2 Weeks, 6hrs./day: 2090---->2350

Test Preparation SAT Preparation
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<p>Ok CC. This is it. Summer is here for some and about to be here for others. This is the time for everyone that needs to up their SAT to go ahead and do it. BUT, instead of wasting the entire summer, I have made this thread for CC'ers to compile the greatest, most effective, and comprehensive way to up a score.</p>

<p>Now, sure I'm looking for info. to help me get my score from a 2090 to 2350 in 2 weeks of prep for about 6 hours a day, BUT this can help anyone. That is why I want to make a sort of comprehensive, but economical study plan that spans 2 to 3 weeks.</p>

<p>So, my scores were 670CR, 710M, 710W (10essay). </p>

<p>So, let's do this. Let's compile the dream study plan for myself and others who have only 2 to 3 weeks to study for the SAT and are willing to put in 6 hours a day into it!</p>

<p>I need a 260 point increase in 2 to 3 weeks, 6hrs/day.</p>

2

<p>I’m using more like 6 weeks 2 hours a day but I’m going for about the same score increase so I’m with ya! (2070 - 2250+).</p>

3

<p>This is what I would suggest (should get 2360+ this time):</p>

<p>Every day, this should be your schedule:</p>

<p>-2:35: Practice Test (5 minutes less for EVERY section and NO breaks–trust me, you will never again think the SAT is intellectually grueling)
-0:25: Review answers from the practice test
-2:00: Go through Direct Hits (2 weeks are enough to get through both volumes)
-1:00: get yourself a good guide to SAT grammar (I recommend Barron’s SAT writing workbook, 2009 edition) and go through it</p>

<p>This should almost guarrantee you 2350+.</p>

<p>EDIT: for the first few tests, I recommend doing them untimed or normal time, because it would be extremely uncomfortable to start chopping off time right off the bat.</p>

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<p>simo’s plan is very helpful</p>

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<p>ok, Simo. I finished DH Vol1 and Vol2…I just need to review them over which will take me maybe an hour to know every word to 100% efficiency.</p>

<p>But, I guess I could use your strategy for PR Hit Parade…just to add more words to my ‘SAT arsenal’ lol. But, I could finish this (300 words) in a week fairly easily…I’m not too bad at memorizing.</p>

<p>Do you suggest Barron’s 3000 word list or any list that is really long to do over the ENTIRE SUMMER? (like on the side, I could do 50wrds/day). Is this recommended? </p>

<p>For the grammar guide, I have ‘GRAMMATIX’. Is that good? It’s like 400 pgs. long and it’s for the SAT. Is this a good guide? I have Barron’s 2400 and finished the grammar protion of that.</p>

<p>And for time:
I can’t time CR if my life depended on it! I always go right up to the time limit. Writing, if I worked really fast I can finish 5 min. under, same for Math. So, what do you think? Start off with full time at first and with breaks? Then how many tests until I take off 5 min.? For how many test should I do this before I take myself off the breaks? </p>

<p>And, what kind of tests should I write? QASs, PR, Barron’s? What should I try to use. Keep in mind that I can keep writing practice tests even after the 2 weeks to keep up with the SAT. I plan to try to write a practice test every day of the summer (ACT or SAT) but only devote my true 100% studying of rules, words, etc. etc. to 2 weeks.</p>

<p>ESSAY: I got a 10, but some ppl say I wasn’t too far off a 6 from each scorer. What should I do to guarantee a 12 essay?</p>

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<p>"But, I guess I could use your strategy for PR Hit Parade…just to add more words to my ‘SAT arsenal’ lol. But, I could finish this (300 words) in a week fairly easily…I’m not too bad at memorizing.</p>

<p>Do you suggest Barron’s 3000 word list or any list that is really long to do over the ENTIRE SUMMER? (like on the side, I could do 50wrds/day). Is this recommended?"</p>

<p>-If you’ve finished both DH volumes and you don’t tend to miss many SC questions, then I would just go over the final DH reviews and make sure you know every word. After you do that, then it doesn’t really matter which vocab list you use (because everything beyond DH is going to be quite rare).</p>

