Do I HAVE to take SAT prep classes to do well?
February 2nd, 2010 | 
Author: 
Hi and welcome to my blog,
I opened this blog to help anyone who is preparing for his SAT.
I remember myself when I started - I was so lost and in such a panic.
Luckily I got this great SAT guide that helped me a lot . So study hard and good luck!
Or could I use an alternative method and get the same results?
I’m going into my Jr. year of HS September 4 and I haven’t taken the PSAT or SAT, nor have I had any preparation for it. My mom talked to Sylvan Learning Center today about a class they have for SAT prep, but it’s 00 for one month of training? Hmmmmm… I’m PRETTY SURE I won’t have time to go everyday, nor would I want to, so I don’t see how 00 is a reasonable cost being as that I KNOW there are other programs and methods that are cheaper. We have the money, it’s just that, me personally, I would think it’s a waste of my parents money… especially since I already want/need a lot of things to be bought for me this month (my birthdays this month, school starts in September, etc.)
What are some different methods of preparing for it or how did you prepare for it? Books? Classes? What?
And if you did take it, what was your score?
Posted in sat questions | 
Tags: birthdays, hs, mom, money, parents, psat, score, sylvan learning center
No not everyone needs a class or a tutor. But if you feel that you need one, you can find other kids who already took the class but you don’t have to go through an official place like sylvan. I personally went to a class with princeton review, but they didn’t help me as much as getting the princeton review books at borders and doing the on line quiz’s did. I highly recommend them. Not only do they help you become familiar with the style and scoring of the test, but they give you tips on how to take the test in a smarter way. plus they have vocab cards you can use to train yourself. as long as you put in the time, you’ll be fine.
also, take the PSAT’s before the sats. I took those as a soph as well, but they’re a good practice test, minus the writing section.
overall, since you’re only going to be a junior, you’re a bit ahead of the curve to start now, I would say that you should take the PSAT’s now, and then study from your score on that, and take the real SAT’s your first time in May.
good luck!
online, baby… everything is online ! you can find some really GOOD websites for sat/last prep. if u live in calif., i belive they have some schools designed for these exams. if u aint in calif., try to ask these chinese/asian students/ friends. they r always good at preparing exams. (and know where to get "prep bks"– WINK, if u know what i mean…)
I have a friend that did worse on her ACT after taking the Princeton Review program, also very expensive. Those programs are only as good as your discipline. If you don’t think that you will have time for it, don’t do it. I did have a private SAT tutor but only for the subject, math that was weaker at. I used vocabulary flash cards, study guides for everything else etc… The study guides are good because they teach you the tricks of the test…like I think it is you get 200 pts on the SAT for simply filling it out correctly.
I never really prepared for anything — that’s not my style. I get bored and annoyed with studying for anything too much to invest several hours in it. . . either I’m going to know it by now, or I won’t. I think I got one little review book for the first test in the licensing process in my field that you take when you graduate, but I’ve gone in pretty much cold to ACTs, SATs, PSATs, and the GRE.
If you can, try to sign up for tests several times so everything isn’t riding on that one shot to do great. I started taking the ACT (more prevalent test in my area) in the 8th grade, peaked in I think my spohomore or early junior year, and then started actually getting *lower* scores by the time you were "supposed" to take it.
How have I done? Anything below about the 90th percentile is what I usually considered having definitely an "off day". I was a national merit finalist and got a bunch of scholarships to college back in the day.
Of course, I’m also not exactly the slowest person on the planet. Your results will vary a great deal depending on how good of a student you are, I’m sure. If you’re just asking whether you *have* to do a lot of prep work in order to do well. . . no, at least some of us don’t.
i got a 1470?? i think. below average ): i didn’t study though. if your school offers a psat test, you should take it to prepare for the real one.
my friends got a 2200 (about maybe over) and she used the kaplan sat book.