OLSAT Level F Test Preparation and Tips – 2025

What Is the OLSAT Level F Test?

The OLSAT Level F is an assessment exam used to test the cognitive abilities of children in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. This standardized aptitude test assesses the learning abilities of students in order to determine eligibility for a gifted and talented program. Studies have shown that middle school is an especially difficult time for academic learning, as students are experiencing physical changes that distract them from their studies. Because of this, some students find it difficult to focus on important tests, including the OLSAT Level F Test. However, the OLSAT Level F will include harder and more complex questions than its previous versions. This means that students need to be prepared well in advance. Gifted and talented programs are a rare opportunity that should not be taken lightly, which means your student needs to perform well on the OLSAT Level F Test.

What Are OLSAT Level F’s Test Sections?

The Level F version of the OLSAT exam is comprised of a Verbal Section and a Nonverbal Section that include 72 questions. Each section will include an even number of questions (36 each) and will also include several individual subsections. The subsections will ask several specialized questions meant to assess a child’s strengths and weaknesses in that category. The students will also only have 60 minutes to complete both sections, so it is important that your student understand what they are being asked and how to respond to questions quickly.

Verbal Section

The OLSAT’s Verbal Section will contain 36 questions ranging across nine individual subsections. These verbal subsections include inference, verbal analogies, logical selection, sentence arrangement, antonyms, verbal classification, word/letter matrix, arithmetic reasoning, and sentence completion subsections.

• Antonyms: 6th through 8th graders will look at a vocabulary word and determine which word from the answer options has an opposite definition.
• Sentence Arrangement: Several words will be presented to the 6th through 8th graders, and the students will be required to arrange the words in a specific order that forms a complete sentence.
• Sentence Completion: 6th through 8th graders will notice an incomplete sentence that has a word removed. The students will choose a word that completes the meaning of the sentence.
• Logical Selection: 6th through 8th graders will read through everyday scenarios, and based off of the logic of the scenario, will complete sentences using that information.
• Arithmetic Reasoning: 6th through 8th graders will be presented with numbers that will follow a predetermined rule, and the students will be required to choose an additional number that also follows that rule.
• Word/Letter Matrix: 6th through 8th graders will search through a word or letter matrix in order to identify the pattern that the words or letters follow. Once they have identified the rule, they will choose an answer that includes a letter or word that would best complete the matrix.
• Verbal Classification: 6th through 8th graders will read through a group of words, in which one of the words will not match with the others. Students will choose the “odd one out.”
• Verbal Analogies: 6th through 8th graders will read through two related words, followed by an individual word. The individual word will match with one word from the answer options, which students will need to identify.
• Inference: 6th through 8th graders will read through a statement that is logical and considered to be “valid,” which is called a syllogism. Based on the syllogism, the students will decide if an argument that is made is true based on the information provided in the syllogism.

Nonverbal Section

The OLSAT’s Nonverbal Section will contain 36 questions ranging across six individual subsections. These nonverbal subsections include number inference, number matrix, figural series, number series, pattern matrix, and figural analogies questions.

• Figural Analogies: 6th through 8th graders will search through a group of five separate figures and will choose one figure from the answer choices that matches the original figure pattern.
• Pattern Matrix: 6th through 8th graders will be presented with a patterned matrix that includes a pattern sequence that runs throughout the matrix. The students are responsible for choosing an additional pattern from the answer options that would accurately finish the matrix.
• Figural Series: 6th through 8th graders will be presented with a series of figures that progress in a certain way. Based on that progression, students are responsible for choosing an additional figure that would fit the series.
• Number Series: 6th through 8th graders will be presented with a series of numbers that progress in a certain way. Based on that progression, students are responsible for choosing an additional number that would fit the series.
• Number Matrix: 6th through 8th graders will be presented with a numbered matrix that includes a number sequence that runs throughout the matrix. The students are responsible for choosing an additional number from the answer options that would accurately finish the matrix.
• Number Inference: 6th through 8th graders are responsible for studying and understanding how a number sequence is patterned, followed by choosing a number that would complete the pattern.

How to Read OLSAT Level F’s Score Report?

6th through 8th graders taking the OLSAT Level F will receive a score report that is divided into three individual composite scores. The OLSAT Verbal and Nonverbal Sections will have the correct answers added up and combined with the total composite score. Many schools use the final score, or Percentile Rank, as a determinant in identifying gifted and talented children.

• Raw Score: The OLSAT score is first calculated through the raw score, which is simply displayed as the number of answered responded to correctly over the total possible number of answers.
• School Ability Index (SAI): The OLSAT score is then determined by converting and normalizing the raw score into the School Ability Index. The SAI score is the normalization of the raw score, which has also been compared with children in the 6th through 8th grade that are close in age, with 150 being the highest score possible.
• Percentile Rank: The final OLSAT score is the Percentile Rank, which is the SAI score represented as a percentage. The percentage indicates the number of children your 6th through 8th grader scored higher than on the exam.

OLSAT Level E Test Tips

1. Don’t underestimate the value of explanations. Once your child has completed a practice exam, they may not feel like sticking around to read through the question explanations. However, these explanations are extremely valuable. Not only do they teach you about why your child may have answered a question wrong, they also provide insight on what the test makers were thinking when creating these questions.
2. Teach your child to allocate their time evenly. It is important to teach your child about time limits when it comes to taking the OLSAT. The higher levels of OLSAT will require students to answer more questions in a short amount of time. This means that they won’t be able to spend several minutes answering a single question. While preparing with practice exams, teach your child to answer questions as quickly as possible.

How to Prepare for the OLSAT Level F Test?

As students are finishing out their middle school curriculum, the added stress of taking an aptitude test such as the OLSAT Level F may be intimidating. It is important for parents to find time outside of school to sit down with their children and go over the testing material by using online practice exams. Although your child has taken a variety of tests in school, the OLSAT exam is extremely different. Even if your child has taken a lower level OLSAT exam, the material will still be different per level. Students need to be aware of the complex material on these exams by thoroughly studying with practice exams and study guides. Your child may feel apprehensive about taking time out of their day to study for the OLSAT exam, but this step is imperative. In order to score well on the exam, your child needs to be familiar with the type of material they will likely see. Help your child score the best score possible on the OLSAT Level F exam by studying and preparing well in advance.