<p>“For the grammar guide, I have ‘GRAMMATIX’. Is that good? It’s like 400 pgs. long and it’s for the SAT. Is this a good guide? I have Barron’s 2400 and finished the grammar protion of that.”</p>

<p>-It is good. For grammar, as long as you learn the rules, then the practice of recognizing errors should just come from practice tests.</p>

<p>“And for time:
I can’t time CR if my life depended on it! I always go right up to the time limit. Writing, if I worked really fast I can finish 5 min. under, same for Math. So, what do you think? Start off with full time at first and with breaks? Then how many tests until I take off 5 min.? For how many test should I do this before I take myself off the breaks?”</p>

<p>-CR is definitely the toughest to do under time. However, with lots of practice (i.e. start with full time, then chop off a minute every 1 or 2 tests), you can do it 5 minutes under, which is a HUGE help on the real test. When I say doing it 5 minutes under, I mean getting your target score, not a lower score.</p>

<p>“And, what kind of tests should I write? QASs, PR, Barron’s? What should I try to use. Keep in mind that I can keep writing practice tests even after the 2 weeks to keep up with the SAT. I plan to try to write a practice test every day of the summer (ACT or SAT) but only devote my true 100% studying of rules, words, etc. etc. to 2 weeks.”</p>

<p>-Buy the SAT Study Guide Version 2 (has 10 tests) and buy the online course (6 more tests). That’s 16. Keep those until right before the SAT. Until then, I would suggest QASs, since it’s great to get full responses and it’s probably only worth it to practice with real CB tests.</p>

<p>“ESSAY: I got a 10, but some ppl say I wasn’t too far off a 6 from each scorer. What should I do to guarantee a 12 essay?”</p>

<p>-As long as you master writing MC, a 10 essay can still get you an 800. I would read the thread in the best of sat forum sticky on how to get a 12 essay in 10 days. It’s great.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

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<p>I missed 2 on the May SAT…I omit, 1 wrong. So, what do you suggest I do at this point?</p>

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<p>I got a 670 in CR in May. I want to get like 770 in CR, which is 100 points higher. So, what should I be doing? Giving myself full time until I can get to 750ish first, then start chopping off time? And HOW do I get to 750+ in CR if I’m at 670? How do I/what should I do when prepping to get to that score? And is this really difficult to do?</p>

<p>I also have 3 tests left in the BB Ver. 2…already used 6 or 7. So, I will buy the online course and use those right before the test to prep. But for now, I can write QAS tests…but after I exhaust those should I just use PR 11 practice tests and anything else I can get my hands on?</p>

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<p>“I missed 2 on the May SAT…I omit, 1 wrong. So, what do you suggest I do at this point?”</p>

<p>-You shouldn’t be missing any SC’s if you’re aiming for 770, so I would suggest mastering DH and then moving on to larger lists (eg. Sparknotes).</p>

<p>“I got a 670 in CR in May. I want to get like 770 in CR, which is 100 points higher. So, what should I be doing? Giving myself full time until I can get to 750ish first, then start chopping off time? And HOW do I get to 750+ in CR if I’m at 670? How do I/what should I do when prepping to get to that score? And is this really difficult to do?”</p>

<p>-You should work yourself until you can get 770+ consistently untimed, and then you should start timing yourself. After that, you should start chopping off time for the real test. It’s not very difficult if you do these things:

  1. Never miss an SC question
  2. Remember that EVERY single answer can be found in the passage.</p>

<p>“I also have 3 tests left in the BB Ver. 2…already used 6 or 7. So, I will buy the online course and use those right before the test to prep. But for now, I can write QAS tests…but after I exhaust those should I just use PR 11 practice tests and anything else I can get my hands on?”</p>

<p>-It really doesn’t matter what you use because anything other than CB tests won’t help you much.</p>

