SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips

The PSAT is coming up--fast. 

Test day will be here whether you've been studying or not. For the SAT, I would recommend delaying for a later test date, but that's not really possible for with the PSAT.

You may have less than three weeks left, which means you're going to have to cram.

So? How are you best going to prepare for the ordeal?

In this article, I'll guide you through how to prepare, including which techniques to focus on for each section of the test, not to mention test-day techniques (like whether or not to guess if you have no idea).

General Guidance

There are a few over-arching principles that are crucial to this process.

Commit to a Strenuous Process

Push yourself hard.

Cramming for the PSAT is hard work. It will not, however, build muscles.

This test is the NMSQT (National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test), which is huge news for any National Merit Scholarship hopefuls out there.

The PSAT also indicates your likely performance on the SAT, which is great information to have. That way, you know what kind of a fight you're in for as you prepare for the SAT. (Speaking of which, don't delay studying so much next time, eh?)

Time is of the essence, so make sure you spend it preparing for the test. Don't give up your homework, though--grades are hugely important in the bigger picture of college admissions: more important than the PSAT.

That being said, the PSAT is not going to determine your fate. The National Merit Scholarship is nice, but colleges won't see your PSAT scores. You've got several more chances to knock 'em dead with your test-taking prowess. So, please: don't blow this out of proportion.

Listen to Your Own Needs

Rest is beyond important.

Practice good sleep hygiene and enact a decently early bedtime starting a good week before the test. Your body starts storing sleep not just the night before an event, but the night before that.

Plus, if your sleep is usually limited (or simply not great), getting enough sleep can make you experience some extra fatigue, initially--so give your body time to adjust to getting rest.

Temper healthy nerves by way of a reality check.

This is an important test, and knowing that the stakes are high can give you some adrenaline and keep you committed to the task. 

At the same time, as we said above, it's not the be-all, end-all of your life, your schooling, or even your high school career. Keep your confidence, and your calm.

Limit stress, fatigue, and pessimism (in other words, the effects of overwork). Monitor your mindset: this is an opportunity to shine, not just a chance to get stomped on.

There will be more on this topic later, including specific tips about maintaining or regaining your cool in the midst of test day.

Preparation

You may not have much time, but you do have some. Put those last few days or weeks to good use!

Cooking, like the taking the PSAT, requires lots of preparation.

#1 Take a Practice Test

The first thing to do is take a full-length practice test. It's best to take it under test-day conditions if you can, but, if that's not possible, just make sure you get through the thing.

If nothing else, this will serve as an opportunity to get thoroughly acquainted with the instructions and what they mean in practice. This will boost your confidence and decrease the time you waste on test day trying to figure out what you're expected to do.

This is also a chance to acclimate to the types of questions on the test. Take note of the style and wording of the questions. Especially note that not all questions are technically questions--some include a command term and end in a period. (This is the difference between, "What is the solution?" and "Identify the solution.")

See if you can find any patterns. Certain types of questions and formats of possible answers show up disproportionately.

Perhaps most importantly, a practice test will show you what areas need some extra attention. Ideally you should work every section of the test as you prepare, but give documented weaknesses a little additional care.

#2 Drill Official Questions

This applies to all sections: drill. There's nothing like having at some actual questions to show you where your potential difficulties lie.

This is an area where both quality and quantity matter. You want to work as many problems as you can, but you also want to dissect what's going wrong when you make mistakes and work through the same (tricky) problems multiple times, to get the hang of those routines.

The more you go through the process, the more comfortable that process will become.

#3 Reading: Read a Lot

You don't have a lot of time, but spend your spare minutes immersed in literature. You're going to be doing a lot of reading on both the Reading Test and the Writing and Language Test. Do your best to become at ease with finding yourself at the bottom of a flood of tricky words.

Granted, this would work better if you were starting the process sooner, but even just acclimating to doing that much reading in a short period of time can be useful. If you dive right in now, it'll seem less horrific by test day.

This cactus didn't prepare before test day, and now see how overwhelmed he is?

Now, I also don't mean you should ditch your homework in favor of the average comic book. Rather, I mean you should spend every spare moment reading The New York Times, Shakespeare's canon, of Fahrenheit 451.

Not all reading is created equal. Reading for pleasure and entertainment is amazing. Right now, though, our focus is this test. Reading what's uncomfortable and unfamiliar builds new connections in your brain--not to mention that there's just more meat to dissect, and dissecting text is exactly what the test wants from you. The PSAT is going to present some pretty dense text, and you need to be at least somewhat used to looking at non-contemporary, formal, and/or academic literature.

Read attentively and read critically, and get in as much as you can.

#4 Writing and Language: Review Basic Grammar

You need to know the basic rules that govern sentence structure, etc. (If you have more time, go more in depth.) It's important to know these rules; you can't just follow your ear.

As any theater practitioner will tell you, pauses, like emphasis, are completely subjective. I can pause wherever I want in a sentence, and often that will change the implications or even the primary interpretation of the sentence. Don't hang your grammatical hat solely on what sounds right to you, because the test-makers might have a different intention.

Commas, semicolons, em-dashes, and all the rest of those punctuation marks serve strict grammatical purposes, telling us where units of thought begin and end (among other things). It's nuanced, and it's more exacting than our personal patterns of everyday speech make it out to be.

#5 Math: Get Comfortable with Your Tools

Review the formulas that will be given to you on the test, as well as those you'll need to have memorized. As for the ones in your test booklet, they're no good to you if you barely recognize them; get familiar with them. As for the rest, you'll be on your own on test day when you find you need them.

Practice rearranging equations; there's a lot of algebra on this test, and mathematical manipulation is one of the primary skills that the test-makers look at.

