<p>I find AP Calculus to come very natural (got a 5 on both AP test) but I always get like a 690 on SAT math practice tests. How will top colleges consider this. Should I just try the ACT?</p>
<p>They both test for different things so getting different ranges of scores is not unheard of.</p>
<p>That may be because you may not be used to work really fast etc.</p>
<p>Im actually taking AP Calculus too and find it easy etc and I get 680-720 too. Sometimes I find myself in the SAT doing like derivatives and making things more complex than they actually are. One thing I learned is that if it looks too hard, you didnt understand the question. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. At least for me.</p>
<p>The SAT goes up to Algebra 2 so dont expect anything else and also the Algebra 2 questions, they arent complex either. You wont have to carry out long calculations etc, if you find yourself doing long stuff, you missed the point of the question.</p>
<p>This helped me to get from a 670 to a 710-720. To get closer to a 800 its just luck. Good luck.</p>
<p>It doesn't matter how well you do at AP Calc (although I do remember using calc to solve some of the problems to double check)..go back and study your geo/alg/alg2/trig/etc instead.</p>
<p>Yeah just know your trig and algebra formulas. The only time I used calculus was when one of the vocabulary words was "derivative" and I ended up skipping that question anyway. I never needed it on the math section.</p>
<p>The only time I used Calc on the SAT Reasoning test was a question asked for a tangent line. Of course this could have been approached several different ways but I felt like doing a derivative.</p>
<p>"I find AP Calculus to come very natural (got a 5 on both AP test) but I always get like a 690 on SAT math practice tests. How will top colleges consider this. Should I just try the ACT?"</p>
<p>The opposite is true for me. I got a 710 on the SAT Math, but I am struggling in BC Calc right now. I'm probably going to get a 1 or 2 on the AP test, even with the generous curve.</p>
<p>Most of the math on the SAT I learned in grades 8-10; the math on the SAT II Math II I learned in 11th- none of it had anything to do with calculus. In my school, the top students take pre-calc junior year, and AP BC Calc senior year. They go from having A+ in pre-calc to B- in calc; they're totally different kinds of math. </p>
<p>I think colleges would be more impressed with the high calc grades, but who knows.</p>
<p>I actually used calculus for a few questions of the SAT maths. Derivatives can be helpful. Maybe a little trig helps. Instead of learning all those similar triangles, you can use law of sines, cosines..etc. But I never used my calculator for the SAT Maths and never failed to get 800 (practice + real test) They could help sometimes but they are not necessary at all!</p>
<p>It's very reasonable to get 700 ~ in SAT math and have 5 level knowledge of calculus. THere are many reasons why.. first of all the SAT math curve is always particularly harsh, if you are the type of person who is brainy but not careful, it will be nearly impossible for you to get above 750. You need to take the time to read each question carefully; are you solving for what hte question asked for, or solving for something else? Also, maybe it has been a while since you did basic geometry and you should make sure you refresh your knowledge of basic math. Someone in BC calc may not have touched a probability question in years -- you might be rusty on that. Finally, you may be tempted to use an understanding of calculus or other math concepts (8parks11 mentioned law of cosines, sines, etc) to solve math questions -- this will never be neccessary, and will usually only make your life complicated! don't try to "show off" by taking the more esoteric, yet harder approach to a problem. you're trying to get a 800, not to solve every problem using what you just learned in class. approach problems like someone fresh out of algebra 2. if you see a calculus solution to a problem, i would be tempted to avoid it, because it's probably not the best solution (rarely it is). If you are the kind of person who has trouble with finishing math sections on time, pay attention to this -- don't make questions harder than they really are, or you will be wasting time.</p>
<p>it's not showing off. Sometimes it's harder to notice similar triangles and SAS and those stuff. Calculus solutions will be better many times, and I have plenty of examples and yes I know it's not necessary but it's faster. It does not get harder at all. You mentioned people in BC calc class. I think they will remember finding derivatives better than some formula for a 3rd-degree polynomial.</p>
