Posted: Friday, March 22nd, 2013 | Filed under: education, PSAT exam, PSAT test prep, SAT, SAT exam | author: By Teddy Bergman
PSAT Logo
Preparing for the SAT can be daunting and confusing for parents and students, and we get all kinds of questions about how the test is scored, how to prepare for it, how much it counts, what a “good” SAT score is, etc. etc. The one thing we never get asked (at least not by students who have grown up in the United States) is “what is the SAT?”
The SAT has been around for almost a century. Your parents probably took it, and they might even remember what their scores were. Ask them what they got on the PSAT, however, and they will probably look at you blankly. It’s likely that they took it (it was created in 1959), but it’s equally likely that they forgot all about it, because they weren’t really sure why it mattered.
Read more
Posted: Saturday, March 9th, 2013 | Filed under: SAT exam, SAT grading, SAT scoring, SAT strategy | author: By Teddy Bergman
College Sat Exam
When is guessing a good idea on the SAT Test?
The SAT is a very tiring and lengthy exam. At times, when you take the SAT exam you will be unsure which answer choice to select or how to even approach a problem.. These are critical moments in your test taking and it integral to your success on the SAT test that you have a clear guessing strategy.
On the SAT exam you are awarded one point for each correct answer, deducted a quarter of a point for each incorrect answer, and neither awarded nor deducted points for leaving a question blank. So, basically, it really matters when you choose to answer questions on the SAT and how you come to that decisions. If you make wild guesses on questions on the SAT when you have no idea of the answer you seriously jeopardize your score.
Read more
Posted: Sunday, February 17th, 2013 | Filed under: college, SAT, SAT exam, SAT grading, SAT II, SAT prep, SAT scoring | author: By Sarah Mollo-Christensen
Exams via Flickr: Alex France
How much is too much? When it comes to the SAT, it’s a question that a lot of students (and their parents) wonder about. Few people just take the test only once; most take it several times, but how many times is too many? If twice, or three times, is good, wouldn’t four, five, or six times be even better? Well…probably not. A couple of factors come into play when you’re deciding how when, and how many times to take the SAT, so here’s a short guide to your testing schedule.
Take it More Than Once
Would it be great if you could just take the test once, and be finished? Of course it would. I mean…that would be great. That does occasionally happen, but unless you get a near-perfect score the first go-round, it’s smart to try again. Why?
Read more
Posted: Sunday, February 10th, 2013 | Filed under: college, college essay, SAT, SAT exam, SAT II | author: By Sarah Mollo-Christensen
SAT Testing Sign via Flickr: methodshop.com
In the last post, we established that you should probably take the SAT more than once, unless you knock it so far out of the park on your first shot that it really is unnecessary. In a college admissions market where competition and pressure are sky high, however, it’s easy to let things get out of hand. It’s hard to know when to stop, when enough really is enough.
The SAT is offered in January, March, May, June, October, November, and December. Theoretically, you could start in January and go straight through the year, taking it month after month. There are a number of reasons why this would be a bad idea, not the least of which being that it would probably drive you completely crazy. Here are a few others:
Read more
Posted: Wednesday, August 8th, 2012 | Filed under: SAT, SAT exam, SAT grading, SAT prep, SAT scoring | author: By Teddy Bergman
What is Super Scoring and what does it mean for me? How does it affect my SAT process?
Super Scoring
The SAT testing process is a long and daunting one. Hours of study, hours of preparation, hours of anxiety, and hours of test taking don’t make for a generally easy or enjoyable experience. Few things along this road make your life easier, so when you find something that does, grab a hold of it and use it for all its worth. One such thing is Super Scoring.
Super Scoring is the informal practice of poaching sectional scores from various SAT testings to make one optimal test score. Meaning, if you take the SAT multiple times, you can pick your best math score from one test, your best writing score from another test, and your best reading score from yet a different test to form a super score. Under the lens of Super Scoring, you can view your SAT testing as a process, and not a series of do or die moments.
To be clear, Super Scoring is not something the College Board – the company that creates and administers the SAT – does. It does not appear on your score report or your College Board home page. More importantly, Super Scoring is something that many college admissions offices engage in. And the practice is growing. Admissions officers want to see you in your best light, so they are considering your achievement on the SAT, through the lens of Super Scoring. When you visit schools, be sure to ask the admissions office if they Super Score.
As a student, you want to take full advantage of Super Scoring, and this means you should start your SAT process early. You want to be sure that you are giving yourself adequate opportunities to sit for the SAT test and do your best. Super Scoring thrives on having numerous test scores to choose from. Only by thinking ahead and planning your SAT test dates can you reap all the rewards of Super Scoring.
Read more