<p>To be honest with you, school and reviewing by yourself can be just as good as sat tutoring. Many of my friends took sat courses in hopes of a higher score, but they did not do anything outside of tutoring. This thinking is very bad for a student because he will spend enough time on studying.</p>
<p>We had a private tutor for both of our kids, and it was worth every penny. Because of his scores, our son got into the three places he applied EA to with 30% merit at each. Our daughter’s scores were vastly improved over her PSAT scores…took the SAT 2x and is well into the 700’s on each section, NEVER would have if not for our tutor.</p>
<p>I personally feel that tutoring for standardized tests such as SAT and ACT would be worth the money if the costs associated with such tutoring programs are not too high. When you pay $1000+ for a one-on-one SAT tutoring course and your scores are not that great, it does pinch you… Recently one close friend of mine enrolled his daughter for an online tutoring course in SAT which cost him just $18/hour. He said that his daughter did much better than he expected her to do on the SAT. She was assigned to one tutor and that tutor remained with her during the entire duration of the course, creating a bond that helped my shy daughter come out of her shell and ask even the most stupid question without any hitch. My friend reviewed every tutoring class on their online portal through a playback mechanism and he found the tutors very knowledgeable. I found out the tutoring company’s name. It is top-grader.</p>
<p>^ First post on CC?</p>
<p>I’m guessing you work for the company and get paid to advertise? How much do they pay you?</p>
<p>Getting help from a big company like Kaplan or whatever is useless. Their SAT tutors for the most part are idiots- mostly college kids or high school teachers who are making money on the side. If you absolutely have to get a tutor (and the only reason you would want one is that your child is the type of learner who needs someone to walk them through steps), then get one from the small local companies and shell out money for private one-on-one sessions. I’d say for every one hour being tutored, you have to spend at least 10 studying yourself. Don’t expect to have a tutor and pass by with no outside effort.</p>
<p>Hi Aluminum_boat, Yes this is my first post on CC and No I am not getting paid to endorse anyone here… I have a son who would be taking SAT soon and I was exploring some info… Then I came across this thread and shared my thoughts… Hope that explains.</p>
<p>Speaking as a student, I feel that if you are willing to put in the time and prepare yourself a course is not necessary. I took an SAT class and my score did jump from a 1900 to a 2100, but when I bought the SAT Princeton Review prep book I realized that it contained most if not all of the techniques the instructor taught us. After studying the book only for math score went from a 680 to a 740. Before I take the SATs for the last time I will use only the prep book…I will not go to the refresher courses from my class. Overall, I found the Princeton Review book to be a valuable resource.</p>
<p>PRACTICE TESTS ARE THE KEY TO BETTER SCORES ON STANDARDIZED TESTS. And they can be found in books or online for at no or low cost.
A good tutor can help with knowledge gaps and with testing strategies, such as best use of time, based on how the student is performing on practice tests. However, the practice tests are time-consuming and the student has to be motivated to put in the hours.</p>
<p>For me, it is not even about if SAT tutoring can help raise my score or not. Ultimately, it is not even about the score; it is what SAT scores entails which is college admission. Because of how arbitrary college adcom is, we honestly won’t ever know if the few hundred points actually made the difference between an admission or a rejection. Even then, a lower SAT score would just mean you have to settle for a lower-tier school. Is that bad? My answer is a definite no. In my situation, if I had spend those thousands of dollars on a SAT tutor, I would simply be attempting to buy prestige. That is something that I definitely don’t care enough about to fork over so much $$$ for; I would rather save the money for things I actually think is important.</p>
<p>An driven student does not need forced SAT tutoring because many practice materials & knowledgable advice can be found online for free. The money that would have been used for tutoring would be better used on practice books & personal treats.</p>
<p>its worth it if you have the money</p>
<p>I never posted before, but I can’t help writing for this topic.
My D had taken SAT earlier this year and her score was 740(CR), 740(M), 660(W). I never thought she needed any academic help since she has always been a good student (4.00 GPA with many AP classes). However, in early May we decided to get her a private tutor just for writing. She worked with a professional writer (who turned out to be just a local newspaper contributor, but he certainly knew how to write for SAT test.) for total of 14 hours. Before the June 1st test, my D told me that she felt more comfortable and confident about the writing portion so I was very curious about the outcome, but still skeptical. So I was more shocked than excited when my D texted me her scores. She had 780(CR), 720(M), and 800(W)!! I honestly do not think she could have perfect writing score without any help. Her superscore now is 2320 and she is thinking about trying for some Ivies that she never thought of before.
