I'm entering my junior year and I haven't done one thing to prepare for this. I know you can take it more than once if you want to pay the cost, but I'd rather just get a good score my first time through. I've been looking through some books at the bookstore but I'm weary of trusting what they offer. For those who have taken the tests or are about to take it like me, what has worked for you? Are these preparation books even worth it? What about classes? And exactly how much do these test scores weigh in your college acceptance?
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Preparing for the SAT/ACT
- Thread starter General Tso
- Start date
I did absolutely zero prep and got wasted the night before the test and scored in the 97thish percentile in both reading and writing. Math was only around 54th percentile but that's really not that bad, just not good. Probably because I haven't had a math class in a year and the highest math I've taken so far is Geometry (which is basically easy algebra and geometry combined at my school) BTW, Don't give them your fucking e-mail. I have 1,000 or so college spam mails rotting in my inbox now, just because they send you that shit does not mean you're cut out for their college, all they've seen at that point is your SAT scores and they're really not the primary factor in admissions. Apparently Evansville really wants me because I've gotten a damned packet from them in the mail every other week since I took the PSATS last October, not to mention 40 e-mails.
They really hype the test up a lot more than they should, it's really not that hard. Also, don't stress out, sign up for this coming test in the fall, I'm pretty sure they're still open. Coming into your junior year you've got the potential to take it four times, keeping your best score by category from each test. Keep in mind that this test isn't really the end all test, you could do terribly and still get in most colleges in the US, it serves mostly as a tie breaker. My Grandma works with a lot of colleges being a councilor at a high school so she gave me the rundown.
My best advice to you is read a lot, write a lot. Use big words as much as you can. Doing some faggy prepbook may help you with math but the SAT is a timed test and the writing/reading sections make up more than the math total and you get less time for them, you need to be doing those instinctively if you want a truly great score.
Keep in mind, this is extremely up to date advice, I got my score a few weeks ago.
They really hype the test up a lot more than they should, it's really not that hard. Also, don't stress out, sign up for this coming test in the fall, I'm pretty sure they're still open. Coming into your junior year you've got the potential to take it four times, keeping your best score by category from each test. Keep in mind that this test isn't really the end all test, you could do terribly and still get in most colleges in the US, it serves mostly as a tie breaker. My Grandma works with a lot of colleges being a councilor at a high school so she gave me the rundown.
My best advice to you is read a lot, write a lot. Use big words as much as you can. Doing some faggy prepbook may help you with math but the SAT is a timed test and the writing/reading sections make up more than the math total and you get less time for them, you need to be doing those instinctively if you want a truly great score.
Keep in mind, this is extremely up to date advice, I got my score a few weeks ago.
lol, thats hilarious....another Michigan Junior thinking about the SAT/ACT!
I didn't think there was anyone besides me who was in that situation on Smogon....anyways, in my school, we took a Pretest called the PLAN....it kinda tells you where your at....I would suggest talking to your teachers when we get back into school. I'm gonna ask around on how to get some better preparation....theres always books and study guides that can help. Best of Luck to ya...I'm just as scared.
-Black Rayquaza
well considering I tutor SATs for an educational institution....
"it all depends"
What worked for me is that I just took a massive number of practice tests before the actual SATs. Not many other people will do well just by doing that :|
The thing is that the SATs really measure how careful you are. If you are able to think everything in a step by step matter and read the question carefully enough, you should have no problems, except for maybe vocab. You *should* know all the material that is covered - but you can brush up on the material - especially writing (possibly the most formulaic bunch of questions of them all so you should learn the formulas)
If you're a Junior, prepare to take it twice at least - there's no reason not to take the test more than once.
The preparation books are worth it if this is your first time taking it. The thing is that the things they preach to you seem really obvious but when people take it they sort of forget it. You really need to apply it and practice it.
I recommend just buying a ton of practice tests - (or going to barnes and nobles or borders with looseleaf and doing all the tests on looseleaf) and just doing them over and over, trying to apply the stuff in the prep books. Note that in terms of difficulty Kaplan/PR is probably the easiest - and Barrons is probably the hardest. Try to save the "Real SATs" released by collegeboard for last since they are pretty much the real thing.
