I'm a sophomore in highschool, and i plan on taking the Korean SAT subject tests as one of the subject tests i plan to take (that & biology).

Has anyone taken this test?
What books would help on studying for the exam?
How hard/easy was the test & What is your lvl of korean?

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I'm korean and have grown up speaking korean to my parents back & forth fluently, with only sometimes conglish used. I watch alot of korean dramas and i understand everything. The only thing i'm worried about is grammer. ><; & the writting (which is..grammer hehee)

there's a lot of SAT korean books out there but make sure that you buy one that has the least amount of errors (i noticed that A LOT of sat korean prep books have a lot of errors)

the test was pretty okay...i actually took it two times...the first time i took it, i just went into the room without studying & i thought i was gonna do bad but i ended up doing okay & the second time (when i actually studied) i ended up with the same score as my first test...

if you speak korean fluently, i dont think you have to worry too much ...

did you take korean school? it helped for me

I took korean school for about from about 1st gr. to 5th grade..? Then i stopped because i had moved to a region that didn't offer korean school. ^ ^;

My parents are suggesting me to do this 'every sathurday' meet @ church, they apparently offer..um, korean sat prep. I might do that too.

test's pretty dumbbbb
the people in listening section sound funny. :]

haha, seriously? How well did you do on the test? (x

definitely take advantage of that opportunity...but the test itself was okay (but the listening part might get boring - i always dont pay attention to this part)...also, i'm not sure if they are...but there might be an essay section this year

was there a writing sections for the krn sat? cuz i cant write in korean

i heard that if you get perfect score you're only in the 50th percentile LOL cuz only smart ppl take it

^ Yeah I wasn't sure what percentile perfect score was, but since the Korean SAT II was created fairly recently, I heard it's still really easy. Also, a lot of fobs take it for an easy 800 which probably screws up the curve a bit. There are some sample questions online, so you might want to try those first.

Unless they're changing it for this year's test, there shouldn't be an essay portion... you should check up on collegeboard for that too.

I took the official practice one in the College Board's book and got a 780. I made some stupid errors. I think I got like 5 wrong or something. Overall it's easy, I just needed to brush up on a few errors.

Well, it's not hard if you can teach yourself to read Korean. For example, I never went to Korean school because I absolutely detested the idea of going to the institutions, but I taught myself to read Korean by constantly reading Korean lyrics. And, I did just as well as fobs. Just learn to read somewhat fast and know your grammar. Good luck. But, if you'd really like to learn from a book, use Hollym's 2nd edition.

770, without preparing for the test -__-

Oh hey, we're in the same boat
I'm a sophomore too and took it this past November.
I moved to America when I was 4, and spoke pretty fluent Korean to my parents growing up too.
The test should be fairly easy, no worries.
If you have any connections with Korean school teachers, ask them for a book.
They might even have a sample test.
Just review a bit and you'll be fine.
Everything's pretty much really easy.
+ The books are harder then the actual test itself.
Hope this helped and good luck!

haha, Thank you very much! ^ ^
It did provide me some relief.
I'm just worried about the writting/grammer portion.
I can speak & understand pretty well.
I guess i'll be spending the next year reviewing
& doing some practice!

Thanks everyone!
& Good luck to everyone who is taking them!

EDIT//
I haven't taken it yet. ^ ^;
I plan on taking it during my junior year i suppose or senior year.
Does anyone know when we need to sign up for it?
I know most public schools don't hold korean sat subject testings...

^Only November. Public schools do hold them.

it's really easy.
just don't fall asleep like i did during the listening section -0-
they were talking really.. slowly LOL :X
i was like dozing off like crazy.

and if you wanted to study, i'd say, study grammar section the most.
for practice tests, that was my weakest spot b/c like all of them kind of sound right to me b/c as i was raised i used grammatically incorrect phrases and it kind of grew on me, you nkow? so it sounds right HAHa.

but yeah that and reading comp is easy peasy so no worries.

but seroiusly fobs totally set the curve so it's unfair but. eh whatever.

and if this info's necessary... i was born in korea, came here to america when i was 2 years old.
and i speak, write, read, etc korean fluently

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearc...e=94513&z=y

Do you think this book would help?

