Best Ways To Study For The SAT: See 15 Effective Study Tips

After High school, the only thing that stands as an immutable barrier that all students must overcome before getting into college is the Scholastic Assessment Test- SAT.

Frankly, studying for the SAT has since posed serious challenges to many students. The key is finding the right resources, staying organized, and sticking to your plan.

To gain admission into the college of your dreams, you have to perform well on the SAT exam, but where do you start?

In this piece, you will learn various guides you can take to prepare yourself adequately for SAT including how to study for the sat in a week, creating SAT study plans, SAT practice test questions, and many more. Following our expert guide will help you prepare well for your exams.

Table of Contents

What is SAT?

According to The Princeton Review SAT is an entrance exam used by most colleges and universities to make admissions decisions. The SAT is a multiple-choice, pencil-and-paper test created and administered by the College Board.

The objective of SAT is to measure a high school student’s readiness for college and provide colleges with one common data point that can be used to compare all applicants.

College admissions officers will review standardized test scores alongside high school GPA, the classes the student took in high school, letters of recommendation from teachers or mentors, extracurricular activities, admissions interviews, and personal essays.

Preparing for the examination is something that demands a lot of time, commitment, discipline, and hard work.

What are the Best Ways To Study For The SAT?

The Best Ways To Study For The SAT are:

#1. Construct a schedule of your activities:

Constructing a schedule for your activities will allow you to know how you spend your time on a daily basis. Take notes about your daily activities. Keep track of how much time you spend daily. Once you have done this, check for free time available for studying and it should be up to at least three hours. Note, this tip is important if you have been asking how to study for the sat in a month.

#2. Create a schedule and studying timetable:

It is best to have a studying schedule written down so you won’t forget it. Seeing it written down can make it seem more important.

A few hours of daily studies simply self-deception and will lead you nowhere. Let your plan be very definite. Remember to have breaks in between long hours of study in order to avoid feeling saturated.

#3. Keep to your study plan:

A study plan works best if it is followed with consistency. Some days may not go according to plan but it should always be for reasons beyond your control. Otherwise, you need to be disciplined enough and constantly remind yourself that your academics are a priority.

#4. Look for a study partner

Most students find it useful to find a study partner. Studying with a friend also preparing for SAT allows for collaboration and discussion. When creating your study plan, check with other friends to determine if you can coordinate study sessions.

However, if you tend to socialize more than study when you are around others, stick to an independent study plan. If you do choose to study with a partner, choose someone with whom you are likely to stay on task.

#5. Learn to read primarily to learn and acquire in-depth knowledge.

Reading just to pass an examination and get a good score is one of the greatest killers of a student’s potential. Even though wanting to pass SAT and score high so that you gain admission into college is a good desire, it is not a good enough reason to read especially if you want to maximize your potential and do very well in your future career.

When you read with the primary aim of learning something new and acquiring new knowledge, you will discover that you will start developing more interest in what you are reading and ‘interest’ is one of the things that can strengthen your passion for learning.

#6. Study beyond classroom notes

The SAT requires much studying because candidates will be required to read five long, dense passages one after another in an hour. It’s not that the questions are difficult. Indeed, they are pretty straightforward. But it’s the reading part that might be difficult because your brain might be stressed.

To prevent this from happening, do lots of reading when preparing for the SAT because high school reading is not as complex as SAT.

#7. Practice calculation with your brain

Prepare for SAT Math by learning how to use your brain to calculate. You’ll save a lot of time on exams day if you know some basic arithmetic off hand.

#8. Work on your grammar

Writing the English examination might seems tedious for non-English speaking candidates. It’s advisable that you practice grammar, punctuation, and sentence construction as SAT writing and language tests are standard conventions of English. Also, ensure to make use of grammar rules to answer the SAT exam papers

#9. Use the best SAT learning materials

There are lots of sat learning materials that could aid you to study.

#10. Try some mixed practice tests

There are essentially three different parts to the SAT exam, Math, Reading, and Writing and Language. Often when students study they normally focus on one subject. It’s advisable to prepare and focus on all.

# 11. Don’t cram

Cramming is not good for the test. While you are doing it, it feels like you are retaining so much information. The information you cram might escape from you during the examination

However, take your time to study and review what you’ve learned. You’ll find it is easier for you to memorize when you are re-exposed to the information you recently attempted to learn.