If you have the money - then seek out some of the cram schools. The place I tutor at "guarantees" a boost in your SAT score - and I do think that we have pretty good material. So seek them out I guess! They cost a lot though - and if you're scoring around 650 on each section the first time it's quite likely you wont need it and that you're probably more than capable of getting a better score by yourself.
Anyway - "practice practice practice" - the SATs questions are "Obvious" (although some Critical Reading questions can go to hell) in one way or another because they are standardized - which means that they follow a "pattern" of sorts that you can actually recognize. I hear Cram Schools in Korea teach you that but i haven't seen too many institutions around here pull that kind of stuff off
"it all depends"
What worked for me is that I just took a massive number of practice tests before the actual SATs. Not many other people will do well just by doing that :|
The thing is that the SATs really measure how careful you are. If you are able to think everything in a step by step matter and read the question carefully enough, you should have no problems, except for maybe vocab. You *should* know all the material that is covered - but you can brush up on the material - especially writing (possibly the most formulaic bunch of questions of them all so you should learn the formulas)
If you're a Junior, prepare to take it twice at least - there's no reason not to take the test more than once.
The preparation books are worth it if this is your first time taking it. The thing is that the things they preach to you seem really obvious but when people take it they sort of forget it. You really need to apply it and practice it.
I recommend just buying a ton of practice tests - (or going to barnes and nobles or borders with looseleaf and doing all the tests on looseleaf) and just doing them over and over, trying to apply the stuff in the prep books. Note that in terms of difficulty Kaplan/PR is probably the easiest - and Barrons is probably the hardest. Try to save the "Real SATs" released by collegeboard for last since they are pretty much the real thing.
If you have the money - then seek out some of the cram schools. The place I tutor at "guarantees" a boost in your SAT score - and I do think that we have pretty good material. So seek them out I guess! They cost a lot though - and if you're scoring around 650 on each section the first time it's quite likely you wont need it and that you're probably more than capable of getting a better score by yourself.
Anyway - "practice practice practice" - the SATs questions are "Obvious" (although some Critical Reading questions can go to hell) in one way or another because they are standardized - which means that they follow a "pattern" of sorts that you can actually recognize. I hear Cram Schools in Korea teach you that but i haven't seen too many institutions around here pull that kind of stuff off
Yeahhh, I'm going into my Junior year too, and I'm planning to take the SAT in October I believe. I don't want to scare you or anything, but I've been having a tutor twice a week for most of the summer, just because I have some very, very high expectations from my parents. Really, most of this tutoring has been a waste of time, but what has really helped me increase my scores is taking lots and lots and lots of practice tests.
I would buy the Collegeboard book, as I really don't trust any others. Collegeboard is the real deal, made by real testmakers, so you know every question your getting could be a real question, and you don't have to worry about "well, am I really going to see a question like that on the actual test?" which was a problem I was having when I was studying for the bio SAT2.
Basically, if you're "smart", that SAT really should not be very difficult. If you read somewhat regularly and have a very good handle on the rules of grammar then you're already set for almost two full sections. Math is the section I have the most trouble with, because it has a pretty severe curve, and the last question or two are usually pretty tricky, so if you want a really good score you really can only get about one wrong per section, which has been a little difficult for me, but I've been getting better.
The one thing a tutor or class might help with (and mine did help with) is the essay. The SAT essay is actually incredibly easy, but you kind of need to crack it. At first it can seem a little daunting, as some of the questions can be a little tricky to find examples for, but a tutor can really help explain what the essay graders are really looking for.
