What is the difference between math ii and math iic

Let's all be glad that the questions on College Board tests are much more closely vetted than what goes on their website! In terms of individual topics, the Math 2 test is, by far, weighted most heavily toward algebra and functions, with about half the questions in this area.

You can also expect to see a sizable chunk of trigonometry. Knowing the properties of all different types of functions, including trigonometric functions, is the single most important topic to study for the Math 2 test. If you don't know all of that backwards and forwards, there will be a lot of questions you simply don't understand.

To give you an easy-to-follow overview when you are comparing tests, I'll quickly go over which topics are covered on both exams and which you can expect to see only on Math 1 and only on Math 2, respectively. Operations: Basic multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction. Remember the proper order of operations! Ratio and Proportion: Value comparisons and relationships between value comparisons. Think: how many of one thing relative to another thing? Three cows for every two sheep?

Counting: How many combinations are possible given certain conditions. For example, if there are eight chairs and eight guests, how many orders could the guests sit in?

Elementary Number Theory: Properties of integers, factorization, prime factors, etc. Properties of Functions: You'll need to be able to identify the following kinds of functions and understand how they work, how they look when graphed, and how to factor them.

Polynomial: Functions in which variables are elevated to exponential powers. Rational: Functions in which polynomial expressions appear in the numerator and the denominator of a fraction.

You could also skip standardized testing and go live alone in the desert. Note that plane geometry concepts are addressed on Math 2 via coordinate and 3-D geometry.

Coordinate: Equations and properties of ellipses and hyperbolas in the coordinate plane and polar coordinates. Three-Dimensional: Plotting lines and determining distances between points in three dimensions. You must know how to convert to and from degrees. Law of Cosines and Law of Sines: Trigonometric formulas that allow you to determine the length of a triangle side when one of the angles and two of the sides are known.

You'll need to know the formulas and how to use them. Double Angle Formulas: Formulas that allow you to find information on an angle twice as large as the given angle measure. Logarithmic: Functions that involve taking the log of a variable. Trigonometric Functions: Graphs of sine, cosine, tangent, etc. Inverse Trigonometric Functions: Graphs of the inverse of sine, cosine, tangent, and other trig identities.

Periodic: Any function that repeats its values over an interval; trigonometric functions are periodic. However, Math 2 also tests more advanced versions of the topics tested on Math 1. It leaves off directly testing plane Euclidean geometry, though the concepts are indirectly tested through coordinate and 3-D geometry topics.

Math 2 also covers a much broader swath of topics than Math 1 does. This means that question styles for Math 2 and Math 1 can be pretty different, even though many of the same topics are addressed see the next section for elaboration on this. Given that Math 2 covers more advanced topics than Math 1 does, you might think that Math 1 is going to be the easier exam.

But this is not necessarily true. Since Math 1 tests fewer concepts, you can expect more abstract and multi-step problems to test the same core math concepts in a variety of ways. The College Board needs to fill up 50 questions, after all!

Below is an example of a tricky question you might see on the Math 1 test. The above problem is testing fundamental plane Euclidean geometry concepts but in a way that makes you apply these concepts differently than you might expect to. Let's walk through it. To figure out the area of the shaded region, we'll need to subtract the area of the rectangle from the area of the circle.

Now, we'll need to find the area of that circle. However, we can find the diameter with the help of our friend, the Pythagorean theorem. How do we know this? The above problem didn't test any difficult concepts, but it did make us combine a few Euclidean geometry concepts and three formulas! On the other hand, problems on Math II tend to take fewer steps to solve and are more straightforward, high-school-math-test-type questions: identify the concept, plug in, and go.

The diameter and height of a right circular cylinder are equal. If the volume of the cylinder is 2, what is the height of the cylinder? We know the volume; we also know that the diameter and height are equal. Since the radius is equal to half the diameter, we can express the radius in terms of the height.

All of a sudden, we've got a pretty simple single-variable algebra problem. Plug and go to get 1. The number-crunching in this problem might be a little ugly, but it's pretty simple conceptually: a single-variable algebra problem that only uses one formula. These two problems showcase the difference between problem types on Math 1 and Math 2. Additionally, the curve is much steeper for Math 1 than it is for Math 2. Getting one question wrong on Math 1 is enough to knock you from that , but you can get seven or eight questions wrong and still potentially get an on Math 2.

Essentially, Math 1 is the easier exam only if you don't know the advanced topics tested on Math 2. If you do know the Math 2 concepts, you'll find it easier than Math 1 because the material will be fresher in your mind, the questions are more straightforward, and the curve is kinder. There are, in general, two factors to consider when deciding between Math 1 and Math 2: 1 what math coursework you have completed and 2 what the colleges you're applying to recommend or require.

In general, if you're going to take a Math Subject Test, you should take the one that most closely aligns with the math coursework you've completed. If you've taken one year of geometry and two years of algebra, go with Math 1. If you've taken that plus precalculus and trigonometry which is taught as one yearlong math class at most high schools , then take Math 2.

Down-testing i. If it's the beginning or middle of the year, take Math 1. If you try to take Math 2 too early, there will be material on the exam you haven't covered yet, so you'll either have to learn it or accept that you won't get those points which is a risky move I don't recommend at all!

If you're close to the end of the year and you'd like to take Math 2, I'd advise you to simply wait to take the test until you've completed the requisite coursework. And, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, nearly all these schools have dropped their SAT Subject Test score requirement, at least temporarily.

However, submitting Subject Test scores can still boost your application, especially if you scored well and the school recommends Subject Test scores, such as m ost institutions in the University of California system which strongly recommend Math 2 for engineering and science applicants. If you know that you have your eye on a program that requires or recommends the Math 2 Subject Test, plan ahead to take the necessary math coursework.

Programs that require or prefer the Math 2 Subject Test often have required introductory math coursework for first-year students that necessitates a certain background level in math, which is why they require Math 2. Therefore, try to get in the coursework necessary to be able to take and do well on the Math 2 Subject Test. If you don't plan ahead, you might end up in a situation in which you are set to go into precalculus your senior year.

In this case, you should aim to take precalculus the summer after your junior year and the Math 2 Subject Test in the fall of your senior year. Some high schools don't offer an advanced enough math track for you to be able to get through precalculus by your senior year. It's not super fair if you're in this situation, but you can make up for it by taking a math class over the summer or at a local community college. Evaluating exponents and radicals : Rational exponents and radicals Solving exponential expressions using properties of exponents : Rational exponents and radicals.

Exponential models. Interpreting the rate of change of exponential models : Exponential models Constructing exponential models according to rate of change : Exponential models Advanced interpretation of exponential models : Exponential models. Definitions of similarity : Similarity Introduction to triangle similarity : Similarity Solving similar triangles : Similarity.

Solid geometry. Density : Solid geometry. Conic sections. Introduction to conic sections : Conic sections Features of a circle : Conic sections Standard equation of a circle : Conic sections. Probability basics : Probability Counting with combinations : Probability Probability with counting, permutations, combinations : Probability Multiplication rule for independent events : Probability. Multiplication rule for dependent events : Probability Addition rule for probability : Probability Conditional probability : Probability Simulation and randomness : Probability Expected value : Probability.

Course challenge.