SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips

So your friend/sibling/classmate wants you to write her a peer recommendation. Being the awesome friend/sibling/classmate that you are, you've not only agreed to write the letter, but you plan to write the BEST recommendation letter of all time. 

Apart from good intentions (check!), what else do you need to write an outstanding peer recommendation? This guide will break down the content and structure of peer reference letters so you can help get your bestie into the college of her dreams (which is probably Dartmouth or Davidson, the only colleges I currently know of that require peer evaluations).

First, here is your mission, since you've chosen to accept it.

Wondering how to convert decimals to fractions? Or how to convert fractions to decimals? It’s easier than you think! Keep reading to see the steps for decimal to fraction conversions (including why you need to follow different steps if you have a repeating decimal), steps for fraction to decimal conversions, a handy chart with common decimal/fraction conversions, and tips for quickly estimating conversions.

Each year, Harvard receives nearly 40,000 applications from high school hopefuls. Only 5% of them get a Harvard acceptance letter.

For example, in 2015, Harvard College accepted 1,990 applicants from a record 37,307 applications for the Class of 2019. That’s a 5.3% admission rate.

Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of applicants get a rejection letter. “I am very sorry to inform you…”

When I was in high school, I was one of the lucky few to apply Early Action and receive an acceptance letter in the mail. This validated years of hard work and made me giddy like I'd never been before for what came after high school.

Here’s my complete, official Harvard acceptance letter.

If you’re looking for a way to fund your college education, you should definitely check out merit scholarships. They’re especially great options for high-achieving students who may not qualify for much need-based financial aid. The best part of getting a merit scholarship is, of course, that you’re essentially getting free money for school. But how to get a merit scholarship can still be confusing and overwhelming.

In this post, I’ll explain what defines a merit scholarship before going into both where you can find them and how you can get them. At the end, you’ll find a list of some of the top merit awards available - this way, you can get a head start on getting that cash.

A piece’s writing style can help you figure out what kind of writing it is, what its purpose is, and how the author’s voice is unique. With so many different types of writing, you may think it’s difficult to figure out the specific writing style of a piece or you'll need to search through a long list of writing styles.

However, there are actually just four main types of writing styles, and together they cover practically all the writing you see, from textbooks to novels, to billboards and more.  Whether you’re studying writing styles for class or trying to develop your own writing style and looking for information, we’ve got you covered.

In this guide, we explain the four styles of writing, provide examples for each one, go over the one thing you need to know to identify writing style, and give tips to help you develop your own unique style of writing.

Are you looking for ways to help others? Are you interested in community service and want to learn more about it?

Read this guide to learn what community service is, examples of community service, and how you can find service projects that interest you.

Dynamic equilibrium is an important concept in chemistry. But what is dynamic equilibrium exactly? How can something be dynamic but also at equilibrium? Keep reading to learn the best dynamic equilibrium definition, common dynamic equilibrium examples, and how dynamic and static equilibrium may look the same but are in fact very different.

Each year, Stanford University receives over 40,000 applications from high school hopefuls. Only 5% of them get a Stanford acceptance letter.

For example, in 2015, Stanford accepted 2,144 applicants from a record 42,487 applications for the Class of 2019. That’s a tiny 5.0% admission rate.

Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of applicants get a rejection letter. “I regret to inform you…”

When I was in high school, I was one of the lucky few to apply to Stanford and receive an acceptance letter in the mail. This validated years of hard work and made me proud that a school like Stanford wanted me as part of their community.

Here’s my complete, official Stanford acceptance letter.

Pipe cleaner crafts are one of the easiest and most fun types of crafts to do with children. In this guide, we’ve compiled 31 of the best pipe cleaner crafts for kids. They range from crafts that take only a few minutes and can be done by very young children, to crafts that are a little more involved but will produce toys that’ll last for many hours of play.

Are you studying Spanish and want to know the Spanish names of different parts of the body? In this guide we’ve created three charts of human body parts in Spanish and English. The charts cover external body parts, like hair and toes, internal organs, and the skeleton.

Together, these charts contain more than 70 parts of the body, so you’re sure to find the Spanish vocab words you’re looking for. We also include a chart of common phrases you can use to talk about body parts in Spanish so that you can put your new vocab skills to use.

Do you want to start a club at your high school? If your school doesn’t offer a particular club or group that you’re interested in, starting your own is a great way to meet new people and spend time doing something you enjoy. You'll also get leadership experience that can help strengthen your resume and college applications.

Read on to get step-by-step instructions on how to start a high school club.

While you may have seen examples of really impressive recommendation letters, what about the really bad ones? What exactly do bad letters look like, and what makes them so subpar?

Bad recommendation letters can be hard to put a finger on, because they aren't necessarily critical or disparaging about a student. Instead, they might leave a poor impression because they come off as unenthusiastic, unspecific, or simply too short. The examples below represent letters that would do very little to help a student's college application and, worst case scenario, could even hurt it.

By knowing what weakens a letter or leaves a negative impression in the minds of admissions officers, you can make sure your letters don't contain any of these features. First up...

Are you a student-athlete hoping to play for an Ivy League school? Then you’re probably curious about the recruiting process. How do Ivy League schools recruit student-athletes? And how can you increase your odds of getting into an Ivy League school as a student-athlete?

Read on to learn what the general college recruiting process looks like and how it differs from Ivy League recruiting. After, we'll go over the basic academic requisites you must have to get into the Ivy League, and show you what the typical Ivy League recruiting timeline looks like.

Are you thinking about becoming a nurse practitioner? It can be a great way to make more money and have more responsibility at your job. But what options are there for nurse practitioner schooling? How long does it take to become a nurse practitioner? How do you apply, and what do you do once you begin a nurse practitioner program?

In this guide, we answer those questions and give you all the information you need to know about nurse practitioner school.

Looking to learn more about the Open Door Policy? The Open Door Policy was an important policy that affected Asian, European, and US trade for decades and even contributed to the Japanese/American conflict in WWII.

What was the Open Door Policy definition? Why and when was the Open Door Policy created? What are the impacts of it? We answer all those questions and more in these open door notes.