<p>What study guide did you use to study for the ssat and what were your scores on the ssat. Im using the barrons and the princeton review books, will this be affective?</p>
<p>I really liked the Princeton Review. I got in the 96th percentile.</p>
<p>I’m using a book from Peterson’s, but I’m not sure how much I like it. Having skimmed through the Princeton book and gotten favorable reviews from friends I’m considering switching over to it. Has anyone used the Peterson book? How helpful was it?</p>
<p>I really like the Barron’s book I used the Princeton Review before and did not get as much help as i did with the Barron’s book its very detailed and has a whole list of vocab to learn and it fully explains problems i was recommended this book by one of the admissions officers in a school i was applying to last year.</p>
<p>I used Barrons and the Princeton Review. I liked them for different reasons :)</p>
<p>I use both Peterson’s and Princeton Review and I think it’s good to use both. The Princeton is more detailed but sometimes these details can ‘bog you down’ while the Peterson’s is more concise but doesn’t seem to explain as much. Seems like they supplement each other well. (:</p>
<p>When you’re first starting it may be good to use Peterson’s, then switch over to Princeton or Barron’s or vise versa. </p>
<p>(Plus Peterson’s is LIGHTER.) xD</p>
<p>Thanks. I’m kind of confused about how Peterson grades the SSAT practice test scores; they grade it on a scale of 350 per each subject, and I thought that each subject was worth 800 points. What’s up with that?</p>
<p>Rolopolo, I was confused about that too. I don’t like that they did a modified version for it. (At least I think that’s what happened.)</p>
<p>Intrins, I think I’ll take your advice and buy the Princeton Review one and build off of both. I really want a sense of what my standing is point-wise, and I don’t feel like I’m getting that from the Peterson’s book although it has been a helpful study guide.</p>
<p>I am confused too. I got the Barrons and Kaplans for my 12 year old to prepare for Fall admissions. Now someone tells me the Barrons is terrible and not to use it. Can i get some help from those who have taken the SSAT? Which are the best books and what are the expectations of some of the tier 1 schools. Does the SSAT have a lot of weight in teh admissions if the grades are in the B’s but the SSAT scores are strong.<br>
Need some help.</p>
<p>Well, Barrons and Kaplan are the ones that helped me the most, so I’d really recommend to use them. The official guide was awful, I’ve actually found some mistakes…</p>
<p>This topic has been covered before–a search would uncover good info. Briefly, in my opinion:</p>
<p>The Kaplan is better for math as it gives explanations for how to approach each problem on the practice tests.</p>
<p>The Princeton is better for English–good vocab. lists and hints for analogies.</p>
<p>The SSAT official review book is good right before the test for practice tests.</p>
<p>(My son’s overall score was 99% as an 8th grader)</p>
<p>Classicalmama,
Thank you very much. Very impressive scores. Is this how you approached his preparation i.e. Kaplan for math and Princeton review for English? My son has reviewed the SSAT official guide but they have a lot more for the lower leven than the Upper level which is what he will take this November as he will be an 8th grader.
I am also curious did the SSAT score help with your son’s admissions. We are very nervous about where our son will get in.</p>
<p>It’s an interesting thing…I agree with most posters on CC that a good SSAT score gets you in the door and may help boost your profile some, but doesn’t, by any means, guarantee admission. It’s the overall package. If I had to hazard a guess based on my son (he was accepted at 2 schools and waitlisted at 2), I’d say that the interview and essays are what really make the difference. And that’s really because those things help the school determine how well your child will fit in that school, in that particular class. I know that’s not comforting on your end of things…but it is on mine, knowing he’s going to the right school for him. Your best safety net, really, is to look at lots of school, and interview at as many as you can; he’ll feel right when it’s right.</p>
<p>Of course, we needed lots of FA, which probably affected at least one of the waitlist results. </p>
<p>That said, a good SSAT score certainly doesn’t hurt! So here’s what he did. He studied vocabulary from the Princeton lists (we homeschooled, so just used that list for his vocab. study that fall). He read through the test-taking tips, especially for analogies and the math vocabulary. </p>
<p>He took the practice tests a section at a time–I don’t think he ever did a practice test start to finish on one day, though he did that once when he took the SSAT in seventh grade, so he wasn’t worried about timing. Sometimes he’d go over the answers as he took the test, but mostly he finished a section, then checked his answers (this is where Kaplan’s math answers really help–they give specific advice on how to approach the problem that you get wrong). By the end, I think he had done almost all of the appropriate practice tests in the three books, but all in little bits of studying, summer and fall. </p>
<p>Hope that helps!</p>
<p>Classical mama
Thanks for the information. Very helpful. Will focus on the points noted in your post</p>
<p>FWIW, I got the Princeton Review “cracking the SSAT” and McGraw-Hill, but since my D has already taken the SAT (for JHU CTY qualifying), it’s more to get the practice tests under her belt than any help/advice.</p>
<p>SevenDad: Does the SAT still have analogies? I thought they had taken them out…</p>
<p>^ The SAT took out both the analogy and antonym sections.</p>
<p>@classicalmama: I referenced the SAT more to say that my D is not a stranger to standardized tests. 2010 hopeful is correct that they no longer have the analogy/antonym sections.</p>
<p>Got it. I was confused because my son also had tests under his belt so I would say he used the books more for the hints than the practice–especially for odd stuff like analogies. We’re probably saying the same thing in different ways. :)</p>