SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips

When universities go through admissions applications, they take many factors into consideration, like your grades, your extracurriculars, and even your personality!

But many college applicants don't realize that some universities also consider you—and your family's—ability to pay tuition as well. The hard truth is that some universities use an applicant's ability to pay tuition without financial aid as a factor in the admissions process. Many universities consider how students can contribute to their institution financially when they make admissions decisions.

This sounds like scary news. But don't worry! Many schools are addressing the issue by transitioning to need-blind admissions policies, which remove economic status as an admissions criteria.

In this guide, we'll give you a complete list of need-blind colleges in the United States and answer all of your burning questions, including:

• What is need-blind admission?
• How do need-blind policies affect tuition costs?
• What should you look for in a need-blind school?

So let's get started!

So you have your heart set on going to the University of Southern California. That's great—it's one of the best schools in the country! Unfortunately, that makes it tough to get into: only 10% of applicants are admitted each year.

But don't worry. This guide will teach you everything you need to know to write an outstanding USC Writing Supplement.

We'll answer all of your questions, including the following:

• What is the USC supplement?
• What are the questions, and how do I answer them?
• Are there tips and tricks for knocking your USC essays out of the park?
• What steps do I take to finish my USC application?

Let's get started!

The University of Notre Dame is one of the most prestigious universities in the United States. It attracts the best and brightest students from around the country, and its acceptance rate shows that. For the 2021-2022 school year, they admitted only 15% of applicants. Because most applicants have amazing grades and transcripts, your Notre Dame application essays will be one of the most important ways for you to stand out from the crowd!

This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about writing Notre Dame's application essays. First, we'll give you an overview of the Notre Dame supplement. Then we'll walk you through each essay individually and answer the following questions:

• What is the essay asking you to do?
• What makes for a good answer?
• What are some potential essay topics?
• Are there pitfalls you should avoid?

And finally, we'll give you four top tips for taking your Notre Dame essays to the next level. So let's get started!

If you want to go to Penn State, then the Penn State essay is one of your big chances to show how you’re different from other students in your application for admission. In order to really make this component of the application work to your advantage, you’ll need a solid strategy for writing a concise, unique, and persuasive Penn State essay!

Writing your Penn State admissions essay might seem intimidating at first, but we’re here to guide you through the process. This article will help you write a stellar Penn State essay by: 

• Explaining purpose of the Penn State Essay
• Outlining the three steps to writing a solid Penn State Essay
• Providing a breakdown of Penn State essay examples
• Giving you three practical tips for writing an exceptional essay

Let’s dive in!

All applicants to Washington University in St. Louis have to submit a supplemental essay as part of their application packet. That means that in addition to the essays you write as part of your Common Application or the Coalition Application (WashU accepts either one), you'll have to submit a third essay that you write specifically for Washington University in St. Louis.

Because WashU's acceptance rate is highly competitive—only 13% of students are accepted every year!—you'll need to write a stellar WashU supplement to give yourself the best shot at getting in. But what does a good WashU supplemental essay look like?

This article is going to explain everything you need to know about the Washington University supplemental essay, including:

• Explaining what the WashU supplemental essay is and how to choose the correct essay prompt
• Separate walkthroughs of both the general supplemental essay prompt and the Beyond Boundaries supplemental essay prompt
• Tips and tricks for writing an excellent Washington University supplemental essay

So without further ado, let's dive in!

So you've decided to apply to Michigan State University. You've made a great choice—not only is it one of the top public universities in the nation, 94% of undergraduates land jobs or go onto graduate school after graduation! Additionally, more than 25 of its undergraduate programs are ranked in the top 20 nationally, including the best supply chain management and logistics program in the country. And like most top schools, the MSU application requires you to submit an application essay.

This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about writing and submitting the Michigan State admissions essay, including:

• A discussion of the Michigan State admissions standards,
• Where to find the Michigan State application, and
• Five tips to write a Michigan State admissions essay that will get you in.

So let's get started!

It’s no secret that college is expensive. That’s especially true for people who want a degree but have family, financial, or other obligations that make going to school difficult. 

That’s why Walmart has created the Walmart Live Better U program. Designed by the Walmart Corporation, Live Better U offers 100% free GED, trade school, and college degree programs to all Walmart employees. 

If you work at Walmart, are considering working at Walmart, or are just curious about ways to attend college without breaking the bank, this article is for you! In this article, we’ll explain everything you need to know about the Live Better U Walmart program, including:

• What the Live Better U program is
• How Live Better U differs from a traditional scholarship program
• What the Live Better U requirements for eligibility are
• How to sign up for Live Better U
• An overview of Live Better U reviews, and
• How to decide if you should use Live Better U

Are you ready to learn more? Then let’s jump in!