To help increase my reading&writing skills, what books (korean) would you suggest me to read? Middleschool-highschool level.

i got 740,...thats horrible. 22 percentile. sooooooo. if you really know your korean well and you believe you can get all of it right..then go for it..
listening..freakin cant press rewind so i forgot when the guy was saying -.-

You can't press rewind?
isn't 740 a good score? o.O
or if you take this, you MUST get 100% correct?

It looks uncompetitive if you don't I guess is what the person above is trying to say. So many people get 800's (I believe you can get 3 wrong and still get 800) that even though 700's sound good, there are others who easily got 800.

i didnt study for this test. i think all you need is fluent korean and decent knowledge of korean grammar and etc. if you use korean daily/often, can read korean, and understand korean well then dont worry about it =D the listening was so boring =P i almost fell asleep.

If colleges looked @ it. Would 600-700 points look good? =/

over 740 would be better.
600-700 is, truthfully, bad especially if you're korean.

The Korean SAT II is notorious for being so easy >_<

I didn't study & had a terrible night before (broke up with my bf-_-) and still got 800.

If you're fluent in Korean, I don't think you need to do much prepping, but maybe do try out the listening portions and be aware of the different sections.

what i was explaining before..yea 740 sounds good..but at a 22 percentile..thats horrible. so know your stuff.
i thought it would be easy since i do speak and know some korean..not a very fluent speaker but yea you get the point

i thought i got like 770 but i got 800.
i was laughing my ass off when i saw my score.
i'm the worst korean speaker ever.
my parents, friends were all like WTF? when they found out i got 800

I'm kind of worried about it. ^ ^;

I'm bound to get some questions wrong~ grammer wise. =[

i agree..
a korean elementary student and ace it easily

what exactly are the benefits for taking the korean SAT??
cuss i heard some colleges don't even look at it;; << but then again,, my friend could be wrong

and is it better to take the test and get a bad grade or just not take it at all O.o
my korean is horrible and i have really low vocabulary T-T

to be real truthful here, i dont think the sat 2 korean benefits you.
if you take the korean sat's, get below 760, and you are korean, it can actually hurt you.

the only reason i took it was because korean comes easy for me.
i got a full score, 800 without any mistake.
but that makes sense because i went to korean school for 10 years.

whee, i loved the sat 2 test.
it's really really really really easy.

i've never been to korean school and i got an 800.
and i don't even hang around fobs. so it's that easy. haha

the only "hard" part about this is that once you start to slack off, it's a hassle to catch up.

my friend's mom is a korean teacher and she said "just watch korean television and if you're able to spell whatever they say and understand them, you're in good shape"

i took it last november
i'm from korea, came here when i was 7
i talk to my parents in korean fluently
i can read, write, and understand.
i didn't study for this test,
heard it was fairly easy from all the korean people i know
*you should definitely ask those around who you know that took it
and ask them if it is easy, this guy told me that i don't even need to study
since i know how to do everything...

i got 790.. missed one question on this direction such north,south,east,west because
there were all these answers i never heard of. i'm sure it was one of the difficult question given in the test.

there was a guy next to me taking the same test...
when we were listening to the listening part we both sighed
because it was really easy and was shocked at how easy it was..

here is some stuff i can say

listening part-
it is very easy.. definitely can get a perfect score on this part.
as long as you dont zone out because its boring, then your fine.
make sure you take your cd player... and dont zone out because
you can't rewind at all. i think the cd's are made so that they arent
rewindable.

here is an example from last test i remember because i laughed so hard ;

ex. a man & a women are talking in korean in very basic korean, back and forth about their summer plan
and a man asks the women where she will be in going. she says hangook.


question in the booklet ( oh btw they ask you the questions in english and the answers are in english)
where is the women going for her summer?
a.) *dont really remember which countries were listed
b.) *dont really remember which countries were listed
c.) Korea
d.) *dont really remember which countries were listed

reading-
if you know how to read in korea let's just say your definitely set. nothing much i can tell you


usage-
it give you bunch of korean words that are alike and sound alike but spelled slightly different
they give you a sentence with a blank (fill it in part) and you just choose the correct answer
some of the choice of answer are very obvious, however, if you really don't know how to spell
correctly and know the difference between the bottom spelling kind of thing then it will be kinda
confusing and difficult.

