SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips

When you take out a loan, the expectation is that you'll pay back all the money you've borrowed (plus interest, of course). It usually takes pretty catastrophic circumstances for a federal student loan to be canceled, like your school shutting down before you can get your degree.

The Perkins loan program is different, in a good way - it offers loan forgiveness/cancellation in a wide variety of other, happier circumstances. In an effort to encourage graduates to pursue certain public service careers, the loan program offers loan forgiveness, or cancellation, to borrowers in certain professions. If you have a Perkins loan and enter one of the fields I outline below, you could have up to 100% of your loan canceled. Read on to learn more about cancellation eligibility & the loan cancellation process!

Recommendation letters are given serious consideration by admissions officers. Considering college admissions get more and more competitive each year, recommendations can go a long way toward helping you get accepted (or, gulp, rejected).

Most admissions committees seek a holistic view of the student. They want to know who you are, beyond the grades and test scores. A great recommendation letter both raves about your awesome qualities and opens a window into your personality and character.

By knowing exactly why some recommendation letters are more powerful than others, you can figure out who you need to ask and what you need to do to get one. So what exactly makes some letters of rec more impressive than others? Let's take a closer look at the features of great recommendation letters and examples of each one.

One of the most important decisions you'll make in the college research process is where in the country to focus your search. Going to school out of state has its benefits, but is an out-of-state college the right choice for you? In this article, I’ll give you the general pros and cons of attending an out-of-state college and provide some guidance on whether you should apply.  

When you are planning your study approach for ACT English, it’s important to know where your time is best spent.

Which grammar rules are really the most important to learn? What can help you make the greatest improvement to your score?

When you are planning your study approach for SAT Writing, it’s important to know where your time is best spent.

Which grammar rules are really the most important to learn? What can help you make the greatest improvement to your score?

Read on to find out exactly how much each grammar rule matters and how you can use this information on the test.

You’ve decided to use a book to study for ACT English, but do you know which books out there will actually help you reach your goals?

In this article, I will give you an overview of the best ACT English prep books on the market today, and which ones you should choose depending on what score you're aiming for.

These books can be found at bookstores, the library, or online. Focus on using these books with high quality practice and review, and you'll be sure to improve your English score.

The SAT is a challenging test for all students, but especially for those whose native language isn't English. Even more so than its counterpart, the ACT, the SAT focuses on high level vocabulary words and reading comprehension.

Most four year colleges require the SAT or ACT from ESL students, often along with the TOEFL or IELTS. This guide is for ESL and bilingual students who have college in their plans and want to know how to prep for the SAT.

Before delving into your approach to test prep, let's discuss what exactly the SAT tests, and why it can be so demanding for non-native speakers of English.

Curious about which states require the SAT? Could requiring the SAT make it more popular than the ACT?

In this post, we'll discuss how state SAT testing could increase nationwide SAT rates, and what to do if you live in an SAT-required or SAT-optional state.

The ACT is getting more popular each year, though it still might not be as popular as the Plastics.

Wondering if having the ACT required in states increases its overall popularity nationwide? And is requiring the ACT the best policy for students?

We’ll discuss the statewide ACT policies and how effective they are nationwide. Also, we’ll tell you how to approach the ACT, whether you’re living in an ACT-required state or not!

If you’re thinking of applying to community college, you might be wondering what the application requirements are. Do you need a certain GPA? Will you have to take the SAT?

I have good news! The vast majority of community colleges are open enrollment, which means that they accept anyone who applies, as long as she has a high school diploma or GED. They generally don't require standardized test scores.

However, if you're interested in certain more selective programs like nursing or planning to transfer to a four-year university, you may end up needing SAT or ACT scores.

Unless a 4-year college has a test flexible policy, it requires the ACT or SAT from all its applicants. Since the ACT is meant to measure your academic skills for college classes that will be taught in English, there's no option for ACT dual language or ACT instructions in another language.

ESL and bilingual students have to take the ACT for many colleges. In a lot of cases, they have to take the TOEFL or IELTS, as well, to demonstrate their English language proficiency. The ACT is a tough test for all students, and its time and verbal demands make it especially challenging for English language learners.

Luckily, prepping for the ACT, once you have sufficient English language skills, can go a long way toward improving your scores. Let's go over what the ACT is all about and what you can do to get ready.

Generally speaking, no one is going to purposely hurt your college application and write a negative recommendation (that'd be an oxymoron). If for some reason someone feels like they can't honestly recommend you, they likely would decline or suggest someone else.

That being said, there can still be bad recommendations from writers with good intentions. And admissions officers can spot them from a mile away. These letters certainly don't help your application, and they could even hurt your chances of getting accepted. Let's take a closer look at what features make for a "bad" recommendation.

Are you applying to Harvard, or writing a letter of recommendation for someone who is? To get into Harvard or another Ivy League school, your letter of recommendation, like with all the other parts of your application, must be outstanding. Even if your grades, test scores, and other achievements are stellar, you don't want to downplay the importance of recommendation letters in the admissions decision.

Read on to find out just how important rec letters are to the Harvard admissions committee, along with how exactly they can provide powerful support for an applicant.

If you're thinking about going to college, you probably know by now that an education is, well, expensive. It's not just tuition you're worried about—there are so many other costs associated with forging out on your own, especially if you'll be living away from home for the first time. The best way to tackle these expenses? First, you have to educate yourself about the reality of college costs.

In this comprehensive guide, I'll walk you through all the expenses you'll need to consider when you go to college, both obvious and not-so-obvious. Then, I'll discuss factors that affect how much money you and your family actually pay out-of-pocket—it's not as hard as you think to get a first-rate education for a bargain.