SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips

Imagine: you’re in Social Studies. You hear a fellow 7^th-grader sitting next to you say “Ugh, I have to take the SAT this weekend.” What is this person talking about? Why would you take the SAT in middle school? Is there even such a thing as a 7^th grade SAT score?

If you're a parent, you may have heard of various advanced programs for gifted and talented children that require taking the SAT. But is it worth it to have your child take the SAT so early? Why start the stress around college applications earlier than high school?

In this article, I’ll go over the pros and cons of taking the SAT in 7^th grade and the programs you can get into with high 7^th grade SAT scores.

Now that you’ve gathered together all your ACT math study materials, it’s time to put together a plan of attack. Having the right study materials is key, but understanding how to use them to their best effect is just as important. (What good is a tool wielded improperly, after all?)

We’ve put together a comprehensive plan on how to make use of your ACT math study materials and boost your math score. We’ll walk you through how to best use your math practice problems and how to make the best study plan possible to prepare yourself for test day.

Like most students who take the ACT, you may have taken the test more than once or are thinking about taking it multiple times. How will colleges look at your multiple test scores? Will they look at all your scores? Just your highest score? Will they average your scores and use that number? Standardized test scores are an important part of applying to college, but it’s not always clear how colleges will determine your ACT scores if you’ve taken the test more than once.

Being in 10th grade is a little like walking over a bridge. You're crossing from the less consequential testing of early high school to the world of high-stakes tests, like the SAT and the ACT – tests that can affect your future. One of the ways you get from one side of this metaphorical divide to the other is by getting the chance to practice. For example, some students take the PSAT, which is meant to be a precursor to the SAT that they will take in their junior or senior year.

Others take the ACT Aspire, a national achievement test that assesses how well students from 3rd to 10th grade are measuring up to Common Core standards. The format, structure, and scoring of the ACT Aspire are all very different from the ACT. But, because it is designed by the same organization that creates the ACT, it can feel like a precursor to the real thing.

So what’s a good score on the ACT Aspire for a sophomore? In this article, I’ll talk about different ways to think about what makes a good score, and how to tell where you rank based on the score you got. I’ll also discuss whether your 10th grade ACT Aspire score means for your future ACT score.

It’s tempting to compare the ACT Aspire test to the PSAT, but in reality they are quite different in their goals and purpose. The PSAT is meant to be practice for the real SAT, and doing well on it can qualify you for the National Merit Scholarship.

On the other hand, the ACT Aspire is a test for 3rd to 10th graders that is meant to determine whether students are measuring up to Common Core standards. Just like the real ACT, the ACT Aspire covers English, Math, Reading, Science, and Writing. But the format of this test, the structure of the questions, and the way the test is scored are all very different from the ACT.

So how do you know what ACT Aspire score you should aim for in your freshman year of high school? Or if you already got your results, how can you tell where you stand compared to your peers? In this article, I’ll talk about how the ACT Aspire is scored, give you some different ways to think about what a good ACT Aspire score is for a 9th grader, and demonstrate several tools to use when thinking about your specific score.

If you took the SAT in 2006 or 2007, you may be wondering what your percentile score is on the SAT. Is a 1700 on the SAT in 2006 the same percentile score as a 1700 in 2007? Do percentile scores change over time? 2006 was a big year in SAT history; it was the first full year of the Writing section and the maximum score changed from a 1600 to a 2400. Next year, the SAT will be going back to the 1600 maximum score.

In this article, I will explain SAT percentile scores, how they change, and I'll provide the percentile scores for SAT composite scores from 2006 and 2007.

If you took the SAT in 2003, 2004, or 2005, you may be wondering what your percentile score is on the SAT. Is a 1400 on the SAT in 2005 the same percentile score as a 1400 in 2003? Do percentile scores change over time? 2005 was a big year in SAT history; the maximum score for the SAT changed from a 1600 to a 2400 in March of 2005. In March of 2016, the SAT will be going back to the 1600 maximum score. For this post, I will be focusing on percentile scores from before the SAT changed its format in 2005.

In this article, I will explain SAT percentile scores, how they change, and I'll provide the percentile scores for SAT composite and section scores for 2005 and 2004.

If you took the SAT from 2008-2010, you may be wondering what your percentile score is on the SAT. Is a 2000 on the SAT in 2010 the same percentile score as a 2000 in 2008? Do percentile scores change over time?

In this article, I will explain SAT percentile scores, how they change, and I'll provide the percentile scores for SAT combined scores and section scores for 2010, 2009, and 2008.

The Class of 2017 is in a tough spot on the SAT.  Should you take the new SAT or old SAT?  If you take the new SAT, you would be the guinea pigs for a totally new system; if you take the old one, you have a tighter schedule.  How does it break down?

The location of a school can have a big impact on your experience as a student. It’s important to be aware of your preferences and make sure you choose a college that lines up with what will make you happiest.

In this article, I’ll give you some details on the characteristics of rural, urban, and suburban college environments so that you can decide which one sounds like the best fit for you. 

If you’re a religious Christian, you may want to consider attending a Christian college. Your quality of life could be better at a school where a majority of the students and faculty members share your values and beliefs. Additionally, Christian colleges often incorporate their Christianity into their missions and curricula.

In this article, I’ll provide you with a ranking list of the 20 best Christian colleges in the United States. Furthermore, I’ll offer you possible benefits and disadvantages of attending a top Christian college and explain how to research and find Christian colleges that could be a good fit for you.

You may have heard of this standardized test called the ACT. What's this test out of? What's the highest and lowest ACT score? And what score should you try to get? I'll answer all of these questions below.

Hopefully at this point in your college application process you have thought about your dream schools. Whether you took the ACT once and are debating taking it again or if you are just beginning the ACT preparation process, you are probably wondering what ACT will get you accepted.

While there is no one exact ACT score that will be considered “good” for your college or guarantee you a spot, there is a particular ACT score that will you give you the best chance of being accepted. What is it? I will answer that and more by guiding you through 4 easy steps. 

You’ve thought about your dream colleges and are wondering what SAT score will get you accepted. While there is not one number that will guarantee you a spot in the freshmen class, there is a range that will give you the best chance of admission. What is it? I'll answer that and more in this article.

Do you think that you may have gotten someone else’s scores by mistake or that there was another scoring error?

SAT scoring mistakes are rare, but they do happen. This guide will go over the steps you need to take in order to verify your scores, as well as what you should do to improve your score on future SATs if there was no scoring error.