And as for how important they are for college acceptance... I think it really depends where you are looking and what else you have going for you. If you are an excellent student with great extra-curricular and you have a bit of a misstep on the SATs then it's not the end of the world, just like if you are a slacker/underachiever and suddenly pull out a 2400, you won't automatically get in wherever you want. But, they definitely are very important to some schools. I was at Columbia the other day just looking around and I took a group tour, and the dean told us, just straight up, they don't really ever even consider anybody under a 2100 unless they've really got some other crazy huge thing going for them, like they started some massive community service program or something. So yeah obviously other things are important, but for some colleges, you just really need to be in a certain range or else it's going to be very difficult to get in.
So it really depends on where you are looking I guess. I do know that if you want to be a serious candidate for any Ivy league (or Ivy league equivalent like Stanford or Duke), which is the category I'm shooting for, you're going to need a 2200+, or it's going to be very very difficult. Obviously, for lesser schools, you don't need as high scores, but I don't really know the specifics. The thing is though, no matter where you want to go, a high score will always help, so yeah, it really does pay to do well on the SATs.
So yeah, I think that was probably pretty incoherent and rambly, but it's almost 2 AM and I just took a full practice test so my brain is a little jumbled lol
I would buy the Collegeboard book, as I really don't trust any others. Collegeboard is the real deal, made by real testmakers, so you know every question your getting could be a real question, and you don't have to worry about "well, am I really going to see a question like that on the actual test?" which was a problem I was having when I was studying for the bio SAT2.
Basically, if you're "smart", that SAT really should not be very difficult. If you read somewhat regularly and have a very good handle on the rules of grammar then you're already set for almost two full sections. Math is the section I have the most trouble with, because it has a pretty severe curve, and the last question or two are usually pretty tricky, so if you want a really good score you really can only get about one wrong per section, which has been a little difficult for me, but I've been getting better.
The one thing a tutor or class might help with (and mine did help with) is the essay. The SAT essay is actually incredibly easy, but you kind of need to crack it. At first it can seem a little daunting, as some of the questions can be a little tricky to find examples for, but a tutor can really help explain what the essay graders are really looking for.
And as for how important they are for college acceptance... I think it really depends where you are looking and what else you have going for you. If you are an excellent student with great extra-curricular and you have a bit of a misstep on the SATs then it's not the end of the world, just like if you are a slacker/underachiever and suddenly pull out a 2400, you won't automatically get in wherever you want. But, they definitely are very important to some schools. I was at Columbia the other day just looking around and I took a group tour, and the dean told us, just straight up, they don't really ever even consider anybody under a 2100 unless they've really got some other crazy huge thing going for them, like they started some massive community service program or something. So yeah obviously other things are important, but for some colleges, you just really need to be in a certain range or else it's going to be very difficult to get in.
So it really depends on where you are looking I guess. I do know that if you want to be a serious candidate for any Ivy league (or Ivy league equivalent like Stanford or Duke), which is the category I'm shooting for, you're going to need a 2200+, or it's going to be very very difficult. Obviously, for lesser schools, you don't need as high scores, but I don't really know the specifics. The thing is though, no matter where you want to go, a high score will always help, so yeah, it really does pay to do well on the SATs.
So yeah, I think that was probably pretty incoherent and rambly, but it's almost 2 AM and I just took a full practice test so my brain is a little jumbled lol
haha, SATs.
i remembr that stuff. just took it like, 6 months ago or something with no studying and did pretty well. really, most of it is just logically thinking the answers through for math. The vocab section is pretty hard and they use obscure words, so unless you already have a really big vocab, i wouldnt recommend studying for it.
and if you can, i would really recommend taking the ACTs. with absolutely no studying whatsoever, 4 of my friends and i all scored above 30 on it.
i remembr that stuff. just took it like, 6 months ago or something with no studying and did pretty well. really, most of it is just logically thinking the answers through for math. The vocab section is pretty hard and they use obscure words, so unless you already have a really big vocab, i wouldnt recommend studying for it.
and if you can, i would really recommend taking the ACTs. with absolutely no studying whatsoever, 4 of my friends and i all scored above 30 on it.
