<p>I hear a lot of people cautioning against using the practice tests in Kaplan, Barron, etc. because they aren't "accurate" enough. I am skeptical of this advice because even if it's not 100% accurate, it is practice nonetheless. However, I did have a very bad experience with Gruber's CR which I felt was grossly inaccurate to the point where it wasn't conducive. What are your thoughts?</p>
<p>I stupidly finished all 10 tests in the BB and still have time before I take the real SAT. I'm going to re-do the math and writing sections, but my issue is that with CR I remember all of the long passages and the answers. I have a copy of the Barron's test prep book. Should I use it? If not, then what should I do?</p>
<p>(This has probably been asked a billion times already on CC, but I'm too lazy to sift through all of the threads.)</p>
<p>A lot of the other books have really awful questions or cover material that’s not that related to what’s on the actual test. You could honestly probably do it for the CR and Writing, but I’d avoid the math. I took a practice Math I test in the Barron’s book and thought I was going to get in the 500s. I ended up getting a 750. They’re not that accurate and are much more confusing than the actual test. I guess if you want more of a challenge it can be worthwhile, but I would recommend mostly using it if you can get all of the easy questions correct in the CB book (ie. if your score in each section is like a 700+ and you’re basically only getting 3-5 questions wrong per section at most).</p>
<p>don’t know. i can say my kid did very little prep and his SAT scores were almost identical to his PSAT breakdown so if you are happy with your projected SAT scores based on your PSAT, i would not worry about this issue too much. if you want to pull scores up, then i thought above poster had lots of good advice. my kid’s math score did drop some on SAT probably due to harder questions but CR went up </p>
<p>On the PSAT I got a total of 210, but I really want to make NMF. The cutoff in my state was 215 last year, so I at least want to get 220. I got good scores in CR and Writing but I want to get an 80 in both. My math score, on the other hand, was 65 and I want to boost that by another 10 points if at all possible. I feel confident that I can achieve a 70-75 if I keep practicing though and review the concepts outlined in the BB (which I’ve never done, as stupid as I was to take all 10 tests plus the ones online).</p>
<p>Since I’m studying for the PSAT now, would it make more sense to take the SAT in the fall? Most kids in my school take it in the spring. I will be taking 4 APs in the fall (or attempting to, at least) plus playing tennis. I think that registering for December or January would make the most sense, but what would you recommend?</p>
<p>It sounds like you are going into junior year? if so, you are right on the money to pull your score up cause you are close to nm semifinalist score status. and by bb, I assume you mean the blue book. i like your plan about redoing math and writing sections. also, focus on your math scores as to what you are getting wrong. Are you making systemic errors, is it time, etc? You have enough time to find and correct patterns. there is a recent thread on here about pulling up math score and a good resource book to do so. i;d look for that thread too. Re CR, wow. Don’t have any solid advice. Given importance of NM possibility, i would take the time to do some research on this board. Consider that some of your “prep” or practice time. I am assuming your CR score on your first PSAT was over 70? how high was it? i ask cause my kid was 77 on psat for CR and really did not need to study for that area for the SAT. he did fine on SAT Cr and ACT sections for reading and english. so if you are in that range, you may not need to prep much more. What might be better than getting test books that you are finding inaccurate anyway is to read a lot between now and then. especially if you can get hold of books from around 1900. may sound like odd advice but books from the time era tend to use more sophisticated words than we currently use and you would see those words in context, from what i understand, a killer vocabulary can really help with the CR sections. Another question- do you want NM for a hopeful full ride? Cause if it’s for any other reason, a NM status, although a great feather in the cap, may be less important than you realize. Basically cause kids in that range are all going to have great test scores. so let;s say you have a 220 PSAT but have a bad day on the SAT and get a 2020. Schools, for admissions, are going to use your SAT score. Re SAT question, Jan/Feb should be fine. if you are shooting for an Ivy, be well prepped as they look at EVERY score; it sounds like you are well prepped already but keep at it. Another plus of waiting is you will have your PSAT score then so you’ll have a pretty good idea of your projected SAT with enough time to improve any areas, if needed. in hindsight, i wish mine had taken SAT before May of junior year so you are wise to take it in Jan/Feb timeframe. </p>
<p>and i forgot, my key bit of advice is be relaxed and well rested when u take PSAT. You’ve got the brains and practice to do well. prep now but when you take it, just treat it like any other test you want to ace. You don’t want to get yourself so uptight it causes you to score lower than your capabilites. Yes, it’s a big deal but you have a real shot at NM status and most people don’t. so you are already ahead of the curve on that one. </p>
<p>Sign up for the online CB course. There are tons of practices and 8 full length exams (in addition to the bb exams), but more important, they have all the explanations and auto-grading of essays. Honestly, I’m spitting nails when I give the CB more of my money, but is worth it. Also, just remember, taking the tests and using the answer keys isn’t the best value for your time; it’s about using the CB’s explanations for every answer and getting into the groove of how they think.</p>
<p>i consider leyland’s advice solid, esp the last sentence. Good luck!! i did not know there were cb online courses bu they sound like a great option and asiandoctor, i assume cb is short for college board, who are the SAT adminstrators </p>
<p>It’s not that it’s not entirely accurate… it can ‘over prep’ you for most of the items you will see on the SAT. There is one major factor though: having other books such as Barron, Dr. Chung’s, etc… will give a handful of tips to break through the tricks that the SAT makers put into each section test. </p>
<p>Mhmm, what he/she said ^^. More difficult books can help you build speed but CB measures your scores the best, being that they are responsible for the SATs in the first place. Hm, if you struggle for math in higher difficulty levels, Chung’s will over prepare you, however I don’t deem that bad or useless at all, the more the better.</p>