Setting Goals

If you have reviewed the U.S. News and World Report Ultimate College Guide, you should have a general idea what SAT score will qualify into the admission matrix of schools you are interested in. Set a goal for 50 points higher than those average scores. Keep taking practice tests until you consistently reach your goal. Then, not only will you be able to confidently apply to the college of your choice but you may open up a whole new set of choices.

Questions For Seniors in High School

High School Seniors must be asking the following questions: Should I take the SAT again in the fall? What topic should I choose for my college essay? What colleges should I apply to? When do I start the process? When do I go on campus tours? How many recommendations do I need? How do I market myself? Which colleges best match my interests and abilities? Take the summer time to think through these extremely important questions. I am preparing a survey that may help answer some of these questions. To request this questionaire, email me at Steve@testniques.com

Simple Time Management

For one week keep a journal of your daily activities. This should be easy when school is out. After one week, look where you waste the most time. Then turn this unproductive time into SAT Study Time. One hour per day does not sound like a lot, but cummulatively it becomes 75 hours for the entire summer. Now ask yourself if you will be prepared for this test with 75 hours of study time under your belt. Of course you will be more prepared than perhaps any test of your life.

June Tests Scores Available June 21st

On Thursday June 21st the SAT scores will be available online. Hard Copy scores will be mailed two weeks later. If you have a password and ID, long onto the collegeboard website Thursday morning to get your scores. For a $10 fee you can order a written student score report. From this report you can learn many things about how you took the test. The student score report is helpful for students thinking about taking another SAT. From the student score report you can detect certain tendencies, ie. types of questions answered incorrectly, difficulty of questions answered incorrectly, patterns at the end of sections, etc. More on this in a future entry.

You Are the President of You!

How you manage your time this summer will determine how smoothly your next high school year will run. For High School Seniors especially, the two biggest events of the Fall Semester will be the October or November SAT and the College application process. Most students regret the fact that they even have to take the SAT again. If only they had put in more time and effort. Juniors, learn this invaluable lesson, put in the time, so you dont have to worry about another SAT during your senior year! Seniors, learn from your mistakes, start the college application process early. Gather as much information from the internet this summer. Amass all of your information---essay ideas, lists of achievements, a mock resume, recommendation requests, schedule campus visit dates, talk with admissions officers and financial aid officers at the universities you are interested in.

2007 Ultimate College Guide

The U.S. News 2007 Ultimate College Guide is a useful resource when gathering information about prospective colleges. The book is stocked with information including costs, most popular majors, admission criteria such as required G.P.A. and SAT scores, campus size, financial aid, demographics and extra-curricular activities. I believe that this book is a must have for High School juniors starting the college application process this fall. The book can be purchased from the home page of www.testniques.com

Factoring

To solve the more difficult math problems on the SAT it is important that you refresh your factoring skills. The types of factoring consistently tested on the SAT are: (1) the Difference of two squares; (2) Finding common factors and reducing algebraic equations and (3) Factoring quadratics. For a nutshell review of these 3 types of factoring go to page 244 of the Official SAT Study Guide. Once you master these skills, difficult algebra problems will become simple. You will be able to break down seemingly impossible problems by cancelling out and the answers will come flying into your head. Remember there is a simple solution to most difficult math problems on the SAT.

Your Fingers and Your SAT Score?

New research indicates that a childs finger length can predict how he or she will perform on the SAT. I know this sounds ridiculous, but here is the link to the article: http://www.livescience.com/health/070522_finger_sats.html. Personally, my index fingers and ring fingers are the same length. Low and behold my son got identical scores on his Verbal and Math, and a mere 20 points higher on his Wrtiting. I must admit I haven't examined his fingers.

Vocabulary

Students who experience the SAT for the first time have the same takeaway--the vocabulary was so hard! They lament, "If only I had a better vocabulary, I would have gotten a much better score." Here are my thoughts for improving your vocabulary:



1. Buy an electronic dictionary and look up any words you do not understand immediately. Read the sentence again and see if it makes sense now;

2. Circle any words you do not understand in the course of your reading. Buy the NY Times and read it this summer;

3. Realize that if you speak another language such as Spanish, French or Latin there may be a similar word in those languages that is close to the meaning in English;

4. When doing sentence completions on practice SAT tests, look up all the word choices you do not understand regardless of whether those words are the correct answers. Remember there is a specific group of words that the testmakers use, so todays incorrect answer may be tomorrow correct answer.

SUMMER STUDY GUIDE IS OUT

I am using this blog to write down my thoughts as an SAT tutor. From Time to time I will post information, articles and random thoughts that may help those that are taking this college entrance exam. High Schools are on summer recess in most of the United States, so many students are handed a gift that is so precious--TIME. Time to spend with friends and family. Also, time to work, sleep and of course, prepare for the SAT! I also have a website, www.testniques.com. There is a lot of free information on that site. Feel free to avail yourself to all of it. I have also completed a 30 page Summer Study Guide, which I will be distributing shortly via the web.