<p>Fresh PSAT: 199 73m/57/cr/69w
Soph PSAT: 211 80m/63cr/67w
Junior PSAT: 219 72m/67cr/80w
Junior SAT I (Jan): 2320 78m/76cr/78w (11essay)</p>
<p>I really don't see any patterns in my scores other than the fact that my critical reading has steadily gone up. Math and writing have been fluctuating. My parents want me to retake so I can bring the math score up to 800.</p>
<p>Sophomore PSAT: 207 (don't remember breakdown)
Junior PSAT: 234 (800 M/760 CR/780 W)
Junior SAT: 236 (800 M/800 CR/760 W)</p>
<p>I think what accounted for the huge jump between my sophomore and junior PSATs was my focus. Sophomore year, I didn't really care. I took the practice test provided with the handout a couple of days before the actual test, and that was all I did. The second time around, I took it more seriously because 1) I knew I was going to take the SAT three montsh later, and 2) I wanted to be a NMS semifinalist.</p>
<p>Nothing really changed between junior PSAT and junior SAT, though. I just took more tests.</p>
<p>Soph PSAT: 212
Junior PSAT: 220 (70CR/74M/76W)
Junior SAT: 2220 (760CR/690M/770W)</p>
<p>Pretty consistent but it's kind of annoying that I can't seem to get higher than the low 2200's on any of my practice tests. PSAT's I never took too seriously because I thought that NMS was unlikely, but I did about 15 practice tests for the SAT. Next time on SAT I'm trying to do better on the math, which usually is my best, and keep my critical reading high.</p>
<p>jr PSAT: 72 CR/67 M/71 W = 210
jr SAT: 71 CR/68 M/71 W = 2100</p>
<p>I didn't study at all for either so hopefully if I do a few practice tests or something before the May SAT I can raise it a little... especially CR, that was a little disappointing</p>
<p>Freshman PSAT: 189 (60 CR, 64 Math, 65 Writing)
Sophmore PSAT: 207 (62,69,77)
Junior PSAT: 226 (72,76,78)
January SAT as Junior: 2310 (720 CR, 800 Math, 790 Writing)</p>
<p>I don't know my essay score, it doesn't list it yet. By I assume an 12, since I got a multiple choice wrong.</p>
<p>198 (80M/58CR/60W) vs. 2030 (780M/560CR/690W)</p>
<p>184/2160
I think the main cause for the difference in my scores was studying (I took the PSAT completely cold, with no studying at all). I scored a 50 on the PSAT critical reading section, and 60 on the PSAT math section. On my SAT, I scored a 750 on the SAT critical reading reading, and a 720 on the SAT math section... It just goes to show you that all you need to do to get a good SAT score is to study.</p>
<p>My daughter's scores:</p>
<p>soph PSAT: 198 (can't remember breakdown except 80 in M)
junior PSAT: 228 (75 CR, 730 M, 80 W)
junior SAT (Jan): 2370 (800, 800, 770)(11 essay)</p>
<p>Took the soph PSAT without study and then self-studied for junior PSAT and SAT. Though a good writer, she was particularly concerned about the essay because of the time factor. She followed a mini-guide to getting a 12 on the essay that I found on these boards (I'll post if anyone's interested).</p>
<p>A very happy and relieved kid today!</p>
<p>234 (80 CR, 76 M, 78 WR)
2330 (750 CR, 780 M, 800 WR)</p>
<p>I found the writing section on the SAT a good deal more difficult that that of the PSAT, but my scores rose in the other two categories so it really doesn't matter.</p>
<p>Hi entomom. Yes, please post the miniguide to perfection on the essay!</p>
<p>The only comment my D disagreed with was the one about personal examples, she said she saw several 12 essays that used examples from the student's life. Here it is, sorry I can't credit the original poster:</p>
<p>I scored a 12 on both the March and June SAT essays, so I thought I would write up some spicy tips for you all to do the same.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Read the Quote and the Question. Most kids open the first page of the question booklet and skip the quote, heading right to the question. The quote is there for a reason, though. It gives you some instant mental imagery, sets the tone for the question, and ignites your critical thinker. It is highly probable that you wont know the author of the quote, but if you do, it would definitely be prudent to at least mention that person and his or her ideas briefly in the essay (on the same topic, of course). Read the quote twice if you have to. Otherwise, move onto the question. Read the question ten times if you have to, noting how it is phrased. Realize that the questions must be politically correct and are supposedly philosophical, which means they are questions of truth and knowledge. You must fully understand the question to proceed. If you misread it and write off-topic, the results could be disastrous.</p></li>
<li><p>Time is not on your side. The test prep books will tell you how to manage your time, but the fact is that theres barely enough time for any type of planning. You do not have time to create an outline! Immediately after comprehending the question, begin your first sentence! You need every second possible. If, after reading the question, your mind begins to race with ideas (which is the best possible scenario), jot a few letters down in the test booklet to refresh your memory, but thats it! The ideal situation is to spend just a minute or two on the quote and question, dive into writing, and have a minute to spare at the end to search for grammatical errors or to upgrade your word choice in a few areas. However, you dont want to have to stop in the middle of a sentence when time is called, so bring a watch with a built-in stopwatch if possible. Try not to look at it for the majority of the essays duration, though.</p></li>
<li><p>Examples, Examples, Examples
