<p>I'm a senior in southeast Asia looking to attend a high-ranked university or liberal arts college in the United States. The only time I took the SAT I was the November 2007 one - about two weeks ago. I didn't prepare for it - despite all the people studying their butts off and advising me to do the same - but at the same time I didn't feel pressured to. Not that I felt so confident but I was just experiencing a slump/depression.</p>
<p>So I took it and I thought I did well but it seems people look at it as a "par score". CR 610 / M 690 / W 620 (essay 6). I didn't know whether to be disappointed or to laugh at myself - especially at the essay score (in which I wrote some jibberish about George Bush and F Scott Fitzgerald's 'Great Gatsby'). Nevertheless, I guess I didn't do so well... at least, in terms of getting into a fine college.</p>
<p>My mom thinks I should do better and is asking me why I didn't prepare for it as much as I could. Well, I had nothing to say. I didn't feel like preparing for it because I didn't know it had so much impact on college admissions. So, what now?? - I ask myself.</p>
<p>I signed up for three SAT II Subject Tests (Biology E/M, Math II, and Chemistry) for January 2008 (yes, all slots in the country for December were filled up by late-October). I'm thinking of retaking SAT I but when? Should I even retake the SAT I?? I honestly feel that I want to do a lot better, but is there enough preparation time? Should I take the stand-by test for the December 1 date? What should I do?</p>
<p>I currently have a Barrons SAT I 21st ed, Barrons 2400, and 2007 PSAT - all which I never read through but a little bit. I very regret not using them. Yes, I'm a great procrastinator and get lazy in things I should not be lazy in. :(</p>
<p>I really could use some honest but helpful advice! Thanks. I'm getting my college applications ready (currently I'm getting teacher evaluations) and I'm shooting for Middlebury, Colgate, Stanford, and a couple "probably" colleges. My family is very low-income by the way, and I have to look for financial-aid-friendly colleges ^^</p>
<p>i think you need to get those scores up if you want to have a fighting chance at places like middlebury and stanford. the biggest problem it seems is that you won't get the chance to do so with all the seats for December being taken. You might want to try going to the test center on the day of the test and try and register as a standby.</p>
<p>With less than 2 weeks' time alotted for me, what do you think I can do to prepare for it? Study? Memorize vocabulary? Honestly my CR won't see much change, would it?</p>
<p>2 weeks isn't absolutely no time at all. plan properly and you could still get in some good preparation. take a few practice tests. identify where you are going wrong. then work on trying to improve and cut out those mistakes.</p>
<p>Since english (presumably) is your second language, I think it'd be easiest to improve math, then writing, then CR. I think you should focus on math first, since you can still raise your composite 110 points just through improving your math. </p>
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With less than 2 weeks' time alotted for me, what do you think I can do to prepare for it? Study? Memorize vocabulary? Honestly my CR won't see much change, would it?</p>
<p>Grrr... I suck
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<p>Good luck... 2 weeks is going to be difficult. I'd say go immediately, do a practice test, and identify your problem areas. Then study those areas for a week and take another practice test.</p>
<p>Also, get the Blue Book. ;) It has 8 practice tests that come from CB itself.</p>
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Not that I felt so confident but I was just experiencing a slump/depression.
<p>I believe he (she?) is a native English speaker, either attending an international school or living in a country where English is spoken regularly.</p>
<p>In fact, your writing shows that you really do have a pretty good grasp of the English language. With two weeks of practice, I definitely think you can bump up your CR/W scores a substantial amount.</p>
<p>Wow thanks for your help- I really doubt I have a lot of preparation time to allot because I have TOEFL this weekend. And I have to prepare for that too. Also, where can I get "Blue Book" and what is this book you're talking about??</p>
<p>Thanks again for replying in a short amount of time ^^</p>
<p>the blue book is the Collegeboard's Official SAT Study Guide. don't worry about the TOEFL. amb3r makes a really good point. your writing does show that your English is good - you should breeze through the TOEFL.</p>
<p>Alright... 10 days until December 1 - I better make sure I wake up early enough to get there at the test center before anyone does... because I need to stand-by.</p>
<p><aktiv8d> and <amb3r>, can you give me a little runthrough of what I should do first and maybe a couple days before December 1? I really haven't done any prep before (sigh)... but I'm willing to put my time and effort into it! By the way, I have no way to get a Blue Book anytime soon (maybe my english teacher has it) - but there is a SparkNotes book in the school library, if that's of any use.</amb3r></aktiv8d></p>
<p>I'm open to suggestions here. I think.. tomorrow, I'll run through some of the grammar rules, CR, and math stuff. And then take a practice test before the day ends.. if time allows. Wooh~ race against time.</p>
<p>I face the same chronic problems. I have tried hard but things bog down. This SAT does not seem to be friendly for international students at all. Sometimes I even get trouble with words that I already know but is not the same British form, such as: rumbustious and they write rambunctious, makes me feel I am a foul.</p>
<p>Do try getting the blue book - i am sure you can find it somewhere. the book is by collegeboard and the practice tests on that book do reflect the actual SATs quite well. i think firstly you should give a practice test. see where you went wrong. study your mistakes so that you know how and why you made those mistakes. this will hopefully help you cut down the number of errors that you make.</p>
<p>a couple of days before dec 1 you could have a quick look through a word list. review grammar rules, stuff ETS tests etc for writing. do a few medium to hard problems in math and review the rules and formulas you need. for math do try studying a few extra things before the test like the sine and cosine rules as they might come in handy during the test.</p>