The best advice I can possibly give you is to talk to your proctor before hand, and ask them to keep you updated on how much time is left on the writing portion. Like have them just say "fifteen minutes" or whatever every five minutes. It will help immensely as you plan your essay. I was fortunate enough to have my proctor do that when I took the test, but I know at least a few people who totally screwed up their timing because they didn't know how much time is left. You could ask them to say the time remaining on the other sections too, but really the essay should be the only section in which you are pressed for time.
As for the essay itself, be sure to back up every claim you make with evidence. A friend of mine just made up a personal story (like you could say you saved your friend from drugs or some shit) and used it as an example from personal experience, which seems like a great idea to me...she ended up with a 5 but she isn't the smartest person to begin with so I'm guessing her structure was garbage. Well-known historical examples are very useful as well (I referenced JFK and the Cuban Missile Crisis).
Just do the basic [Intro paragraph] - [body paragraphs] - [conclusion] which I'm sure you have learned in high school and you will be fine; there's no point in getting fancy and risking your score.
Make sure your thesis actually answers whatever question they ask, and make sure you state clearly what your main points are in your intro. So if the question is "What kind of bear is best?" then you could say, "The Black Bear is the best bear because it has the cutest cubs of all the bears, the shiniest fur, and has the most picturesque figure." Then your first body paragraph would be about the cute cubs, the second about the shiny fur, and the third about its awesome figure.
I know the essay is just one part, but I hope you find my suggestions helpful
As for the essay itself, be sure to back up every claim you make with evidence. A friend of mine just made up a personal story (like you could say you saved your friend from drugs or some shit) and used it as an example from personal experience, which seems like a great idea to me...she ended up with a 5 but she isn't the smartest person to begin with so I'm guessing her structure was garbage. Well-known historical examples are very useful as well (I referenced JFK and the Cuban Missile Crisis).
Just do the basic [Intro paragraph] - [body paragraphs] - [conclusion] which I'm sure you have learned in high school and you will be fine; there's no point in getting fancy and risking your score.
Make sure your thesis actually answers whatever question they ask, and make sure you state clearly what your main points are in your intro. So if the question is "What kind of bear is best?" then you could say, "The Black Bear is the best bear because it has the cutest cubs of all the bears, the shiniest fur, and has the most picturesque figure." Then your first body paragraph would be about the cute cubs, the second about the shiny fur, and the third about its awesome figure.
I know the essay is just one part, but I hope you find my suggestions helpful
My essay question was asking if people should go with the flow in society. I said no and went into detail about how Germany went with the flow in the 30's and ended up with the holocaust, the USSR went with the flow and a lot of Russians got slaughtered/enslaved by good ol' uncle Joe, China went with the flow while their leader's policies ended up making him the man with the highest death count in history, ect. The more historical examples the better, but be sure to use details about exactly how it relates to your question and don't go off on tangents, I got full points.
TAY is correct, use the standard high school paragraph format, that is exactly what I did. Creativity is not worth bonus points on the SAT.
TAY is correct, use the standard high school paragraph format, that is exactly what I did. Creativity is not worth bonus points on the SAT.
actually, the graders dont care at all if you know your history, all they care about is whether you know how to strucure your essay and support your claims with "evidence". i got a ten on my essay when i said that herman melville wrote to kill a mockingbird and then compared scout and atticus to nazis.
I knew people who studied the vocab, I never did cause I was lazy, but it really came back to fuck me (not like it mattered, cause my SAT was good enough anyway to go where I wanted, but it kept me from a 2300). So I'd really suggest studying vocab unless other stuff makes you cringe even more. The other stuff seems considerably harder to study for except for math, but I can't see the math section being that hard at all if you take a bunch of practice tests. I guess I'd just say don't overprepare for the sections that are hard to study for, and hope you can think yourself through the rest. Anyway, good luck
That isn't really true. Historical examples are not any better than literary examples or personal examples. I would just recommend writing about what you really know. If you read a lot and have read a lot of good, applicable books then literary examples are probably your best bet. I've also found that making up personal examples works wonders, as you can really custom-fit them to the question. Historical examples are obviously just as good as any other, but you shouldn't force yourself to use an example from history if it doesn't fit as well. In my experience, I've always done better with examples from literature.
