Why Module 1 Is Not a Warm-Up

Each section runs in two modules back to back, and you cannot return to module 1 once you move on. That one-way door matters because the test uses your module 1 performance to route you into one of two versions of module 2: an easier one or a harder one. Get enough right early, and you're sent to the harder module. Struggle, and you get the easier one. This routing happens before any scoring you see, and it is invisible while you're taking it.

Here's the part that surprises people: the harder module isn't just tougher, it's worth more. The score for the whole section, usually reported on a 200 to 800 scale, blends how many operational questions you got right across both modules with how difficult those questions were. Land in the easier module 2, and the math caps your highest possible section score below the top of the scale, no matter how perfectly you finish it. Land in the harder module, and the full range, up to the maximum, stays open to you.

This is why module 1 functions less like a warm-up and more like a gate. The questions themselves don't look different in style or format from module 2's, so there's no way to tell in the moment that this stretch is quietly determining your ceiling. The lesson carries into everything downstream: pacing, guessing strategy, and when to fight for one more right answer all matter more in the first 32 minutes than anywhere else in the section.