<p>I am going to be a senior in the fall which means that I will be applying to college during that time as well. Sadly, these standardized tests are holding me back on wanting to apply to the schools that I would like to go to. For example, UCLA, UCSD, UCI, etc. I've worked way to hard throughout high school (4.33 GPA) to not get into one of those schools just because of my SAT or ACT score. </p>
<p>I have taken a prep course for the SAT but it only improved me by 60 points from my PSAT. I've scored anywhere from a 1360-1580 on practice tests and on the "real" SAT's I have gotten a 1420 then a 1470. </p>
<p>My scores are always like this: CR (~430) < W (~500) < M (~520-560) </p>
<p>I have this summer to completely change this. I just need tips/advice on improving by at least 500 - 700 points. I have the BB and Princeton Review. I plan on buying an extra book as well. </p>
<p>So the final question is... How can I improve my scores individually?</p>
<p>For example, I just can't seem to do well on CR. I omit many vocab questions, and get many of the passage questions incorrect. As for Writing, I get all the easy questions right and then for the medium and hard the chances of me getting them right are unlikely. For Math, I get all the Easy ones correct and I make silly mistakes on the Medium but get most correct. However, on the Hard I only get one or two right because I omit the others. </p>
<p>If anything, what should I do? Is there a guide? :/ Also, should I take the ACT? I have a PR ACT prep book that I've only touched twice. </p>
<p>I have friends who get around 1200 go to UCI,
UCSD is around 1600, since you have great GPA already, you do not need to push yourself so hard. I even have a friend who get around 1500 and get into UCB this fall</p>
<p>The Essential 500 is very good for vocab help and CR</p>
<p>Gruber’s has a decent math review, but I prefer to use Brightstorm to learn math concepts and then use the Blue Book to practice practice practice.</p>
<p>You can probably use the internet for effective grammar practice</p>
<p>I have the Blue Book and I’ve used up about 5 practice tests. I’ll look into The Essential 500 for CR. As for Math, I’ve researched throughout the forums that a lot of people use Grubers or Dr Chung. I just don’t know which one to get but I’ll look into brightstorm as well. For Writing, I can easily get a 10-12 on the essay, it’s just the grammar stuff. I’ll most likely refer to the blue book and online stuff for the writing.</p>
<p>As for the sections, I know I can significantly improve my math and writing, I currently range from 500-550 on both. For Math and Writing I want to score at least 700 by the end of summer.</p>
<p>Look at the stickied threads on this forum: Silverturtle’s guide, Xiggi’s guide, and Trinity’s list of threads. If after you read all of these threads and still have questions, then you aren’t preparing properly. What did you do for each of the 5 SAT exams you took? Did you review every single incorrect answer? I created a document that has the following: #, explanation of how to do the problem properly, and an explanation of why I got the question wrong. I fill these worksheets every time I get an answer incorrect. Also, this helps you find and fix your patterns.</p>
<p>The Writing should be the easiest. College Board’s website gives detailed explanations for every answer choice in the blue book - it tells you exactly what is wrong with each incorrect answer. Go through these and look up any unfamiliar terminology - you should absolutely be able to identify a comma splice in your sleep. If you do enough of these sections, you will start to notice the most frequently tested concepts. Good luck!</p>
<p>The college board works awfully hard making sure second tests do not improve that much. But as long as you pay your money and take the test, you will have a chance. Study hard, work on your test taking skills, especially time management do not waste time on the hardest questions. GL</p>
<p>Meltzer’s book is the best for Writing - gives you an additional 10 tests almost identical to the real thing, plus exercises to help with specific skills.</p>