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Study for the SAT
While the SAT is supposed to test your level of general education, the simple fact is that it is also measuring your test taking skills.
The most intelligent person could fail miserably on the SAT simply because they have poor test taking skills. Sadly, this works conversely as those who are not quite as genuinely intelligent can score high on the test simply because they honed their test taking skills.
I highly recommend you get a guide for how to take the SAT and work with it consistently up until the time you take your test. Do whatever you can to prepare for the SAT and then just do the best you can. (My brother and I used one of the Barron’s SAT Preparation guides and liked it a lot. Click here to see a similar one.)
Some of the ways to prepare for the SAT are more long term and longer lasting than simply studying a guide on how to take the test. For instance, research has suggested that studying a foreign language in your high school years will help you score higher on the verbal portion. I took Latin as my foreign language knowing that it would be helpful in more ways than one.
Admittedly, choosing a foreign language based on how much it will help you on the SAT is a poor way to decide, but it is important to remember, that by reading and learning what you can in the years preceding the SAT, you are preparing yourself for success.
In short, the more you can prepare for this test, the better your chances of getting a higher score. After all, there is no good reason not to do the best as you can. Or, to think of it differently, you should not handicap yourself simply because you do not want to take advantage of the same test taking strategies that your peers are possibly using. This is not cheating, mind you, it is more a survey of the best ways to take a test.
Take the SAT or ACT
You can sign up for the SAT at most local high schools or privateschools. Go ahead and take it when you feel you are ready. You can take the SAT in your sophomore year, and if you do not score as high as you wanted, you should take it again in your junior year and/or your senior year. Taking the SAT multiple times is becoming very common, as I understand it, and most colleges are only going to look at your highest score.
There is a wealth of information out there, and depending on your score and situation, you could probably find a statistical or experience based recommendation on whether you should take the SAT again or not. I think most studies show that generally every time you take the test you get a better score. |