I don't think this test would really help much with colleges. But if you are fluent, I guess it wouldn't hurt to take it.
It is known to be extremely easy (second easiest SAT II, I think Chinese is first).

My teachers & others that help me with college preparation told me not to take it because:
1) If you don't get a 800, it looks bad because it is extremely easy and probably most people that take it get an 800.
2) If you do get an 800, it doesn't really help you and it's no big deal because it just says that you can speak your native language and you're among the large crowd of Koreans that got the same exact score as you.

you should becareful with those sound effect. i got a 780 cus i got one wrong. they asked like...what sound effect does a coin make when it drops or some mini cooper.

Yeah, don't take it unless you're going to get an 800 without a doubt. The 720 I got on my SATII US History was considered way better than the 800 I got on the SATII Korean because of percentiles.

Omg...I'm a sophomore too and I'm hecka nervous to take the Korean part too. I can understand/speak basic conversation stuff and spell basic words that don't include ㅔ,ㅐ, or something close to it and I read slow in Korean...but I got faster =)
My brother took it and he missed like 1 question x_x and my other brother missed like 2 or something :x

here are some example i have from the SAT subject Tests booklet i picked up in my career center


Simple Listening Questions

Directions: In this part of the test you will hear several spoken selections. They will not be printed in your test book. You will hear them only once. After each selection you will be asked one or more questions about what you have just heard. These questions, with four possible answers, are printed in your test booklet. Select the best answer to each question from amoug the four choices printed and fill in he corresponding circle on your answer sheet. Now listen to the first selection.

(Narrator) [listen to the following conversation. Then answer questions 1 and 2.]

(Woman) [한수야, 어제 전화했는데,
너 어디 갔었니?
(Man) 어제 우리형이 동부에서 와서 공항에 마중 나갔었어.
(W) 너, 형이 동부에 살아?
(M) 응, 대학교도 거기서 다녔는데,
지금은 졸업하고 회사에 다녀.
(W) 좋겠다. 형이 와서.
여기 얼마나 있을 건데?
(M) 오래 있으면 좋을 텐데,
휴가가 사흘밖에 없대.]

(Narrator) [question1. where di hansu go yesterday?] (16 seconds)
1. (a.) to his brother's office.
b. to his brother's house
c. to the airport.
d. to a graduation ceremony.

(Narrator) [question2. choose the correct statement based on the conversation you have just heard.]
2. a. hansu's brother is moving with hansu
b. hansu's brother has a four-day vacation
c. hansu's brotehr works on the west coast.
d. hansu's brother went to college on the east coast.


sample usage questions

direction: this section consists of a number of incomplete statements, each of which has four suggested completions. select the word or words that best compelte the sentence struturally and logically and fill in the coreesponding circle on the answer sheet.


1. 철수: 할아버지 진지 드셨어요?
할아버지: 그래, _____.

a. 잡쉈다
b. 먹었다
c. 드셨다
d. 하셨다

2. 현주: 어렸을 때 꿈이 뭐였어요?
민우: 저는 어렸을 때 경찰이 ____.

a. 되어 있었어요
b. 되어 버렸어요
c. 되고 싶었어요
d. 되고 말았어요

part b. directions: in each of the following paragraphs there are numbered blanks indicating that words or phrases have been omitted. for each numbered blank, four completions are provided. first read through the entire paragraph. then, for each numbered blank, choose the completion that is most appropriate and fill in the corresponding circle on the answer sheet.