This.
All they care about is how well you can "argue" and check your mastery of the language. This is why "outlining" is important - because they really care about how you structure it.
The number of grammar mistakes, or just awkward usage (hence why I don't recommend "using big words" considering forcing down big vocabulary for no absolute reason is a staple of terrible pretentious writing), etc etc. Mastery over language however does imply they *do* want you to use "high tier" vocabulary but make sure you don't sound like a pompous prick while doing so
Also, "ITT 'We assume everyone is smart as we are, and 'have the same kind of intelligence''" - terrible, terrible assumption considering there are just people who have major difficulties with the SATs in general
of course I would assume the people who would post here are people who did well anyway so whatever
I would just be careful with any non-official book, as sometimes they can really give you the wrong idea. Now I don't know if this is the same for the SAT itself, but when I was studying for the Biology SAT2, I was primarily using a Princeton Review book, and at the time I was incredibly confident, because I was hitting out perfect 800s on the practice tests in that book. However, when I downloaded a real Collegeboard test to practice with, I was shocked to see that I didn't even break 700. At least for the Biology, the Princeton Review book was WAY too easy, and was full of information that was not relevant to the test. So yeah, I'm not saying never to trust Princeton Review, I'm just recounting my experiences with it. Because of that, I'm pretty paranoid about using any book but the Collegeboard one, because I don't want to be giving myself the wrong idea when I'm studying. At the least, I would switch to Kaplan or Barrons. After realizing how poorly PR had prepared me for the Biology, I went out and bought a Barrons book, and after studying from that book instead, I did great. So yeah, maybe this is just regarding the SAT2's and not the SAT, but I would be cautious about any non-official book, and if you have to use one then probably stick with Barrons, as it's easily the hardest.
Hi. I managed to score well on the SATs a couple of years ago and got me into a combined med program before I flunked out due to laziness. What I will say is to buy a TON of practice books from various different companies like Princeton Review, Kaplan, Barrons, CollegeBoard, and do those practice tests. Learn from your mistakes and keep doing them and eventually you'll do very well. Trust me, I've tried all the different study methods and doing lots of practice tests worked out for me the best. Good Luck
Don't even bring your fucking cell phone in the room. Leave it in the car. I was at the SAT's, we had done every part of the test except the writing, but then halfway through, this one kid's cell went off and his score got cancelled. Sucks cause he said it was off and had it in a plastic bag in the front of the room, yet they still took his test. It probably got pressed on when they were carrying them all over to one place or something, but it's not worth the risk.
As far as the test goes, having the right mindset works well. Don't get overly stressed about it, as it really isn't the most important part of your college acceptance. Doing a prep test or two is good for getting comfortable with the format and pacing, and to figure out what your weaknesses are.
Good luck junior/seniors taking this (or the ACT)
As far as the test goes, having the right mindset works well. Don't get overly stressed about it, as it really isn't the most important part of your college acceptance. Doing a prep test or two is good for getting comfortable with the format and pacing, and to figure out what your weaknesses are.
Good luck junior/seniors taking this (or the ACT)
Honestly all the SAT tests are a piece of piss and american students obsess over them too much, you certainly don't need a strict regimen or anything to prepare. I just took them as soon as I found out about them because I figured being able to go somewhere outside of australia would be neat and got 800s on the reading and maths and 740 on the writing (got all the multi choice right, lost all the points on the essay because my writing is shit).
Now I'm pretty dumb in general with schoolwork so really there's no reason anyone can't get 750+ on every section, just go through a bunch of practice tests - official ones, like from the company that runs the SAT - a week or two beforehand until you can answer anything they throw at you and have a feel for how to approach the different question structures.
Now I'm pretty dumb in general with schoolwork so really there's no reason anyone can't get 750+ on every section, just go through a bunch of practice tests - official ones, like from the company that runs the SAT - a week or two beforehand until you can answer anything they throw at you and have a feel for how to approach the different question structures.