I can only speak about my D’s case, but if the student and the instructor know exactly what they have to work on, SAT tutoring can bring wonderful result. Now my D not only has much better scores, but also is more confident for upcoming college admission process.</p>
<p>We used the national company that start with an H, and they were great. Thanks to their help D wound up a National Merit Scholar. Before we started tutoring we sat her down and explained the stakes - not just getting accepted, but being able to attend because you get enough merit aid. We made it clear what we could afford to pay, what she would have to ‘earn’ one way or another. Disciplined test prep, on her own and with a tutor, was agreed upon. She had a nearly 30 point gain on the PSAT after $600 worth of tutoring. She was offered annual merit scholarships of $5-35K/year at various public and private universities. Worth the investment? Wow!</p>
<p>But more important was the facility she gained in math, especially. It always seemed like she was hit or miss with math, but after the SAT prep she really gained an ease and pleasure from math, getting 5’s on Calculus AB & BC AP exams. I think it filled in concepts she had missed, as she changed elementary schools twice. </p>
<p>Now she’s in the happy position of already having fulfilled her math requirements for college. And she WANTS to take more higher level math. Best outcome I can imagine.</p>
<p>Up to student - I taught many that sat through the prep classes, failed it all and proudly told me they used big book as a doorstop! (Parents wasting money–) It is entirely possible to prepare on your own - start early learning about test. (9th grade.) Some great internet stuff out there FREE. Know your weaknesses (mine was math…) pick the right test playing to your strength. (SAT is heavily weighted in language and writing - at least until they change it soon.) other test might be better option for some students as it has more science, math, essay optional. Practice sections of tests, work up to timed tests in simulated conditions. (I even used the test booklets with the same font, etc.) Most SAT prep just spoon feeding what is already out there. No huge secrets. PM if you want more detailed info. on best books/programs I found - it worked for my child and several others. Also learn what colleges are looking for - large, state schools use SAT scores to weed out students quickly at start of application process. Smaller schools are more willing to look at lower scores/overall academic picture. More schools don’t require it now.</p>
<p>FYI - start with College Board first (free online) they are the writers of the SAT. Ask your guidance dept. for practice free test booklets, they should have them in months leading up to tests. Ones from last year should be fine if test didn’t change - not sure when SAT is changing next? Last change '05. Be careful of outdated or misinformation. (look at publication dates on books…) I found outdated & incorrect info. at my local Barnes & Noble. Happy to PM</p>
<p>My first CC post!</p>
<p>I think tutoring can be extra effective if a motivated student first jumps into the Blue Book, takes the tests, and figures out on her own where she’s strong and where she needs work. Perhaps more importantly, she can also start to invent her own techniques and strategies for the test rather than just take cookie cutter ones from teachers/tutors/prep books (not that those techniques are bad to learn, but they’re probably more effective after the student has firsthand experience with practice tests; that way, as the student learns those techniques, she’s automatically adapting them to her own style of problem solving). If the student does hit a plateau, that’s when a sharp tutor–hopefully one who scores in the 2300’s, regularly retakes the test, and has a lot of teaching experience–can really boost the score. Extra bonus if the tutor can bridge the test skills to genuine college-level skills that will last another four years. That’s when the investment can pay off beyond even admission to a dream school.</p>
<p>I compare learning the SAT to learning a sport or dance or other kinetic activity. If a student is motivated and is willing to dive in and start to pick up, say, basketball or the Argentine tango on her own, then getting private lessons from a pro when she hits that first wall can be effective. But at the very beginning, an expensive tango instructor can’t teach a new dancer much more than YouTube videos or a general group class can. It’ll all be the basic steps either way.</p>
<p>So to extend the analogy, let a motivated student learn the SAT dance steps on her own, then when she flags or hits a wall, invest in private tutoring.</p>
<p>The right SAT tutor covers the material that ISN’T taught at school and is able to do so without requiring parents to take out second mortgages on their homes.</p>
<p>Without question, students are least prepared for the verbal and essay sections. In fact, many students are MIStaught the skills required for upper-half scores on these parts of the test.</p>
<p>This is true of any standardized test.</p>
<p>A math tutor can be helpful if a student isn’t able (for whatever reason) to understand what his teacher is covering in class. However, in a high school math class, at least most teachers cover material that is relevant to the test.</p>
<p>If you put the work in by yourself you can achieve a great score! No need for a tutor</p>
<p>But then again if a student is not focused maybe a tutor would be best…</p>
<p>i’m actually thinking of taking a course… had private tutoring before and maybe i’m unlucky, but the tutors weren’t okay 
so i think a class might be another choice but i’m still thinking!</p>
<p>our school did a very, very poor job of preparing kids for writing tests. They signed up for some sort of experimental writing program similar to the “imagine” method espoused in the Music Man resulting in about five grades of kids that can’t write. My S came in with a 640 in writing, scored into the 700s in the m and cr.</p>
<p>I bought a couple of books, his writing score on practices tests didn’t increase so we signed him up for four or so sessions with an Sat tutor. After 2-3 sessions we saw a consistent 100 point increase but the essays scoring was subjective. On the actual re-take, he improved 60 points. Additionally, the tutor covered some of the harder math problems and we saw a 40 point increase in math. </p>
<p>the money was well-spent on two levels. I think the extra 100 points qualified him for merit scholarship money. Hard to judge if this is true, but it looks to me like a 10x roi. But more importantly, the sessions permanently improved his writing skills making him more equipped for college and life.</p>