Introduction to the SAT II Biology

The key to doing well on the SAT II Biology test is simple: be really good at biology. But it might surprise you to know that the biology whiz who spends the week before taking the SAT II cramming on the nuances of mitochondrial DNA and the physiological role of the amygdala probably won’t fare any better on the test than the average student who reviews this book carefully. Why? Because the SAT II Biology doesn’t cover mitochondrial DNA or the amygdala.

Happy? Good. In this chapter we’ll tell you precisely what the SAT II Biology will cover, how the test breaks down, and what format the questions will take. Take this information to heart and base your study plan around it. There’s no use studying topics you won’t be tested on, or spending countless hours studying bacterial diversity while ignoring meiosis, which is covered far more extensively by the test.

The Strange Dual Nature of the SAT II Biology

The official name of the SAT II Biology is actually the SAT II Biology E/M. The test has this strange name because it’s actually two tests built into one. One test, the Biology E Test, emphasizes ecology and evolution. The other test, the Biology M Test, emphasizes molecular biology and evolution. On test day, you will take either the Biology E or the Biology M test. You can’t take both.

The Biology E and Biology M Tests aren’t completely dissimilar. In fact, out of a total of 80 questions, the two tests share a core of the same 60 questions. The test contains an additional 40 questions, split between the E and M specialty sections. So if you take the Biology E test, you will only have to answer the section of 20 ecology and evolution questions. If you take the Biology M, you need only answer the molecular biology and evolution section.

Content of the SAT II Biology

The SAT II Biology covers the biology topics taught in any standard American high school biology course, with particular emphasis on either ecology or molecular biology. ETS breaks the test down into five basic categories:

Topic	Number of Questions
Cellular and Molecular Biology	8–11
Ecology	8–11
Classical Genetics	7–9
Organismal Biology	22–26
Evolution and Diversity	7–10

As we said, depending on which specialty section you elect to take, you will also face 20 questions (25 percent of the total questions you will see) in either ecology/evolution or molecular biology/evolution.

While these categories are helpful, they are also very broad. For example, you may have cell structure down pat, but biochemistry throws you for a loop, and you would like to get a sense of how much of the test is devoted to these two topics. To help you out, we’ve broken the core of the test down even further, so that you’ll know exactly where to expect to feel the squeeze.