<p>Hello all, I've been lurking here quite awhile and have finally decided to create an account, and post a thread.</p>
<p>I have a few questions about the ACT and SAT. Right now, I plan on taking the ACT on February 6th and April 10th, and taking the SAT on May 1st and June 5th. Is it more advantageous to take one test before the other test, or is there no difference? I want to take each test twice before the end of junior year, I'm a junior ('11) right now. Are there any recommended study plans? And are there any recommended study books/guides/flash cards/etc? I plan on just buying the official booklet/guide for each test and studying a little bit each day and taking the test each saturday - not simultaneously of course. That's all the questions I have for now, all input and answers are appreciated.</p>
<p>The SAT tests 3 areas across 10 tests, while the ACT tests 4 areas across 4 tests (excluding writing). I recommend taking the SAT before the ACT, but this should depend on what schools you plan on applying–the ACT is more important to Ivy League schools, for example.</p>
<p>Get very familiar with the format of each test. Know exactly what to expect and the types of questions (which ones to answer right away, skip and return, etc.). The format of the ACT is different than the SAT, despite similar subject areas (all but science), and this is what I assume resulted in me scoring significantly lower on the ACT than SAT. Review plenty of questions for each test, and take several practice tests.</p>
<p>For the SAT, I found these sources to be most helpful:
+Barron’s SAT 2400
+Collegeboard Official Book
+Collegeboard Online SAT Course (I didn’t fully utilize it)
+A pocket dictionary may be helpful</p>
<p>For the ACT:
+Barron’s ACT 36 (I used only this book–beware of the science section)
+ACT Official Book</p>
<p>You will have to figure out a study plan for yourself based on your own strengths and weaknesses. Some people are able to naturally score high with little practice, and you may find all you need to do is review with books. I recommend most highly purchasing the Barron’s SAT 2400/ACT 36 for a precise re-cap of what you need to know. If you need more than books, look at an SAT prep class such as Kaplan.</p>