SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips

Makers of the new SAT have decided that the Reading and Writing sections go together like peanut butter and jelly. Instead of treating them separately, College Board now combines Reading and Writing together in the same section.

This guide will go over the Reading and Writing section of the SAT and how this new format affects your test prep. To begin, let’s define this new section on the SAT.

Job interviews are a key part of the hiring process. They can also be incredibly nerve-wracking! The best way to calm any pre-interview jitters is to prepare well-crafted responses to the major questions coming your way.

While you can’t predict exactly what the hiring manager will ask you, you can come up with answers to the most common questions. This guide contains the top 100 questions that hiring managers ask in a job interview.

Before getting to the list, let’s consider why it’s so important to prepare for job interview questions, rather than just winging it.

If you’ve arrived at the interview stage, then you’ve already made a good impression with your resume and cover letter! How can you keep the positive vibes going and impress the hiring manager face to face?

The key to rocking your interview is preparation, and this guide’s here to help you along the way. Read on for the do’s and don’ts of answering seven of the most common interview questions, along with real sample responses to guide your thinking.

Oh, job interviews. Love them or fear them, there’s no getting around interviews for most working people.

Luckily, interviewing’s a skill like any other, and there are lots of ways you can practice and improve your game. This guide contains the best strategies for getting ready for a job interview and making an excellent impression on the hiring manager.

Read on for 13 essential tips on what you should do before, during, and after your interview to land your target job!

According to author Nick Hornby, "The secret of good writing is to cut it back, pare it down, winnow, chop, hack, prune, and trim, remove every superfluous word, compress, compress, compress." The same could be said to be the secret of writing good cover letters!

Since the writer of this next sample letter is applying for the position of Content Editor, she especially needs to show strong editing skills in her letter. Read on to see if Leila successfully compresses her cover letter into the most persuasive points.

If you're hoping to join a customer experience team, then you've got to have good people skills! In this sample cover letter, the applicant emphasizes her warm, patient, positive qualities, as well as her love for the company's products.

Read on to see how Poppy presents herself as a strong applicant, and then continue on to the breakdown of what this letter does well.

Teaching's a competitive field, so a stand-out cover letter's a must for serious applicants. In the sample below, the applicant is applying to teach English as a Second Language to international students.

Read on to see why the writer thinks he'd be a great match for the position. Then continue scrolling for an analysis of what this sample cover letter does well.

The writer of this cover letter works in marketing, so hopefully he's able to market for himself with a strong cover letter! As you'll see below, the applicant uses a list format to present his professional skills and draw direct connections with the job's requirements. 

Read on to see how the applicant describes his experiences, and then continue on to an analysis of what this sample cover letter does well.

Just like no two snowflakes are alike, neither should any two cover letters look the same. Even if you're applying to lots of jobs, you should make sure each of your cover letters is unique and tailored to the target job.

Of course, no one’s born knowing how to write the perfect cover letter. To help you write yours, this guide has six free samples of cover letters for various jobs. Scroll down to the middle of the article for the cover letter samples, or first check out these tips for writing a cover letter for your job application!

Are you on the hunt for a new job? If so, cover letters are an essential part of your applications. They’re often your first opportunity to communicate with a hiring manager and stand out from the crowd. 

Because cover letters play such an important role, they can often feel almost impossible to write. To help you break through writer's block, we’ve put together this comprehensive cover letter template with real examples. Scroll down for the full template, or first check out some tips to guide your thinking.

Thoreau once wrote, “The language of friendship is not words but meanings.” In the case of a character reference, the language of friendship involves both words and meanings. If you’re tasked with writing a character reference, then your mission is to write about your friend and all her amazing qualities.

How exactly can you fulfill this mission of writing an outstanding character reference? This guide will help you through the writing process with a template for your letter. To begin, let’s go over the purpose of a character reference.

Not everyone applying for a job has years of professional experience behind them. This next sample cover letter's geared toward an entry-level position in the publishing industry.

The applicant has had a relevant internship, plus a summer job at her local bookstore. In lieu of more extensive experience, she makes sure her enthusiasm for the position and company shines through. 

Read on to see how the writer shows her passion for publishing, and then check out the analysis below of what this cover letter does well.

Hospitality's a competitive industry, but luckily the applicant who wrote this cover letter has both a degree in Hospitality Management and experience as a server. In his cover letter, Charlie strives to show that he's ready to move into a managerial position.

Read on to see how Charlie presents his skills and experiences in the restaurant industry. Then check out the breakdown of what his cover letter does well.

On first glance, your SAT score report may look completely confusing. Altogether, you’ll get a total of 15 distinct scores, or 18 if you take the essay section! While the scores are numerous, they're also helpful. They put your results under the microscope and give you detailed feedback about your performance.

This guide will demystify all these test scores, cross-test scores, and subscores so you can make the most out of your SAT score report. Let’s start with a glossary to help you keep track of all the different score types.

Times, they are a-changin’. Bob Dylan’s 1964 anthem of change may not have originally referred to a college admissions test, but it certainly applies to the SAT overhaul of 2016. The redesigned test features huge changes from its previous version, in terms of its structure, scoring, and content.

Read on to learn about the major updates and what you can do to prepare for them. To start, let’s take a look at the test’s structure and exactly how it’s a-changin'.