and more Examples. This is the fuel of your essay. You need to keep thinking of examples as you write. Personal anecdotes will not work (e.g. At my school, I volunteer every week...). You need solid examples that carry at least partial academic weight (for instance, a well-known person, historical event, movie, philosophical concept, etc). The more examples you have, the more you have to write about, and the better your argument becomes. Many people have stated that since these essays are read by english teachers, it is a good idea to include books as examples. I think there is validity in this belief; however, you want the reader to think of you as a culturally enriched student, so draw from all types of examples, current events, entertainment, whatever!</p></li>
<li><p>Stay Focused. Its easy to lose sight of what the question is asking. In each paragraph, re-read the question to tie it all together. You dont want to write two whole pages only to realize that you digressed majorly and went off on a tangent. You can easily lengthen your essay by continuing to mention how your examples fit with the topic. </p></li>
<li><p>Content is King, but it wont guarantee a 12. Ever since that MIT professor found a correlation between length and scores, everyone assumes that longer essays get higher scores. Its true, but only because the more capable students usually have more to say and more to think about. Writing just to fill up space wont ensure a high mark (in fact, the more a reader sees of your writing style or lack thereof, the more it may in fact hurt you). Many of my friends filled up both pages until the last line and still received 10s. This reaffirms the fact that its what you write and not how much you write. (I will note, though, that I did fill up every line provided on both of my essays).</p></li>
<li><p>Prepackage, but also let it Flow. Think of some well crafted sentences and vocabulary that you know you want to use in the essay. Broad but insightful statements work very well as they can be applied to almost any essay the SAT writers throw at you. The readers <em>will</em> award more points just because there is an indication of planning. During the week or night before the test, lay out some vocab words which you are familiar with but which are still academic (dont use anything too far above your level). You can also think of some broad examples (for instance, editorialist Thomas Friedman has been writing recently about how the world is flat since jobs are being outsourced to India and China this could work for that job essay prompt, the majority rule question, practical skills, creativity
you name it!) Still, you should allow yourself a good amount of flexibility, so dont try to memorize an entire 2 page essay you could end up reading the question and panicking since your ideas dont fit the topic.</p></li>
<li><p>Forget conventional American writing. The 5-paragraph essay format practically breeds mediocrity. Its true that you need some type of introduction, and you will need insightful concluding marks, but anything in between should be up to you. On my essays, I had solid introductions but only a couple sentences for the conclusions. There are no rules, so as in the previous tip, let it Flow. If your ideas require one continuous paragraph for the whole essay, so be it. That probably isnt a great idea, but you shouldnt stress yourself out with having three main examples fit perfectly into three main body paragraphs. You are allowed to break a new paragraph just for one or two sentences if you so desire. Whatever you do, make sure its on your terms. In European countries and around the world, they use a spiral format, which uses the whole essay to discuss many viewpoints, and then they arrive at a thesis in the conclusion. For the SAT essay, it doesnt even matter if your thesis isnt the most prominent line so dont spend time crafting a perfect thesis.</p></li>
<li><p>Have a point of view. Go for a nonconformist view, even though that doesnt mean taking an opposte side to the question. Go for the point of view that somehow embraces the beauty of life, succeeding, and progress (it sounds corny, but it works). Dont depress the reader
impress him or her with a new and innovative direction on the prompt.</p></li>
<li><p>Write Legibly. If your reader has to squint to read your essay, it will slow the person down, paying more attention to grammatical errors and other inconsistencies in your essay. Write clearly so that the reader can zoom through and be wowed by the end of it. </p></li>
<li><p>Retaking the SAT? Recycle your essay thoughts. There are no rules against recycling your own ideas. It will be a different grader and a different test, so if you liked the essay you wrote from a past administration, feel free to use some of the same vocabulary, examples, or concepts. Obvious? Yes. Effective? Definitely.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>199/2140
Jan SAT M:740 W:760 CR:640
CR is just depressing...</p>
<p>Helpful guide. Thanks, entomom.</p>
<p>entomom,
That sounded like pretty good advice. It's worth a shot since I only got 8s on my 2 SAT essays.</p>
<p>218 PSAT
2150 SAT (best in one sitting; taking my best scores from each test, it's a 2200)</p>
<p>Soph PSAT: 224
Junior PSAT: 238 (doh I missed the FIRST and easiest question in writing)
Junior SAT: 2400</p>
<p>Man, congrats on the 2400. How'd you DO it?</p>
<p>soph PSAT: 209 (65cr/69m/75w)
junior PSAT: 225 (78/74/73)
junior SAT: 2260 (760/740/760).... I kind of wish the breakdown was more uneven so I could just focus on one section, but oh well. I kind of blew off studying this time so I'm hoping if I do crack open a few tests I can raise the score for scholarship money!</p>
<p>congrats monkey :)</p>
<p>PSAT: 225
SAT:2280</p>
<p>Not much of a difference. My math score went up on the SAT (74 to 780), probably because I'd learned the math on the SAT more recently.</p>
<p>On another note..is there any harm in taking the SAT again? It's the first time I've taken it and I feel like if I bought a review book or something I could bring it up. But in some of the previous comments people have said don't retake it if you get a ..whatever score. So is it worth it?</p>