나는 어려서부터 성격이 급해 서두른다는 말을 많이 들었다. 이런 성격 때문에 어른들께 꾸중도 ______ (8) 들었고, 늘 하교에 가지고 가야 할것을 덤벙대고 집에 두고 가거나, 어디 놀러 갈때는 이삼일전부터 준비해 놓으라고 야단법석을 ____(9) 어머니 속을 무척 ____(10) 드렸다. 그러나 이 급한 성격 덕분에 숙제만은 학교에서 오자마자 먼저 해 놓고 놀기 때문에 숙제로 걱정____. (11)

8. a. 자주 b. 마침. c. 드디어 d. 좀처럼

9. a. 덜어 b. 들어 c.떨어 d. 틀어

10. a.섞여 b.섞어 c.썩여 d. 썩게

11. a. 해 본 적이 있다 b. 해 본 적이 없다 c. 하는 수가 있다 d. 하는 수가 없다


sample reading questions

direction: read the following selections carefully for comprehension. each selection is followed by one or more questions or incomplete statements based on its content. choose the answer or completion that is best according to the selection and fill in the corresponding circle on the answer sheet.

일반 서적, 종교 서적,
각종 월간지 등
다양한 서적 구비
유편 주문 환영,
신속 배달 보증
회원에게는
각종 월간지 할인 판매

12. what kind of business is being advertised?
a. a bookstore
b. a gift shop
c. a delivery service
d. a drugstore

13. how can one recieve a special discount?
a. by mail order
b. by using a credit card
c. by membership
d. by buying a large quanity


-credits to collegeboard & me

It's very simple. I grew up speaking Korean at home.. watched Korean dramas.. listened to Korean music.. and that's about it. No Korean school, no practice books.. I answered them all correctly and got an 800. It's that simple ^^;;

Don't worry too much about it~ If you're really worried about your grammar, I suggest reading the Korean newspaper. If it doesn't interest you, just take the Sports & Entertainment page.

I did so bad on the PRACTICE SAT II KOREAN test that my korean school held. The listening was very easy (but i missed one because there was this little middle schoole r that was there, and was being loud..the principal came later to discipline him hehe anyways). The grammatical fill-in-blanks were fairly easy. There were some that had 2 "ok" answers..very similar that were hard to choose between. But that was okay. The reading section. I really did NOT feel like reading a big passage ._.' so i day dreamed/tried to read. Soon i found my eyes roaming the page (right to left, down, right to left0 and i wasn't reading it. I ran out of time at the end. Like 20-30 questions i gussed C, C, C, C, C on.
This other girl, whose in 8th grade taking the class, got to question 40 and then didn't finnish the rest =x

This was practice test..so there werent as many questions and it didn't last along time?

Arrgh. I have to READ korean more. Sure, I watch dramas and listen to alot of korean music--but that dosen't help with the 'reading alot of passages in a short time and answer questions'. Dx any tips?

you should study grammar,
stuff like onomonopoeia's.
excuse my spelling.
ex: 엉금엉금, and stuff like that.

My parents want me to take the sat 2 korean test.
It's in a month! I know I won't get an 800 but should I
take it anyway? I'll study and all. I understand korean 100%.
But as for writing/reading..not as good? o.o

ehh i know this topics rlly old but i had a question.

1. i'm a junior so if i screw this test up, will colleges see it? i can always take it next year again... cant i? or is it a one shot deal?

2. i was born in the states but i only use korean at home and i go to korea every summer. I went to korean school for like 2 years, but i didnt rlly do anything there, but i'm very comfortable with using korean. i dont understand very hard words but when i went to korea this summer, basically no one knew i was from america (cuz i dont have an accent).
should i take this test this november or wait till next year?

3. do u have to know a lot of... 바침, and how to "spell" words? thats what i rlly suck at the rest im fine... like im comfortable with reading and listening and talking

is this test super duper hard?
or is it manageable...heeh x]

1. SAT's are retake-able, even the subject tests. You can always take it again as a senior.

2. If you're comfortable enough with just speaking it then I'm sure you're going to be fine. It actually (I believe) seems like it's for beginners. I tossed out my prep book, but when I had it, (I'm not even Korean btw) I knew a few answers. Some, they give you passages and they just ask you to find the correct way to word it & such. & some they give you fill in the blanks. This was from June so, I'm not sure if it's the same anymore.
--Ahh, hope this isn't illegal..for no one should be talking about what's from the test. >.<

3. lol. I'm actually rather better at spelling. But this, I have no idea. I'm sure a few questions will ask you to spell.

G'luck to all!