A royal mess in the SAT. Help!

Test Preparation
1

<p>Okay, I took the SAT for the first time this January and scored 1890, which I thought was reasonable because I went in with NO preparation whatsoever. As a senior looking to apply to Ivy league schools, I retook the SAT in October. This time, however, I did take a few—four, to be exact—practice tests. Obviously, I was expecting a much better score this time around and, as it turns out, the results were shambolic, again. </p>

<p>Maths—790
Writing—660
Reading—590 (still can't believe it)</p>

<p>Yes, mathematics is "strong" subject, but my English isn't that bad. Earlier this year, I scored a five on my AP Literature exam. Even outside the class, I quite enjoy reading articles about sports, economics, politics, and current events. To clarify, I do not enjoy reading modern fiction, but I did have a niche for classics and poetry. My writing abilities, too, aren't that bad; as a matter of fact, I feel they quite reasonable. I'm a fairly good student at school: since my school doesn't offer APs, I took honors and higher-than-my-grade level classes; I've won excellence awards for mathematics and social sciences in my junior year, and sciences and English in my sophomore year. For the record, I got a 214 on my sophomore year PSAT, scoring 75 and 77 on CR and Writing respectively. </p>

<p>Please tell me where I'm going wrong. I hope I've explained my situation adequately. Also, I'm still sending an ED application to an Ivy league school, hoping they would reward me for my grades, ECs, and teacher recommendations. </p>

<p>Thanks a lot</p>

2

<p>You may want to rethink submitting the ED application, or if you’ve already submitted it then consider withdrawing it The sub-600 CR score may indeed be a fluke, but it’s what the adcom will see and it may be fatal. Retake the test. Your PSAT scores suggest that you’re capable of a significantly higher score.</p>

3

<p>Amherst is extremely selective – possibly more so in regards to the CR score than many of the Ivies. You may get rejected rather than deferred, so I have the same advice.</p>

4

<p>Oh yeah, it’s a liberal arts school, ergo a greater emphasis on CR. Are there specific things one could do to improve his or her CR score? I’ve been told that one cannot practice or prepare for it, as it’s a result of a skill we obtain as we progress in our academic life. I’m quite bewildered, because I also did poorly on the CR for my first SAT (a 570, if I can recall correctly). My hopes for a good college are more or less nonexistent.</p>