<p>Is the Blue Book really that great? I keeping seeing how much better it is than other prep books. What's your experience with it? I just took the March SAT and earned an 1880 (690 CR, 570 M, 620 W [6 essay -_-] ). I'm not terribly disappointed, but I am aiming for a 1350+ for CR+M and maybe 2000+ combined. How much will the Blue book help me with that? I plan on taking the October test, so this summer I'll be studying. </p>
<p>Any and all feedback is appreciated! Thanks, guys :)</p>
<p>The blue book is useful because it is the only book with SATs made by the College Board, 3 of which are actual SATs. For most students it is not particularly useful for daily prep. The exception is the student that can work through the problems, and develop strategies for solving problems in more efficient ways on their own - the Blue Book gives no guidance here.</p>
<p>It depends on at what level are you at in the preparation. I’ll save the BB for later practice if you have other resources. Try to do a book exchange with your friends or check out your local library.</p>
<p>The Blue Book is not so much a “prep” book as a “practice” book. If you are struggling with problem solving, the Blue Book will not give you much by way of study techniques, problem-solving strategies, etc. I would recommend you look into other well-known test prep books (Barron’s, Gruber’s, etc.) for that.</p>
<p>That being said, one of the most crucial parts of SAT prep is practice. The Blue Book is pure gold for practice tests. No other book comes close to the 10 very accurate, high-quality practice tests the Blue Book offers. I’ve found that other practice test tend to be easier (that’s you, Kaplan) or more difficult (looking at you, Gruber’s and Barron’s) than the real thing. </p>
<p>That’s not to say that other sources of practice tests can’t be beneficial, especially if you run out of Blue Book. As with all other SAT prep methods, YMMV.</p>
<p>It meets the hype. I believe that, in almost case, it will be a student’s most valuable preparation resource by far if it is used correctly. Once you have your math, grammar, and vocabulary (if needed) fundamental knowledge crystallized, there’s no better way to improve than carefully taking official tests. Make sure you understand every question and answer before moving on to the next test; don’t use the practice tests merely for bench-marking score changes over time. </p>
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<p>I disagree. Answer explanations appear on the College Board’s Website, before looking at which a student can attempt to independently reason out the questions he or she missed – a potently educational process that broadens one’s reasoning. But if a student remains stumped or needs further clarification for whatever reason, official solutions are always available. </p>
<p>Every other medium of preparation, whether it be intensive third-party subject boot camps, vocabulary list memorization, or general strategy reading from any of the big-named prep companies, should be done in order to improve one’s ability to exploit maximum benefit from practicing with official tests.</p>
<p>The Blue Book is absolutely, unequivocally worth the hype. Every question that reaches an official exam has been thoroughly tested for statistical accuracy. What does this mean for you? As you hone in on your target score, the level of question you need to get right is critical. If your goal is a 650 in math, identifying the questions you need for a 650 is really important.</p>
<p>I will not go as far and say the non-collegeboard books are bad practice, you just need to understand how to use them. If you’re simply looking for more training, some of these books can do an adequate job, especially in math and writing. Just don’t use any of their score correlations–and don’t use them as full length practice tests. The reading, unfortunately, is almost impossible to imitate.</p>