<p>I'm a senior this year taking AP Literature. I'm hoping to maybe take the Lit and Chem subject tests in October, when I'll have only had a few months of class. However, I took AP Lang last year and got a 5 on the test and on my ACT, my English and Reading are quite high (35 and 33-34). On the other hand, on the SAT, my most recent Critical Reading score was only a 660. Would I be successful on the Lit test with this background (750+ at least)? Or should I try to take a different subject? Thanks beforehand!</p>
<p>OP, here is the link to a similar discussion (<a href=“Can I take the Literature Subject Test with only AP Lang knowledge? - SAT Subject Test Preparation - College Confidential Forums”>Can I take the Literature Subject Test with only AP Lang knowledge? - SAT Subject Test Preparation - College Confidential Forums). As you can see in my comment on that post, I think you should be perfectly fine with the Lit SAT II since you’ve taken and obviously succeeded in your AP Lang class (and test).</p>
<p>The one thing that does worry me though is your Critical Reading score. The Literature Subject Test is essentially Critical Reading on steroids. I advise you take a practice test for the Literature Subject Test and see how you fair. I found the Kaplan and the Princeton Review books to be the most helpful in preparation for this test, and they both offer practice tests that are accurate to the actual difficulty of the test. If you’re scoring in the upper 600s on your first practice SAT II, I’d say go for it. With over a month of time to prep you should be able to raise that score into the mid/upper 700s. Best of luck!</p>
<p>Thank you for the link. As far as my CR score, most of the damage from that was due to the vocab more than the comprehension of passages. Would that still apply to the subject test?</p>
<p>The Subject Test usually will include 2-4 questions on defining a word in context. Almost always this will mean that a word has not taken the standard definition in the text. For example: you might be asked what the best definition would be for the word “surviving” in the context of a passage. As choices for answers they may offer you things like “remaining alive,” or “outlasting.” Other than a few of those types of questions, there really isn’t any other vocab you should know besides the literary and rhetorical terminology that you will get from your English class and the review books. They may ask you about meter and different types of rhyme, so be prepared regarding those rules and knowing what to call what. I suggest you use one or both of the review books I mentioned, because their review sections are concise and will tell you everything you need to know to go in prepared.</p>
<p>So, if it’s the vocab that’s hurting you the most on your Critical Reading, I think you’ll be fine on the Subject Test after some good review of the other terminology you’ll need to know (most of it poetry stuff).</p>
<p>Okay! I’ll do that, thank you very much</p>