Hi everyone. I am an upcoming junior and have been self studying for the (old) SAT to take before January for the past few weeks. The latest practice test I took I received at 1640 (got a 600 in math and I’m so proud). A month ago before I began studying I scored a 1340 so I think I making good progress. I am hoping to eventually get a 2000 before the SAT switches over because I honestly do not want to deal with the change especially if I have to continue testing into my senior year. I was thinking of taking it in November, December and January. Do you guys think it is possible? After I receive that score (if possible) I hope to possibly work on taking the ACT and maybe some some subject tests. I come from a not so great school district where I have never even heard someone mention SAT subject tests so everything I am doing is on my own. Anyways, please share what you think and any advice you have. Thank you 
It seems like youre working really hard and putting in a lot of effort! Youre making good progress and Im glad your score went up by 300 points in a month. It shows a lot of dedication and improvement.
I think 2000+ is doable. If you do more practice problems and go over which ones youre getting wrong, your score will definitely go up. Especially for writing, know your SVDs, parallelism, illogical comparisons, etc, because there arent that many topics the writing portion tests you on. Familiarize yourself with idioms (such as capable of) and diction (such as respectively vs respectfully). For reading, which is the hardest for me, memorize vocab words. If youre not sure where to start, just memorize the words that you werent sure of from your practice problems. Congrats on your 600 for math! Always read the questions carefully; thats my number one tip for math. For some questions that use variables, see if you can plug in numbers and just match your numerical answer to the answer with the right variables, if youre not sure how to solve the problem using algebra.
Good luck! Yeah, take it in Nov, Dec, and Jan. Hope this helped.
This was my response for another post similar to yours.
June SAT I had 1440. 440 CR 510 Math 490 Writing. The thrown out sections really affected my score for CR
About a week ago I took a full test under testing environment and got 1700. 550 CR 600 Math and 550 Writing.
Right now I’m averaging around 650-690 for Math!. This is a 50-90 point increase in just under a week! Studying 8+ hours a day and doing Practice section helps A LOT! AND making sure I’m not repeating the same mistakes, that are costing me points. I plan to use Dr Chung’s book to raise my Math score to at least the low 700s. Maybe even go for an 800. (My original goal was 670)
I just started studying for CR and Writing. I plan to use Erica L. Meltzer’s book to raise my Writing Score by at least 100 points before October. I’m aiming for 670-700. As for CR, well I guess I need to take at least 1 practice section a day to familiarize myself with the format of the test.I have heard this is the hardest section to improve upon. I’m again hoping for at least a 100 point increase.
My BIG goal is to get at least 2000. 2100+ will be an extra ++++ You can surely raise yours to 1850 easily. If you are willing to go far, dedicate hours and hours and most importantly BELIEVE that you will achieve your goal, then nothing else will stop you!
Btw Skill Insight from CB will GREATLY HELP! Just doing that is what caused my writing score to increase by 60 points! (Assuming I got the same essay score of 8)
Good luck!I received a 10 on the essay but thanks I have just started exploring around the college board skill insight
I’m also a rising junior, and plan on taking those same tests (including October, depending on how I do for that and November I’ll see if January is necessary…but I totally don’t want to be the new format’s guinea pig). Here’s also what I wrote for a similar post:
You can totally improve your score!
Definitely follow what cptjosh787 did, that’s key.
Although in addition to that I used a couple of prep books. I think you can really improve your score by a couple of hundred points with some books, especially since you’re self-studying.
For math: PWN the SAT, definitely. Not only does it break down every question time, but it also is highly amusing (:P) and has a lot of practice to nail the basics. I went from a 590 to (from my most recent test) a 760. This book took me about 3-5 days to complete, if you need a timeframe.
For CR: I did use the Critical Reader by Erica L. Meltzer, and although it breaks down every question type, it was a bit hard to get through (it’s pretty long – took me a week in the summer). But after doing this (along with intense untimed practice) my score went from a 630 to a 750 (again, according to my most recent test).
In terms of vocab, for me, memorization just sort of increases confidence, and they sometimes do show up on tests. I’ve been using The Essential 500 by Larry Krieger; it’s also highly amusing. But you should probably dedicate your time to other sections, get those basics.
For Writing: If you’re struggling on the grammar MC portion, definitely use Erica Meltzer’s Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar. I actually need that right now to refresh grammar. Before last year’s PSAT I got around a 590 in writing, but on the actual PSAT I got a 780 (curse that one idiotic mistake) from her book. Although nowadays I’m a bit out of practice (620 eek). This one’s pretty short, so you should be able to fly through it (2 days for me).
