internet, teletext
Teletext
Teletext is a television information retrieval service developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s. It offers a range of text-based information, typically including national, international and sporting news, weather and TV schedules...
and newspapers after the test is completed. This only allows the test-takers to find out their raw score
Raw score
In statistics and data analysis, a raw score is an original datum that has not been transformed. This may include, for example, the original result obtained by a student on a test as opposed to that score after transformation to a standard score or percentile rank or the like.Often the conversion...
, as opposed to the normalized score which is used for university applications, but by comparing this results to the normalisation tables of prior tests an accurate estimate can be made.
See also
- List of admission tests to colleges and universities
- Education in SwedenEducation in SwedenEducation in Sweden is mandatory for all children from year 1 to year 9 - generally from the year of the child’s seventh birthday to the year of the child’s 16th...
- List of universities in Sweden
External links
- Högskoleprovet - Official site
- Swedish National Agency for Higher Education - Official site
- Provtips - Old exams, forum and hints and tips for the SWESAT (högskoleprovet)