<p>I got a 5 on my BC Calc exam (of course, 5's on BC Calc are not as uncommon as a 5 on AB Calc) </p>
<p>but a 720 on SAT Math
next stop is SAT II Math, which I heard had a more lenient scale</p>
<p>Well, the SAT math sort of depends on being able to answer the right question, seeing through some tricks, remembering your geometry theorems, etc.</p>
<p>I'm studying calculus at the BC level on my own at the moment and it's generally a lot more intellectually demanding than, say, the SAT math. At first, I was doing terribly on SAT I Math practices, but after a little practice, I was scoring 750s. Now, after taking the real thing and doing some more practice, I'm getting 800s without much difficulty. </p>
<p>Colleges will be much more impressed with calc ability over some silly SAT math test. Besides, real college math requires a hell of a lot more reasoning power than the SAT...and AP Calc is a precursor to that advanced math.</p>
<p>A good rule of thumb is, if it takes you more than 30 seconds to solve the problem, you're missing the easy solution. </p>
<p>If you're in BC, you're very much capable of scoring an 800 - it's just a matter of not making careless mistakes. </p>
<p>As a struggling BC student, I got an 800 on the SAT Math. Simple is best, however. The SAT Math is not to show off what you learned in trig/calc, but using simple, straightforward methods. </p>
<p>I'll admit, however, I spent some time writing out all the possibilities to probability questions, and also used some trig when my memory of geometry failed me. Time was never a problem, since I made up for it on other problems.</p>
<p>I think topasz lists some very good reasons why people who are good at math don't necessarily do well on the math section of the SAT.</p>
<p>I was in Calc AB junior year when I took the SAT for the first time, and got a 720. Not bad, but considering the fact that I'm a math person and my verbal score was 50 points higher than that, I wanted to do better. I even had people on here asking me why I wanted to be a math major, since my verbal score and SAT II lit scores were much better than my math scores.</p>
<p>Anyway, review basic math, don't over think things, and be careful. Also, simply retaking the test helps, in case you get a better curve. The second time I took the SAT, my math score went up to 740, but I got the same exact number of questions wrong. (By the way, I only missed about three and maybe skipped one, which is easy to do if you're not careful. But because of the harsh curve, it affected my score by those 60-90 points).</p>
<p>no matter what i would recomend taking the SATs and ACTs</p>
<p>There may be another reason why you are not scoring as well on the SAT Math exam as you did on the BC exam: you are not as talented on multiple choice as you are on free response math questions. </p>
<p>I discovered this for myself last year when I took a practice BC test. I scored...I believe, 33/54 on the multiple choice of the BC exam. Hardly impressive. However, I scored 48/54 on the free response section--including 4 perfect scores. I still easily scored a 5 on the practice exam, and I scored a 5 on the actual BC exam. </p>
<p>If you are like me, you may never be able to get the perfect 800's that seem to come so easily to many talented math students. However, using the advice that others have given you--reviewing trig and geometry rules, trying to work faster, etc.--will likely help your score into the 700's. It's a fine idea to try out the ACT if you don't feel that the SAT is representing your abilities well, but don't expect miracles. </p>
<p>Just by reviewing the simple things, especially the Geometry that I did in 8th grade, I got a 780 on the SAT I Math and a 770 on the SAT II Math II--not perfect, but definitely more than acceptable scores.</p>
<p>They seem correlated to me. Last year, 99% of the AIME qualifiers got 5 on the BC exam. Is the logic that, People who score well on BC does well on the AMC, or is it that AMC qualifiers score well on BC?</p>
<p>Post #18:"Last year, 99% of the AIME qualifiers got 5 on the BC exam. Is the logic that, People who score well on BC does well on the AMC, or is it that AMC qualifiers score well on BC?"</p>
<p>Getting 5 on Calc BC is nothing special. A school can have 30 people getting 5 on Calc BC, but has at most 3 people qualified for AIME. Also, many people who are qualified for AIME don't have calculus yet.</p>