#12. Figure out, and work on, your weaknesses

You’ll naturally be good at some things on the SAT, and it’s good to maintain that edge by practicing those concepts from time to time. But it is better to figure out where you struggle. Take a pre-test to see which areas you need to work on when preparing for the SAT.

13. Find an SAT study partner

Don’t go at it alone. Find a partner and endeavor to challenge each other while preparing for the SAT. Share strategies, resources, and SAT study tips. Test each other, and compete against each other.

#14. Take at least two full practice tests.

It is ideal that candidates take a practice test toward the beginning of their studying, and one toward the end. It is also advisable that you take at least one practice test on paper, which is how the actual SAT is administered, so you can get comfortable with the format. Taking a full-length practice test provides a realistic sense of how long the test is and where you tend to get lost out.

#15. Familiarize yourself with SAT instructions

What are sat exams like?

The SAT measures the knowledge and skills you have developed in reading, writing and language, and math. It focuses on what you have already learned in school and what you will
need to succeed in college and your career. It measures your reasoning and critical thinking skills, which will be important to you through college and beyond.

The SAT has 3 tests: the Reading Test, the Writing and Language Test, and the Math Test.

How To improve your overall performance on the SAT Exams

Below we’ll explore effective study tips for improving your overall performance on the SAT as well as your performance on individual sections of the SAT.

Read section directions before the test
Answer the questions you know first
Eliminate incorrect answers
Use your test booklet
Avoid stray marks
Your first response is usually correct
There is only one correct answer
Don’t skip answers

Read section directions before the test: Study and review the directions for each SAT section before the test. Use your test time for the test not for reading directions.

Answer the questions you know first: As you go through each section, answer all of the questions you know the answers to first. Mark all the questions you don’t immediately know the answer to and return and answer them later.

Eliminate incorrect answers: If you’re able to eliminate even one choice for the selection of possible answers then guess. Sometimes it’s easier to eliminate answers you know to be incorrect than to identify the correct answer. Eliminating all the incorrect answers often leads to the correct answer.

Use your test booklet: Since you’re allowed to write in the test book, cross out answers you know are wrong and do scratch work.

Avoid stray marks: Since a machine scores your test, make sure not to put any stray marks on your answer sheet. SAT scoring machines frequently can’t differentiate between a correct answer and an accidental stray mark.

Your first response is usually correct: Your first response to a question is usually correct. Don’t change an answer unless you’re certain you’ve made an error.

There is only one correct answer: Only select one answer for each question — as there is only one correct answer. Sometimes it may seem there is more than one answer. Select the best answer for each question.

Don’t skip answers: On older versions of the SAT, you were penalized for guessing. But not anymore. If you don’t have any idea what the answer is then guess. You aren’t penalized for guessing. However, before guessing, always try and eliminate at least one incorrect answer choice.

Learn How To Study For A Test here

How to Cancel SAT Exam?

Candidates should note that no matter how early you cancel your SAT Test, you would not be entitled to a full refund. Candidates who have registered for the exam and are required to cancel the same would be eligible for a refund if the candidate cancels the test 5 days in advance.

How to Postpone or Reschedule SAT Exam Date?

Candidates are required to pay an extra fee for SAT Exam date change. They are required to log into their SAT account and put in a request for a date change.

How to Send SAT Scores to Colleges?

There are two ways of sending the scores to colleges, one while registering for the test or after releasing the official scores. Candidates receive four free Score Reports while registering for the SAT test. Candidates can send the scores to colleges up to nine days after taking the test after that they have to pay the money required for sending the score reports to each university/program they choose.

How SAT Is Scored

All multiple-choice questions are scored by giving 1 point for each correct answer. No
points are subtracted for incorrect answers or answers left blank. Hard questions count
the same as easier questions.

Conclusion

SAT is designed to test a student’s aptitude and knowledge in three subject areas: reading, writing, and math. SAT is used by colleges to evaluate an applicant’s eligibility for admission.

The better a student scores on the SAT the better the chance of getting accepted to a reputable college or university.

Studying for SAT requires a learning schedule. That will ensure you study properly and also enable you to stay on track with your goals and if abide by this sat study guide you will increase your SAT score.

Recommendations

Reference

blogprepschlor.com -SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips
Collegereadiness .collegeboard.org -2021-22 SAT Student Guide – College Board
educationcorner.com– SAT Test Taking Tips and Techniques
magoosh.com– Top 10 Ways to Prepare for the SAT
The princetonreview. com-What is the SAT?