Love reading, writing, and being creative? Then consider checking out summer writing programs for high school students! 

Whether you want to become a journalist or the next Poet Laureate, there are tons of summer writing programs that will help you achieve your goals. Participating in these programs can look great on college applications too! 

In this article, we’ll give you all the info you need to decide if creative writing summer programs for high school students are right for you, including: 

• A full description of 12 summer writing programs for high school students (including cost, eligibility, and what they cover!)
• A quick, five question quiz to help you decide if a summer writing program is right for you
• Three tips on how to impress colleges with your summer writing program

Let’s get started! 

For students who are really set on enrolling in a quality honors program, it's important to learn about some of the best honors colleges before making that big decision. That's especially true because your honors program will dictate how difficult your classes are...and the perks you get from doing well in them!

We're here to help you get all the information you need about the top honors programs in the country so you can pick the program that's right for you. In this article, we'll:

• Explain what an honors college is
• Provide our research-based ranking of the ten top honors colleges and programs at U.S. colleges and universities
• Give you five tips for applying to top college honors programs

Ready? Let's dive in!

Did you know that there are alternative exams to the SAT and ACT? The Classic Learning Test, or CLT exam, is an alternative college entrance exam accepted by some schools. If you’re interested in taking a college entrance exam that bills itself as affordable, convenient, and innovative, the CLT exam might be worth your time.

Because this alternative exam option may not be as familiar to you as the SAT/ACT, this article will help you understand the CLT test and what it covers. We’ll talk about:

What the Classic Learning Test (CLT) is, plus:

• Why someone should take the CLT
• When the CLT test dates are
• How the CLT compares to the SAT and ACT
• What you should know about the CLT format

We’ll wrap everything up with four expert tips for taking the CLT exam. Let’s get started!

The Inspirit AI Scholars program is an intensive, online course that teaches high school students about artificial intelligence (AI). In this program, students get to practice coding, designing, and implementing their own AI-based projects with web development experts. Additionally, participants learn tech skills that can set them up for success in school and beyond!

Below, we’ll explain you what you need to know about the Inspirit AI Scholars program, including: 

• What the Inspirit AI Scholars program for high schoolers is
• What topics the program covers and what projects are available for students 
• Answering the question, “Is Inspirit AI worth it?” by going over the pros and cons of the program along with real-life student reviews 
• How to apply to Inspirit AI
• What the Inspirit AI Scholars program for elementary and middle school students is

Let’s dive in! 

If you’re a high school student who’s interested in becoming a lawyer, you can actually start preparing for your future career now by participating in high school law internships and other law-focused programs. 

High school law internships, summer programs, and law volunteer opportunities for high school students all allow you to explore legal careers before you ever even get to college. We’ll explain everything you need to know about these programs, including:

• The types of law programs available to high school students 
• Real-life examples of law programs for high school students
• Tips for including your law experience on college applications 

Keep reading to learn more! 

AP Biology can be a pretty challenging course. But if you’re planning on majoring in STEM in college, it can give you a head start on your degree…if you make a great score on the AP Bio exam, that is. 

Even though the AP Biology class and exam might be difficult, getting a perfect score is totally possible! We’ll walk you through how to get a 5 on the AP Bio exam, including how to maximize your classroom time, tactics for getting the most out of your study time, and even tips for boosting your test-day performance. 

Ready? Let’s dive in!

Are you a student with a love for biology? If so, then you should consider participating in the USA Biology Olympiad, or USABO! Nearly 10,000 talented high school students participate in the Biology Olympiad each year, and it’s a great opportunity to build your science skills and your college applications. 

 We’ll teach you everything you need to know about the USABO, including: 

• What USABO is and who’s eligible to compete
• The content and topics that USABO covers
• The benefits of competing in USABO
• How the USABO competition works
• Four tips for getting involved in USABO

Let’s get started!

It can be tough to find extracurricular activities that you love. Fortunately, online extracurricular activities are a popular and easy way to get involved when you can’t participate in person.

If you’re searching for fun and enriching online extracurricular activities, you’ve come to the right place! In this article, we’ll give you all the essential information about online extracurricular activities, including:

• An explanation of what online extracurricular activities are and how they can benefit students
• A discussion of how colleges look at online extracurricular activities and online clubs for high school students (free and subscription-based)
• Eight ideas for online extracurricular activities you can do
• Five tips for getting the most out of online extracurriculars

Are you ready? Let’s dive in!