Strategies to Prepare for SAT & ACT

Well, I know the pain of going through the phase of college applications which include preparation for the SAT & ACT. Being an AP Physics & SAT Math faculty at Masterclass Space, helping students in test preparation from all over the world and having produced many perfect scorers, Hence, I thought of sharing my experience which would be of great help to students and parents in making their test prep journey smooth. So, here I am sharing the most useful strategies, tips and ways to prepare for the SAT & ACT.

SAT

SAT Math:

SAT Math test has four content areas: Heart of Algebra, Problem Solving and Data Analysis, Passport to Advanced Math, and Additional Topics in Math.

To start with your preparation, take a diagnostic test under timed conditions and score the test. You can use our SAT Score Calculator to get a scaled score out of 1600.

Talking about the Math section, start analysing your test. Identify where you are making mistakes, pick up that topic and start practising from test prep books. I personally prefer books by Nielson Phu for my students as their standard is really high. By thoroughly practising this book, many of my students have got a perfect score.

Memorize all the formulas and math facts. It will save you time and increase your accuracy. Manier times, SAT Math questions are wordy, you will see a small story which has no relevance in solving the question. It looks frightening but believe me, all lengthy questions are easy to solve. Just concentrate on the data, not on the story.

Few Strategies:

1) Picking Number: If you feel it’s taking time to solve the algebra questions, pick up numbers and replace them with variables. It is significantly easier to solve arithmetic questions than algebra.

2) Back Solving: If the solution seems complicated, be smart. Pick options and put back in the question to see which one works. It may work wonders for the times that you will be stuck 😊

SAT Verbal:

‘How to ace the SAT Reading and Writing’ is one of the most frequently asked queries. Mentoring for more than a decade, a core faculty of Verbal at Masterclass Space has put forward many aspirants, and his mantra, tips & tricks helped aspirants in achieving the perfect score. Everyone gets anxious when it comes to the syllabus, study material, and creating a disciplined pattern of study. Many test-takers lag behind marginal points that wreck with their minds, so they need a last-minute strategy to avoid slipping.

The best preparation begins with the best analysis. If test-takers do not know what they have picked to strengthen themselves, they might as well be shooting in the dark. This is commonly referred to as a half-baked preparation and this leads to low scores. So, the first strategy is to analyse by giving mock tests. After getting the analysis, the test-takers should follow the strategies given below based on their performance.

If a test-taker has a poor performance, he/she should start with books such as SAT ELITE, The Vocabulary Builder Workbook by Magoosh,and Barron’s for improving your reading and writing areas. After going through these, he/she should start doing sectional mock tests and prepare a report card of their performance. After analysing the report card, they should take further steps to improve their performance.

If the test-taker has performed quite average in the mock test, he/she should start attempting sample tests. Books such as Princeton Review, Kaplan SAT Prep, and The Official SAT Study Guide can be followed to improve your skill. If a test-taker is struggling particularly in reading, he/she can follow The Critical Reader and to brush up on grammar, he/she can go through Cambridge Advanced English Grammar.

If the test-taker has done desirable performance and is still lagging in the score, he/she should draw a few strategies that are related to time management, approaching difficult questions, and guessing-based tips.

ACT

ACT Math:

The syllabus of ACT is more than SAT but the difficulty level of questions is a bit less than SAT. In ACT you need to solve 60 questions in 60 mins, so you need speed combined with accuracy. Though Calculator is permitted, you should try to solve most of the questions without a calculator by doing mental calculation. I teach my students the art of mental maths which has proven quite useful. It is preferable to memorize multiplication tables up to 20 for fast calculations.

At Masterclass Space, we refer two Math books for ACT apart from our study material – Ultimate Guide to the Math ACT by Richard F. Corn & The College Panda's ACT Math: Advanced Guide and Workbook. If these two books are completed under proper guidance, it can easily give you a score above 34 in Math.

The strategies mentioned for ACT Maths can be applied for the SAT Maths section as well.

ACT Science:

The ACT Science section is the one hurdle that creates fear in most students. The reason for this is simple, you just get 35 mins to answer 40 questions. It is a common misconception that you need to know science to do well in the ACT Science section. Science section tests your ability to interpret graphs, tables, data, and different viewpoints. You should be completely fine even if you have not studied physics or chemistry. You are not expected to remember formulas or equations. Everything will be given in the passage itself.

The ACT Science section contains six or seven passages. There are three types of passages – data representation, research summary and conflicting viewpoints. To master this section, always practice under timed conditions. It is best to start with Official ACT Practice Tests. You should take at least 6-7 practice tests before attempting the real ACT.

ACT English & ACT Reading:

Although the pattern of questions for SAT and ACT Verbal is different, their concept is quite similar. Hence, the strategies are going to be quite similar but the study materials are different.

If a test taker performed poorly in the mock test, he/she should start with the books such as Up Your Score: ACT: The Underground Guide, Princeton Review’s Premium ACT Prep, In case you have vocabulary shortage you can refer to The Vocabulary Builder Workbook by Magoosh. After going through these, he/she should start doing sectional mock tests and prepare a report card of their performance. After analyzing the report card, he/ she should move on to the next steps.

If the test taker has performed average in the mock test, he/she should start attempting practice tests. Books such as Erica Meltzer's The Complete Guide to ACT English and The Complete Guide to ACT Reading are especially useful for improving your grasp on the English Language.

If the test-taker has done an admirable performance but could not touch the dream line, he/she should draw a few strategies: strategies related to time management, approaching difficult questions, and guessing-based tips.

He/she can follow The ACT Black Book which is helpful in coming up with strategies and the Official ACT Prep Guide for practice.

Along with these, I have always stressed to enhance the focus of students by involving them in various creative activities like yoga, meditation, music etc. Hopefully, the tips and strategies outlined in the article will benefit young aspirants to make their journey to top US universities easier.