<p>Alexandre...my son is applying to Michigan - fall 2006. He'll have his application done before September - Guaranteed. He's in-state. Legacy (multiple). Going to one of the better publics in the state. GPA around 3.8 unweighted, with good smattering of AP and honors classes. OK ECs - 2 sports with leadership roles. Not a URM. No special hook. Here's the punchline - his PSAT math and writing scores are in the high 600s - but his verbal score is below 500. Will this kill his chances? </p>
<p>We're working on improving this score - and have yet to take the ACT - but it's entirely possible that it won't improve by much.</p>
<p>i jsut wanna say that many ppl improve a lot from psats to sats i myself went from 1280-1440 and 570-660 in verbal. with strong preparation and with good vocab practice and reading especially i wouldn't be suprised if he bring his verbal to atleast a high 500 that accompanied with a low 700 math and wrtign could mean a 2000 which is about a 1340 on the old test if i'm not mistaken which aint that bad especially for instate legacy and good overall gpa</p>
<p>I do not think a "low" SAT score will disqualify your son. Michigan deemphasizes the SAT. Michigan would rather accept a 3.8 student with a 1200 on the SAT than accept a 3.3 student with a 1400 on the SAT. But this said, your son is going to have to work harder on his SAT. Like ijm said, SATs can be prepared for. At the same time, you want to encourage your son and make sure he does not think his future hangs on that one test. I am sure with the right amount of preparation and with your calming his nerves, he can break the 700 on the math and the 500 on the verbal. If he can do that, I would say his chances with Michigan will be decent. He may also want to look at the ACT. Some kids react better to the ACT. But since it is early...he should probably focus on the SAT. By the way, I did horrible on the PSAT and I aced the SAT, so I would not put too much emphasis on the PSAT. But I did prepare like hell for the SAT.</p>
<p>Thanks. Yeah, I'm pretty sure he can break 700 on the math. We've got him working with a tutor - and we're encouraging him to study vocabulary words on top of that. Because he is so strong in other areas, he's having a hard time believing a low score on that one test will matter. I wish it didn't, but I fear it will. He'll take the ACT in April and SAT in May. He's got the whole summer to work on it if those scores aren't where they should be. We're also looking into schools that don't require the SAT - just in case. But Michigan is one of top 2 choices at the moment.</p>
<p>Topcat, your son's taking the SAT's importance in context is actually going to help him. It is worse to think the test is the be-all/end-all. Clearly, he should understand that only 25% of Michigan students have less than 1220 on the SAT...and most of those are URM, athletes and/or non-LSA/Engineering students. But at the same time, he should not panic and worry too much about it. Striking that balance between understanding the importance of the test and also putting it into proper context in the larger scheme of things is where you want him to be mentally.</p>
<p>Studying vocab is a good way to help his score. The Princeton Review (and possibly other companies) have a "hot list" of words that tend to be used on the tests over and over. A student may learn 100 or so words and be pretty sure that 2-3 of them will appear on the exam. That may sound like a low payoff, but they can make a difference in score. And it's not so hard to learn that many words when you have the time to do it over several months.</p>
<p>Another thing the SAT does with hard words like that is deliberately tempt students to pick the wrong answer. The SAT needs to do this to reduce the chance of someone's lucky guesses putting them in the same score range as someone who knew the correct answers. If you're going to guess, they want you to guess wrong. So they use words like "noisome" and tempt students with answers that suggest this word means loud (because a student who doesn't know the word is going to see the "nois" and assume it has to do with sound).</p>
<p>So--make some flashcards! Vocabulary study is never wasted, because even if the SAT doesn't use them your son is sure to encounter them in other reading.</p>
<p>I agree totally with IJM. my psat verbal was at around 540. and after my second SAT testing, my score was raised to a 630. What helped me the most was the book "10 Real SAT's" it has real tests and allows u to practice the EXACT question types that are on the real exam. Also, SAT/ACT prep classes are very beneficial. Good luck with your son.</p>
<p>Thanks, Hoedown and Jarell - and, of course, Alexandre. I'm trying to walk that fine line between freaking him out and encouraging him to study. With kid #1 it was very hard to get him focused on college until senior year. It's deja vu all over again!</p>