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<p>Hi ViggyRam, </p>

<p>Alright, so last June I was in the same place as you. I had just realized that my performance on the May SAT was way below my standards (2070). I was taking the most rigorous Math courses in school so I just couldn’t understand how my lowest score was on the Math section (650). It was then that I realized that the SAT isn’t about testing knowledge, it’s about recognizing hints and patterns. I then took the same 16 official practice tests maybe 10 times (each) altogether to figure out patterns and strategies. Just with that prep I was able to raise my SAT score from a 2070 to a 2320! And I am fairly happy with it so I won’t be retaking. :)</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

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<p>A lot of this advice is for Critical Reading. What about math? What’s the best thig to study for that section?</p>

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<p>@PrincetonDreams, I have done that too (retake the same test over again), but my scores were so inflated (like from 2050---->2330). Does this even help me at all?</p>

<p>@simo14, there are so few CB test (3 i have + 6 online + like 8 others I have). So, should I try saving these or just use them because if nothign other than CB is good, then what should I be using for just regular practice?</p>

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<p>Are you guys juniors? I’ve run out of QAS practice tests and BB practice tests and will have to retake this October or November for some ED schools and maybe one more for December if I get deferred/rejected from ED. So my question is, is the offical course worth it? Does it have different practice tests? Are they printable? And are they different from the QAS’s and the BB? Thanks lol.</p>

<p>Also for Reading, how do I make sure to pick the right answer when I’m at a 50/50</p>

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<p>10RS is good for math and CR questions (don’t do the analogies). It’s from before the SAT was out of 2400. There are 10 tests that are fairly similar to the real math and CR sections (don’t time them though).</p>

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<p>^so would PR 11 practice tests be good for your system of trying to first get 750+ un-timed, then slowly getting myself off the extra time? I know it’s not CB, but would they be good enough? Then once I get under the time (hopefully after 7-8 tests), I can turn to QAS and CB extras? Does this sound like a good plan or what do you suggest I do.</p>

<p>Honestly CR kills me. I think after writing a whole bunch of practice tests 800M and close to 800W would be doable, but CR is the ‘make or break’.</p>

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<p>CR should only be done through CB tests, since the only way to do well is to learn the exact format.</p>

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<p>^ Yeah I’ve done the QAS’s twice now, I have all of them, should I do them again? or some of them again? </p>

<p>Also is the CB official course worth it for more practice tests? are they different and printable?</p>

<p>Also I at the moment have a 2070 superscored, am expecting anwhere from 2100+ single sitting from the looking at the consolidated list from this current June SAT administration. Also how do I prevent myself from screwing both mentally and carelessly on math? There is so much pressure since it’s like senior oct/november is the last last SAT</p>

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<p>How is the Barron’s SAT Math Workbook (4th Edition)? Math is my worst section as well.</p>

<p>To whoever asked: the tests from the SAT Online Course can be opened as a PDF, and can be saved and printed. The answers, however, appear on the website itself and are much more difficult to put on a PDF/word document and print out or save. </p>

<p>Does anyone know if the Online Course’s test would be just as useful as the Blue Book? The tests are very similar to those of the Blue Book.</p>

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<p>@ViggyRam: Yes, do the same practice tests again (ignore your scores) but analyze every single question (even the ones you get right) consistently to UNDERSTAND why it is correct!! there is always only ONE correct question in CR and it will always match with a pattern. That pattern is hard to describe but once you’ve scrutinized every test again and again you’ll just SEE the answer immediately on the tests! If you need more help though, the Workbooks really helped my sister but I’ve never used them.
btw, PEEL region’ite?</p>

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<p>^ Yeah I’ve done the QAS’s twice now, I have all of them, should I do them again? or some of them again? </p>

<p>Also is the CB official course worth it for more practice tests? are they different and printable?</p>

<p>Also I at the moment have a 2070 superscored, am expecting anwhere from 2100+ single sitting from the looking at the consolidated list from this current June SAT administration. Also how do I prevent myself from screwing both mentally and carelessly on math? There is so much pressure since it’s like senior oct/november is the last last SAT </p>

<p>Anyone???</p>

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<p>^I just posted that the CB official courses are different and printable. As for the question of whether or not they are worth the ~70 dollars… I would personally say not. I don’t feel comfortable paying that much money just for practice tests, but then again many other people would.</p>