My Experiences with the Stanford Aptitude Test, the SAT

The SAT is a test that most high school students take before applying to colleges and universities across American, and I was no exception. I studied hard, retook the SAT a few times, and did reasonably well, which helped me enter into the college of my choice. I learned a lot about the SAT, not only about the studying involved, and the work one must put in to be successful, but also about myself as a person.

I took the SAT several years ago, before the changes that are now in place occurred. I didn't have to write an essay, like students do now (Whew!), but it was still a difficult test. I first took the PSAT, a preliminary exam that is sometimes considered a 'mini-SAT' or a 'practice SAT.' Please, please, please, don't consider the PSAT as such-instead, at least take a little while to prepare for it as well. I have found now that many colleges and universities are more interested in the PSAT score, and if a person is a National Merit Scholar from that score, than SAT's, for the purposes of scholarships from different schools. Still, SATs are extremely important, and aren't replaced by the PSAT. I made the mistake of not preparing for the PSAT, and missed out on some scholarships as a result. Don't make this mistake!

After taking the SAT the first time, and getting an 'ok' score, I buckled down hard and went to work, studying for my next time of taking the SAT. I used a KAPLAN review book, along with several other review guides for the SAT. I studied, and studied, and studied, really going to work during the summer, spending several hours a day preparing for the exam. I even found mistakes in the book, questions that had been written incorrectly, or had answers that were wrong. This is what I would recommend to students taking the SAT for the first time, or second, or even third time-stay up to date on your studying and reviewing. There is a plethora of the review material available online, and offline, even with practice questions from College Board. I would suggest using the 'Question of the Day' from College Board as a good tool to keep your self thinking about the SAT, even when online. I used this helpful SAT question almost every day during when I was studying a lot, and I believe it really helped me out.

Finally, be sure to stay current on the information. While it is cheaper to purchase an older review book or guide, you need to realize that the SAT has changed considerably since many of the books were published. The newer SAT information won't be covered in the older books, so it is best to stick with the newer guides, whenever possible.

The SAT is sometimes overhyped, but too many students don't try hard enough for it. You can learn from my experiences with the SAT, and what I've done, both wrong and right. Go out, and study, learn the material that will be covered on the exam, and learn how it feels to take the SAT. The better prepared you are, and the more comfortable you are with the SAT, the better you should then do on the SAT.