<p>Here were my scores from the SAT I on May 4:
Math: 720, Writing: 650, CR: 590, Essay: 8, Mult. Choice: 66</p>
<p>I was really hoping at the very least for a score of 2000. I ended up getting a 1960. Granted, I had never taken the SAT, PSAT, or any form of practice test EVER before this one, so if I study and take practice tests, I might be able to raise my score. But I'm a junior this year, so I don't have many more chances to improve. Based on these scores, what should I focus on in order to improve my score? And what would be a reasonable score to set as my goal?</p>
<p>Writing is the easiest section to improve for most people. All it takes is practice to review the format of questions. Get the official SAT study guide and take ALL the tests in it this summer, review your answers before each one and you’ll do well. You have the whole summer if you don’t procrastinate.</p>
<p>What you need to improve most is your mentality. Why would you take a test without any preparation? Even worse, you did that near the end of Junior year. There are room for improvement in all sections and I don’t think you should focus in certain section. What schools are you targeting to and did you take any SAT2? If you can get 1960 without preparation, imagine you would have gotten at least 10% higher in score if you did some preparation. Why would you waste your chance to get into a good college? Stop worrying about your past SAT score and start planning for your Summer schedule. You would need to practice for the test and also plan for school applications. From your practice score, you should be able to identify some potential match and safety schools. Don’t underestimate the amount of work you need to do in filing school applications. One you come up with the list of target schools, you may already fill in 4 for score reports at your retake in Fall.</p>
<p>This is a good start and a great foundation to improve upon. Keep working at it and most of all, PREPARE for the next one! Get a helpful prep book and write an essay now that can be adapted to any prompt</p>
<p>"All it takes is practice to review the format of questions. Get the official SAT study guide and take ALL the tests in it this summer, review your answers before each one and you’ll do well. You have the whole summer if you don’t procrastinate. " - AmaranthineD</p>
<p>Exactly!</p>
<p>the vast majority of students increase their SAT scores the second time they sit for it. Practice a lot over the summer (a couple thousand questions). You will do wonderfully in October!</p>