On the Diagnostic Test and Model Test 1 with one hour, I got 630 and 570 respectively. But on Model Test 2 with two hours, I got a 770. I took Model Test 2 right after Model Test 1, so I got a 570 and a 770 in one sitting.
Most of the mistakes/omits on the Diagnostic Test and Model Test 1 was because I was trying to do the questions quickly, and not because I didn’t know the material.
I found the questions in the book to be very time-consuming because of the need to graph several of the questions on a calculator, time-consuming algebra (which the book didn’t show a faster method for), and re-reading weirdly worded questions that I’ve never encountered before. For the Diagnostic Test and Model Test 1, I had to guess these same types of questions to meet the one hour mark while with Model Test 2, I was able to answer those types of questions easily with a little more time.
Has anyone had better luck managing their time on the Official SAT Math 2 compared to Barron’s? I’m aware it’s a “marathon” type of test, but I’m hoping for it to test knowledge (like knowing the inverse of a graph/function, permutations/combinations, etc) that I can answer in less than a minute rather than straight up time-consuming calculations.
Math II questions rarely require overly tedious algebra or graphing – if you find yourself spending over a few minutes on one problem, there is a faster way. I’m not familiar with Barron’s, although some books I’ve used do not present alternate solutions even if there is a faster way, or even shortcuts.
For example, to compute a combination (such as 9C3, 9 choose 3), the “standard” way is to use the definition
9C3 = 9!/(6!*3!)
and either use your calculator or note that you can cancel 6!. The faster way IMO is to just do 987/6, and that 98/6 = 12, and 127 = 84.
I’ve taken a few practice tests as well as one real on and I thought that the real version had more questions that required little to no calc (as opposed to the practice tests where you needed extensive calculations for many questions). I finished in the time allotted, with a few omitted because I didn’t know how to do them. Not sure if I got an easy test or what, but I don’t think (still no results yet) it destroyed me the way I thought it would.
I found Barron’s diagnostic relatively easier scoring an 800.
Barrons Model Test 1= 750
Barrons Model Test 2= 800
To get an 800, you only need to get 45 or more out of 50 (factoring into account that you attempt every question)
I am making sure that I go back and read the theory carefully before the exam this Saturday.
I found the scoring in Math SAT II to be higher scoring than Math SAT I due to the allowance of errors. If you make a mistake in Math SAT I, you get penalized for each mark.
Barrons is WAY HARDER than the actual test. Don’t stress. I scored in the 550s or something on my practice tests then walked out of the testing room with an 800, thinking it was a breeze.
The difficulty increase in later tests on Barron’s. If you get 700+ in the last practice, you should be able to get near 800 in the real test.
I got high 600’s (670-690) on Barron’s practice tests (I took 2 before my first exam) and got a 760 on the real thing. They definitely prepare you extra and force you to manage time properly. Good luck!
This suggests that you will benefit from practice. That is usually the way to get faster if you know what you’re doing.