Seven Strategies for Tackling Standardized Tests
As high school juniors and seniors continue to plan for college, it’s hard enough to stay on top of your ABCs without also worrying about those other three ominous letters: SAT or ACT. Here are seven very simple steps to put you in control of your test-taking terror.
As high school juniors and seniors continue to plan for college, it’s hard enough to stay on top of your ABCs without also worrying about those other three ominous letters: SAT. ACT. The SAT IIs (what is that, some sort of horror sequel? “I Know What You Didn’t Study Last Summer?”). All right, so the SAT IIs are called SAT Subject Tests now. I’m sure that makes you feel much better. And if that doesn’t, this will! Here are seven very simple steps to put you in control of your test-taking terror.
- Don’t take the SATs or ACT before junior year. You may not yet have the math background, test-taking experience or writing style to do your best, and, most importantly, not all schools allow you to bury bad scores. Why make the test harder than it is by not being academically prepared when you take it?
- Do take the PSAT junior year. It’s excellent practice for the full standardized tests - and it puts you in the running for the National Merit Scholarship (and the National Achievement Scholarship for African-American students). Know this: even if you take the PSAT sophomore year, you will have to retake it junior year to qualify for the scholarships. And yes, you can take it senior year, but if you win an award, payout would not begin until your second year in college. Be sure to read all the details on the official Web site.
- Take at least the ACT or the SAT by fall of your senior year. Not every college requires standardized tests, but since many do, take one to keep your options open as you apply. Ideally, take the test at the end of junior year so you can see your scores over the summer and determine if you want to retake one or take the other in fall. Also, if you do well, it frees you up to study for the SAT Subject Tests over the summer.
- Register on time for the test. Check the CLIC pages or official sites for both tests to see what the next round of registration deadlines are. Take the earliest test you can take - that leaves room for re-testing and for applying for early decision or early action at campuses you uncover during your college search. Also, be aware of the application deadlines of the colleges you are considering because many require you to have taken all tests before that date. For instance, many campuses in the University of California system close applications at the end of November, and the last SAT, ACT and SAT Subject Test dates they will accept are usually in the beginning of December.
- Request a waiver if you qualify. Yes, the tests cost money, and not everyone can easily afford them. Check with your counselor or career center representative to request a waiver (you can do the same for many college application fees, by the way). If you qualify for your school lunch program, you definitely must look into waivers.
- Take the Subject Tests. If your GPA is over a 3.0, you really must take the SAT Subject Tests since many competitive schools require them. That also means if your GPA is over a 3.0, you want to take the SAT or ACT by then end of junior year to leave fall of senior year open for the Subject Tests.
- PREPARE AT LEAST ONE MONTH BEFORE THE TEST DATE (I’d recommend three months). Do not let that fateful Saturday morning be the first time you see that test! If you can register for formal test prep, by all means, take those courses. If not, get full practice test books from the library or a bookstore, and spend at least three full Saturday mornings taking a time full test. Then score it and study the explanations to the answers you got wrong. This will introduce you to the test sections, question and answer formats and answer sheet format. BONUS: It also will introduce you to questions that often show up again on the offical test you take! More details at Seven Steps to FREE Standardized Test Prep.
Now for the answers to those three pressing questions you still have:
Will your test scores determine admission? No. But they do carry far more weight at some schools than at others. For instance, large, competitive public institutions don’t always have the resources to deeply examine tens of thousands of individual applications, so low scores may help “slim the herd.” On the other hand, small, private liberal arts colleges often pride themselves on the individual attention paid to the entirety of a student’s application (not just grades and scores), so many of these have stopped requiring standardized tests altogether.
In general, your test scores are only one part of your “academic index,” a combination of your GPA and test scores that is calculated by a college. The higher your GPA, the less impact your test scores usually have, and vice-versa. Colleges should explain if and how they tabulate an academic index on their Web sites. If they don’t, shoot us a note!
What scores are you shooting for? On the SAT, the most important scores remain your Verbal and Math section. In general, you want a 1000 or higher combined on those two scores. For the ACT, your composite is the key number, and you are shooting for a 19 or higher. Both tests have writing components, and they matter more at some schools than others. Of course, the scores listed here are quite low for super-competitive schools and irrelevant for schools that don’t require tests. To get a better assessment of where your scores rank by campus, check each college’s CLIC page profile for their “typical” standardized test scores for admitted students.
When should you stop taking tests? When the test center representatives welcome you back by name? When they recommend students turn to you if they have any questions during the test? When you see the same question for a third time…and still get it wrong? Rule of thumb: take at least one test with all of the practice and prep recommended above. But stop when all of the test obsessing is getting in the way of other critical things you need to get done as you plan for college - college exploring, essay writing, financial aid hunting and, of course, keeping up your grades, activities and SLEEP!
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As always, share your own recommendations and experiences below!
DMA is the CEO of The CLIC, the revolutionary new site where students can powerfully plan for college and institutions can effortlessly recruit students from a single home page in our FREE interactive network. CLIC students can connect to college matches, scholarship searches, college access programs and the nation’s first master calendar of all college-related deadlines and events, with streaming video tips and much more, at www.theclic.net.
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Tags: act, plan for college, sat, standardized tests, test prep