<p>First of all I'd like to say I'm not someone whose done like 1 SAT scored a 500 and wants to know any magic tricks to get to 800. </p>
<p>With that being said, I've been consistently scoring in the 750s.. 1-2 wrong and on a rare occasion 3. Did any of you flirt in the 700s before finally getting the 800? I still have some time before the march 14th SAT so maybe I'll find my touch then. But other than fixing the stupid mistakes what do you guys suggest? Like for those 1-2 stompers that are there to well.. stomp you, how do you suggest i go about them? Always look at the big picture? Don't get intimidated by long questions/complex figures? </p>
<p>Advice and strategies are helpful. I'm thinking on taking it again in May (along with 2 APs -.-") so i still have time for the re-run
P.S. I truly don't believe in "off-guard" questions for Math or CR, Writing. Especially with the limited variation for Math SAT, other than the random logic questions that are really variant, I think math should be straightforward.</p>
<p>I got a 790 on the math, but only got a 700 on the psat. What I recommend is just to try and use your calculator as much as possible. Try graphing any equations you can and just doing lots of calculator substitution.</p>
<p>If you haven't already, then you should just go over every single concept covered on the SAT Math. After that, try to obtain worksheets/practice problems from your math teacher or online and work on those.</p>
<p>As for my opinion on the calculator advice, I usually do not use my calculator much. On most of the problems, it takes less time for me to solve it without a calculator than with a calculator. I suggest that you only use calculators on the problems that you are struggling on or ones that you are unsure of. I don't know how much time you usually have left after working on every problem, but I always have time to check over every problem before time runs out (i use the calculator just a little more when going over answers). Lastly, remember to read the directions carefully...even when checking your answers.</p>
<p>Like you, I generally got 1-2 questions wrong on my practice PSATs, but then got an 80 on the Oct. PSAT. I just found myself very focused during the math sections and found many of the problems far easier than the practice tests I did, so I had plenty of time to check my answers thoroughly. However, there was still probably an element of luck involved that it happened to be that one test where I didn't make a mistake.</p>
<p>I don't think there's any way to "guarantee" an 800 in math, there will always be that possibility of making a dumb mistake or being genuinely stumped by a type of problem you've never seen before. But I think doing a lots of very challenging practice problems, working on zipping through the first 5-10 problems in just a couple minutes without making silly mistakes so you have lots of time for the harder ones, and training yourself to be meticulous greatly improve your chances.</p>
<p>The difference between a 750 and an 800 is often just 2 to 3 questions. At that point , it is more a question of how careful you are instead of how well did you grasp the concepts tested. So my advice is: check through your work thoroughly. You will probably finish the section within 15 minutes of the 25 minutes allotted. Don't spend that time staring at the ceiling - check through your work (preferably starting from the back, since they are the most difficult ones), even do some of the questions from scratch if you are even the slightest bit unsure.</p>
<p>I work backwards. I usually find that I pay more attention in the beginning. I know you guys may think its suicide because I will run out of time, but I usually finish a section in 10-15 mins so it gives me ample amount of time to check, double check, and triple check</p>
<p>Is it better to work through the problems hurridly so as to have plenty of time to check, or work slowly and carefully but then only have time to check the last 5-6 problems? I find if I go too fast, I make some silly mistakes and then make the same mistake when I check my work.</p>
<p>Well, from a college student who's studying math -- honestly, it definitely does come down to how careful one is. I refused to take this guy more than once, and didn't get a perfect score, but seriously a score above 750 is fine for any top school, and I'd stop worrying about it. What others say about being careful is true, but people can only get so careful...especially some people. An 800 on the Math IIC is pretty straightforward because of the bigger curve, so definitely get that.</p>
<p>I'm in the same boat as you, I think I'm alright for 15-20, but sometimes it's the easy problems that get me. Really a bummer when that happens. But yeah, try to be careful I guess. Hopefully I'll it'll work out a bit better in may :P</p>