I took the SAT one year ago and got 740 reading and 790 math. Since then I haven’t touched any SAT materials as I did not think I was going to retake it again. However, I’ve changed my mind to better my chances of getting certain scholarships. Does anyone have any tips about how I could increase my score besides just grinding practice tests and reviewing mistakes? I am taking it in school on Oct 16 and then again on Nov 2. I’ll also be busy with college apps so does anyone have any quick, effective tips to increase my scores?
There’s no magic fairy dust that replaces study and preparation.
Taking practice tests on Kahn Academy and reviewing mistakes, one can improve his or her score by 10 points per round. With 8 practice tests offered, one can improve by 80 points… But taking one practice test and reviewing mistakes will easily take four hours.
You need 40 points, you need to invest at least 16 hours.
Obviously your math score is solid. I suspect that your reading score is the likely culprit. Many students have a hard time with the paired best evidence questions. The answer to the best evidence question is going to demonstrate or, more likely, restate the previous answer. Once you’ve got the correct line, match it to an answer in the previous question.
Many students also make simple mistakes in the English section. Make sure you are knowledgeable about commas, colons, dashes, semi colons, and apostrophes. Watch out for the many transition words used in the English section. There can be as many as eight questions focused on the correct usage of words such as however, consequently, and similarly. Think about what comes before and after those words. Find a word that fits the context. Or think of your own word and find one that means the same.