The SAT has changed, and the test makers are in a battle with quickie test preparation courses. Ace the new SAT by building your skills gradually, getting to know the test, and practicing daily or weekly. Think of the SAT as an intellectual marathon that requires training, and you will succeed.
Open College Doors with a Top Score on the New SAT
Have you ever wondered what the lucky few who are accepted at Harvard, Yale
and other Ivy League schools have in common? Your application can be
outstanding, your essay may read like a Pulitzer Prize winning piece, but (no
matter what the admissions manual might tell you) if your SAT score is not top
notch, it is unlikely that you will be accepted at the best schools.
The good news is that there are many opportunities to prepare for the SAT.
There is a dizzying array of test preparation opportunities, including online
tutoring, classroom instruction, and SAT practice software. The SAT is no longer
viewed as a quasi-IQ test that needs only to be taken once to measure aptitude.
It is more like an athletic event that requires months or years of training for
optimal performance. Getting to know the test and practicing test-taking
strategies provide even better chances of SAT success than brilliant native
intelligence. Test taking skills can be learned and honed, like any other
practical skill.
The best way to ace the SAT is to get to know the test. But you can throw out
the old books (or at least sections of them). If you are taking the SAT in the
spring of 2005 and have taken a look at the new test, you will notice that this
is not your big brother's SAT.