Make sure you're comfortable with your calculator. Even if you've been using it in math class, try it out on some of the math problems that you're drilling (right?). There are a few odd functions that'll come in handy, and you may or may not be familiar with them now. Also make sure your calculator is approved.

Don't bring an abacus to the PSAT.

Test-Taking Tips

No matter how much studying you've done (or haven't done), there are a few solid principles that can make test day run much more smoothly.

Warm Up the Morning Of

Wake up, stretch, do your thing--and then do a bit of a warm up. Review tricky practice problems that you've persevered in mastering, and try a fresh, new problem or two.

Don't go beyond a simple warm-up, though: don't try to cram new material into your head. At best, it won't stick; at worst, it will muddle you up and stress you out.

Feeling Panicky? Work It Out

Self-talk is huge. How are you treating yourself? Kindly? Gently? Compassionately? Avoid being harsh or judgmental. Instead, affirm your assets: you've prepared, and you're ready.

Put your game face on. Visualize the specifics of what's going to happen--and how you're going to handle it all like a champ.

Let's try not to end up like this guy--he's not even inside the test center yet.

Answer Every Question

There's no guessing penalty, so you can't lose anything by bubbling in a choice. Do what you know how to do first. Next, eliminate answers where you can. Then, guess away! Guess on everything that's left. Leave nothing blank. To use this technique to your especial advantage, take a moment to read about how to guess strategically.

Test-Taking Tips #2

No matter how much studying you've done (or haven't done), there are a few solid principles that can make test day run much more smoothly.

Warm Up the Morning Of

Wake up, stretch, do your thing--and then do a bit of a warm up. Review tricky practice problems that you've persevered in mastering, and try a fresh, new problem or two.

Don't go beyond a simple warm-up, though: don't try to cram new material into your head. At best, it won't stick; at worst, it will muddle you up and stress you out.

Feeling Panicky? Work It Out

Self-talk is huge. How are you treating yourself? Kindly? Gently? Compassionately? Avoid being harsh or judgmental. Instead, affirm your assets: you've prepared, and you're ready.

Put your game face on. Visualize the specifics of what's going to happen--and how you're going to handle it all like a champ.

Let's try not to end up like this guy--he's not even inside the test center yet.

Answer Every Question

There's no guessing penalty, so you can't lose anything by bubbling in a choice. Do what you know how to do first. Next, eliminate answers where you can. Then, guess away! Guess on everything that's left. Leave nothing blank. To use this technique to your especial advantage, take a moment to read about how to guess strategically.

Test-Taking Tips #3

No matter how much studying you've done (or haven't done), there are a few solid principles that can make test day run much more smoothly.

Warm Up the Morning Of

Wake up, stretch, do your thing--and then do a bit of a warm up. Review tricky practice problems that you've persevered in mastering, and try a fresh, new problem or two.

Don't go beyond a simple warm-up, though: don't try to cram new material into your head. At best, it won't stick; at worst, it will muddle you up and stress you out.

Feeling Panicky? Work It Out

Self-talk is huge. How are you treating yourself? Kindly? Gently? Compassionately? Avoid being harsh or judgmental. Instead, affirm your assets: you've prepared, and you're ready.

Put your game face on. Visualize the specifics of what's going to happen--and how you're going to handle it all like a champ.

Let's try not to end up like this guy--he's not even inside the test center yet.

Answer Every Question

There's no guessing penalty, so you can't lose anything by bubbling in a choice. Do what you know how to do first. Next, eliminate answers where you can. Then, guess away! Guess on everything that's left. Leave nothing blank. To use this technique to your especial advantage, take a moment to read about how to guess strategically.

Test-Taking Tips #4

No matter how much studying you've done (or haven't done), there are a few solid principles that can make test day run much more smoothly.

Warm Up the Morning Of

Wake up, stretch, do your thing--and then do a bit of a warm up. Review tricky practice problems that you've persevered in mastering, and try a fresh, new problem or two.

Don't go beyond a simple warm-up, though: don't try to cram new material into your head. At best, it won't stick; at worst, it will muddle you up and stress you out.

Feeling Panicky? Work It Out

Self-talk is huge. How are you treating yourself? Kindly? Gently? Compassionately? Avoid being harsh or judgmental. Instead, affirm your assets: you've prepared, and you're ready.

Put your game face on. Visualize the specifics of what's going to happen--and how you're going to handle it all like a champ.

Let's try not to end up like this guy--he's not even inside the test center yet.

Answer Every Question

There's no guessing penalty, so you can't lose anything by bubbling in a choice. Do what you know how to do first. Next, eliminate answers where you can. Then, guess away! Guess on everything that's left. Leave nothing blank. To use this technique to your especial advantage, take a moment to read about how to guess strategically.

Conclusion

It's always best to start any study program with plenty of time before an exam. When that doesn't happen, though, or when it's just not possible, some types of cramming are smarter than other types of cramming.

When it comes to the PSAT, taking a practice test and drilling extra practice questions can give enormous benefits. Beyond that, a lot of it is reading and reviewing basic rules.

Also, remember: you're going to be working hard, so it's especially important to take intentional care of yourself.

What's Next?

Learn about the score range associated with the PSAT, so you know what general kinds of numbers you might expect to see when scores come out.

Wondering exactly when scores will come out? It's a great idea to check out the dates to look for.

If you're not sure what a good score might look like, though, take a moment to read about why that's a more complicated question than it seems. Get a sense of what an appropriate goal would be for you, while you're at it.

Don't repeat the procrastinate-and-cram cycle for the SAT; start preparing earlier next time around. Take practice tests, and consider an SAT preparation program: PrepScholar has a great, customized program developed by experts, complete with a score-improvement guarantee.