If the essay is your issue…Uh tbh I’m probably not the best person to ask, I’m still working on my essay. But you should at least get someone to look over your essays and give you a grade/feedback, it does help.
With those books, go through your weaknesses (which should be diagnosed from practice tests). Then take another practice test, and for every mistake, check if it’s careless or a legit issue. If it’s a legit issue, consult the books I mentioned above. Especially for BB tests, all those books above break down every question and what rule/concept you should apply. Even if they’re not BB tests, but say the online course tests, just find the topic in those books and review. I went from the lower 1800s to (rn at least) a 2140. I say if you set enough time, I absolutely think you can get the score you’re looking for.
@zenith99 thank you!! and good luck
Hey guys I took my last practice test about two weeks ago and got a 2020. I started with a 1580 so I’m making progress! My goal is to get a 2100, but I’m finding that after the SAT prep class my work ethic has been declining. What are some tips to keep practicing efficiently, I find myself getting frustrated because I have questions no one can answer. 
@musicforlife What sort of questions are you referring to when you say “I find myself getting frustrated because I have questions no one can answer”? If you mean SAT questions, and you need explanations, I always use the PWN the SAT website. You don’t need to purchase any of his (Mike McClenathan, author of PWN the SAT and awesome dude) books (although I highly recommend doing so) to access the website on a (as far as I’m aware of) basic level. (In the off-chance that you can’t if you don’t have one of his books, feel free to PM me, and I can post them for you and send you the explanation.) Under the Q&A section, type up your SAT question, and he’ll answer it by the end of the day, with a detailed explanation. If you still don’t understand, ask for clarifications by commenting on that post. Seriously though, it’s like having a free tutor :). And you can ask any sort of SAT question, whether it’s grammar, CR, or math.
And btw, you’re really close to your goal! Clearly what you’ve been doing is working. A couple of weeks ago I too was at a 2020, and now I’m up to a 2140! Trust me, I know what it’s like to be frustrated, but honestly, with more practice with cb tests you naturally become more familiar with the SAT, and that definitely lowers anxiety levels ;). Often, since I’m incredibly lazy myself, I do one section of either math, CR, or writing, usually timed, and then look through my mistakes. Fortunately the prep books I have (see my original post up top) all have strategies to answer for BB tests, so I can quickly identify what I should’ve done, and keep that in mind for the future. If you want me to send you copies of those pages, PM me.
Also, if I may ask, what are your individual CR, writing, and math scores? It would help to see what section you really can improve on with some few adjustments to your routine studying, then we can give more specific advice.
@zenith99 Thank you so much, I’ll be sure to check that out! Grammar is my best section, I have a 730 with an 11 on the essay. Math-670 CR-620.
@zenith99 Also, in school I tend to struggle with math particularly alegebra 2. I started to realize, that sometimes the more I study and practice for tests I tend to realize I’m understanding fragments of a concept. At that point I find it very difficult to seek help, because its hard to explain the gaps in the concept I tend to be missing.
@musicforlife234 Honestly, I felt like that too. Algebra 2 (especially by the end) was a real struggle for me. In the beginning of summer break, I was looking for an SAT math book that would nail down fundamentals, and put the (aforementioned) prep books I had at the time aside, skeptical about if they would be able to address my core issues. But then I decided to actually look through the books, and they really did approach most of the concepts at a basic level, and then building on top of that. I should emphasize most, not all necessarily. Those are sufficient for the SAT, at least. In terms of actual school math, well, I’ve been freaking out for this coming school year, so I’m not the best to ask…I might consider investing in a tutor, who would be able to target specific needs.
Your writing score is pretty solid. However, you could probably get those final points with more practice with grammar tbh, pretty easy to bring up even higher, 30-50 points I think (considering your already really solid essay score). You definitely have room for improvement CR-wise, which you should consider investing time/practice in as well (this is where I find the one section a day thing useful…CR is such a bore for me to get through in a full length test, until necessary ofc) – practice with your preferred reading strategy is how you’ll get some more points. (I’m not about to detail CR strategies; whatever works for you, go for it. Although you still may want to be open-minded in your approach, and see how others attack the CR section, in which case I’ll let the endless threads cc has to offer enrich you.) If you want some extra tips, Erica Meltzer, author of the Critical Reader and the Ultimate Guide to SAT Grammar, has a website with many tips as well. In terms of math, the website I mentioned before is a great resource. If you want more practice developing those concepts, I suggest you buy the PWN the SAT math guide to assuage your math concerns (SAT-wise, at least).