Apex College

It’s not a secret that many students have found considerable difficulty in attaining a higher score for the SAT in Alamo. The solutions in this article are offered to help you achieve a higher SAT score which will help you get into your chosen college.

  1. Seek alternatives to the SAT. Before you start preparing for the SAT in Alamo it’s not a bad thing to ask yourself first if the SAT is the right test for you. If you’re not comfortable with the SAT, there are other alternatives. One is the SAT’s rival, the ACT, whose structure is quite different from the SAT. Contrary to popular belief, the ACT is also a standard test like the SAT, and is also accepted by many colleges and universities across the country. And yes, you can take any four-year course in college with your ACT scores. You just have to weigh your options about which test is easier to achieve the score you would like to have.
     
    A great way to determine if the ACT or the SAT is better for you is to take timed practice tests on your own — or better, along with your classmates.
  2. Strengthen your vocabulary by making a list of the more unfamiliar words used in past examinations. More often than not, you may likely encounter the same words from past tests, so make a list of them. Chances are you may encounter these words on the upcoming SAT. Read, read, and read, from books (classical literature is recommended) to periodicals — this is another great way to expand your vocabulary. Reading will also give you a plus knowledge because you will be also informed of the past history as well as current events. Highlight unfamiliar words in the text, list them, and learn their meaning; you may try to use them to compose sentences so that you will remember their meanings better.
  3. Another good way to build your vocabulary is to learn root words and how to use them effectively. A better method to do this is to divide the words into parts. For example, you may have seen the words “transfer,” “transport,” and “translate,” and all of them begin with “trans.” So if you are aware of the meaning of each of them, then you will be able to have an idea that “trans” must have something to do with changing or turning from one place to the other. For example, if you encounter an unfamiliar word on your SAT test like “transposition,” at least you have an idea what it might mean.
  4. Practice your Math skills; it is very important that you understand the problems and realize your past errors. It’s also important to understand and remember math language such as “sum” or “more than” (which mean “add”), “squares” (which means “exponent”) or “consecutive integers” (which means “x = x + (x+1) + (x+2)…”). In the new SAT in 2016 there won’t be penalties for wrong answer choices but it is better if you don’t make them. Until that moment, as of now if you find a perplexing question, these strategies should help you to get a possible correct answer:
    • If the answer choice sound obvious, then skip it
    • Get rid of repeat numbers
    • If a question says “look for the greatest or least number that fulfills certain situations,” then eliminate the greatest or least figures.
    • It’s better if you don’t go for the answer choice that says “it cannot be determined…” This option is usually posed as a lure for students who cannot solve a particular problem and thus will most likely end up answering it incorrectly.
  5. Evaluate your mistakes on past tests or your practice tests. Work on your weaknesses more and less on the areas you’re strong and confident about. It can be really difficult, but it’s the only way to get higher SAT scores.
  6. It’s important to trust your instinct when tackling the SAT writing section. If a sentence looks and sounds incorrect, then it’s possible that the answer is incorrect. You don’t have to determine why there’s an error in the sentence — as long as you know there’s something wrong in the sentence, that’s all you have to be aware of. Again, read, read, read — and when you have a good reading habit, it will become natural to you to know which words look and sound right or wrong.
  7. Start reviewing as early or as soon as you can, especially if you still have some several months to go before the big test day. With that you will have plenty of time to study for the SAT in a more comprehensive way. Don’t procrastinate. You want to be ready before the test day. The day before you will be able to relax and have fun compared to those who choose to wait and cram a week or a day before the test.

These are some tips on how to improve your scores for the SAT. Remember that the SAT doesn’t measure your IQ, or how smart you are. It simply determines how much you’ve learned during high school. If you have learned a lot, then there’s a better chance that you will do well on the SAT in Alamo and will be closer to being admitted to the college of your choice.