SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips

According to the Institute of International Education, more than a million international students studied at colleges in the United States last year. If you’re hoping to be one of those students, then this guide is for you.

To help you through the college application process, this guide will go over all the steps you need to take, from translating your transcript to taking the TOEFL. Before jumping into the process of international student admissions, let’s review how your application process is the same as a U.S. student's and how it’s different.

Albert Einstein, who's generally considered a pretty smart guy, said, "It's not that I'm so smart. It's just that I stay with problems longer." That type of commitment, as anyone who's studying for the ACT knows, is its own form of intelligence, and it's what will help you accomplish your long-term goals.

This book guide is meant for students looking to "stay with problems longer" and study intensively, like 100 or more hours, to maximize their scores on the ACT. If you're a student who wants to leave no stone unturned as you prep for the ACT, then these are the books for you.

Before delving into the ACT prep book list, a word about what perspective I'm coming from in my recommendations.

Calling all student athletes! Are you aiming to go to college as an NCAA athlete? Two important NCAA Clearinghouse requirements have to do with your high school grade point average (GPA) and SAT scores, which are compared on a sliding scale. Let's talk about the eligibility criteria for NCAA athletics, and how you can achieve the scores you need.

First, let's review GPA requirements and how your GPA is calculated.

Are you building up your vocabulary to get ready for the ACT? While memorizing obscure words won't get you too far, learning medium-level words in multiple contexts will help you out a great deal on ACT Reading and English. Besides "multiple-meaning" words, you also want to review scientific terms to be prepared for the ACT Science section.

This guide tackles the "one word a day" strategy and how you can use it effectively to prepare for the ACT. First, how useful is studying just one word a day?

Beyond helping someone get an initial hire, recommendation letters can also go a long way toward assisting someone with an internal promotion. If the promotion involves moving into a position of leadership, then a great rec letter from a supervisor or colleague can be useful in showing that the candidate's ready to move up.

In this sample reference, a supervisor recommends that a Customer Experience Advisor at a glasses company move into the position of Team Lead. Read on to see how the supervisor frames her letter.

In our brave new world of ubiquitous internet, some employees work on a remote basis, communicating with teams via email and video chat. Whether they contribute as programmers, writers, or in another field, they might work from anywhere with a wifi connection.

This letter represents this remote relationship with a clothing company manager writing for a freelance web designer. Even though the manager hasn't worked with the candidate on a day-to-day basis, he can still attest to the quality of her work, as well as touch on some of the personal characteristics that he has gotten to know.

Read on to see how the remote manager weaves a strong reference for a web designer.

If you're a college professor, you'll probably write a bunch of recommendation letters for graduate programs and even jobs. In the following sample, an English professor provides a reference letter for a former student applying to teach English in South Korea.

While this professor hasn't seen his student in a teaching role, he can attest to his English language skills and passion for immersing himself in new cultures. Read on for the sample reference letter and an analysis of what it does well.

You don't have to be somebody's boss to write her a recommendation letter. You might have a coworker ask you to write one when she applies for an internal promotion or a position outside the company.

The sample letter in this article is written by a colleague for someone applying to a leadership position at another company. As a coworker and friend to the candidate, the writer can speak both to her professional skills and to her personal interests. Read on to see how the writer supports his colleague's job application.

Did you know there are over 1.5 million internships in the U.S. each year? If you work in supervisory role in a company, chances are you might find yourself writing a letter of recommendation for an intern. While you may have gotten to know an intern on a part-time, temporary basis, you can still write a personal and detailed letter of recommendation to help her through the job search.

The following sample letter of recommendation is written by an editor at a publishing company for a recent intern. Read on for the reference letter and an analysis of what it does well.

According to the Connecticut State Department of Education, there were up to 29 applicants per teaching position in Connecticut last year! Teaching's a competitive field, so a stand-out letter of recommendation can go a long way.

In the sample letter below, a principal recommends an art teacher applying to another school due to budget cuts. Check out what the principal has to say about this teacher, and then read on for an analysis of what this letter does well.

Not all of the candidates asking for a recommendation letter are full-time or long-term employees. Even if you're writing for a part-time or temporary worker, you can still give great insight into his work performance and strengths.

In the sample letter below, a restaurant manager recommends a server who worked during summers off from college. The candidate's looking to move into his first full-time job after graduation. Read on to learn what this restaurant manager has to say.

Maybe you spent the last year interning in a business and know your supervisor could write a stellar letter about your work ethic and passion for economics. Or you have a long term music teacher who can speak to your lifelong dedication to playing the piano. Or maybe you attend a school with thousands of students and feel like you've barely said ten words to your counselor or classroom teachers all year long.

If any of these scenarios hits home, then you might be considering sending a supplemental recommendation letter along with your college application. Before sending any extra materials, though, you should think hard about whether it's the right course of action. This guide will discuss when it's appropriate to send supplemental recommendations and when you'd be better off holding back.

To start, what are some reasons students think they should send an additional rec letter?

Are you tasked with writing a recommendation letter for someone and not sure where to start? While all letters should be uniquely customized to the candidate, most share a certain fixed structure.

This guide will go over this structure piece by piece to help you through the job recommendation writing process. Read on for a recommendation letter template that you can use to shape your recommendation letter. To begin, let's review the purpose of reference letters for job seekers.

Just like the ACT has four different sections, the ACT Reading section has four different types of passages for you to read. This article breaks down exactly what's on this section of the ACT so you can plan your best approach.

First, let's consider how the ACT Reading section is formatted.

How important are recommendation letters in a college application? According to William Fitzsimmons, dean of admissions and financial aid at Harvard, they are "extremely important."

If you're a student, examples of great letters of recommendation can help you understand how to get strong letters yourself from your teachers. If you're a teacher, the examples in this guide will inspire you to support your students strongly as they apply to college. Keep reading for four excellent letters from teachers that will get anyone into college, along with expert analysis on why they're so strong.