Category Archives: test prep

SAT, standardized tests, test prep

Summer SAT and ACT Prep: Why College-Bound Teens Should Study During Summer Break

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SAT and ACT prep

For many families, summer break is a welcome pause from homework, projects, and packed schedules. Students look forward to sleeping in, spending time with friends, and enjoying some well-deserved downtime. While relaxation is important, summer can also be one of the most productive times for college-bound teens to prepare for standardized tests like the SAT and ACT.

If your student plans to apply to college, summer test preparation can provide a significant advantage. With fewer academic demands and extracurricular commitments, students have the time and flexibility to focus on improving their scores without feeling overwhelmed.

Continue reading Summer SAT and ACT Prep: Why College-Bound Teens Should Study During Summer Break →
SAT, standardized tests, test optional, test prep

Standardized Test Tips for Parents

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standardized test tips

Yes, I said parents. Because let’s face it, standardized test prep and test taking will stress the entire household, even the parents. Nancy Berk, author of “College Bound and Gagged” describes it like this:

“Standardized testing can turn your life upside down. In the college-bound process, standardized testing runs at the top when it comes to parent and student stress.”

It’s no secret among parents that the test causes most of us to shake in our boots. We shake because we know the importance that test scores will play in admissions and even scholarships. Knowing this, you can do some things to alleviate the stress and assure that both you and your student emerge from the process unscathed.

Here are a few standardized test tips to help ease the stress and pressure.

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admissions, careers, college books, college guidance, college planning, college prep, college visits, community service, essays, FAFSA, financial aid, financial planning, high school, mom approved tips, parenting, podcasts, Resources, scholarships, social networks, standardized tests, student loans, study abroad, test prep, websites

100+ College Prep Resources

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college prep resources

It’s exhausting searching and scouring the internet for the right information when it comes to helping your student prepare for college. But what if you could use ONLY ONE RESOURCE and find everything you ever wanted to know about college prep? Wouldn’t that be amazing?

Here it is. I’ve done the research, examined the links and their resources, and compiled a list of 100+ college prep resources for you. (If you know of others, please leave them in the comments and I will add them to the list!)

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college prep, test prep

Destressing Before Tests

It’s exam time, and you’re feeling the pressure. Your heart is racing, your palms are sweating, and your mind is racing through all the possible outcomes – good and bad. You know you need to calm down, but it feels like everything is working against you.

Don’t worry; everyone has been there. The good news is that there are ways to calm yourself before an exam, so you can go in feeling prepared and confident by destressing.

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college planning, college prep, college visits, parenting, SAT, standardized tests, summer programs, test prep

Will Your Student Be Bored This Summer?

Get a head start on college prep this summer. Learn everything you need to know about applying for college by getting my Parent Crash Course.

summer

When my kids were teenagers, “I’m bored” came flowing out of their mouths almost every single day during the summer. They missed their friends. They missed the constant activity. They missed participating in all the school-related extracurricular activities. If you have kids, it’s inevitable that those words will be spoken in your household during the summer.

When you hear those words (and even if you don’t) here’s a list of summer activities that will keep your college-bound teen busy AND help their college admissions process in the future.

Continue reading Will Your Student Be Bored This Summer? →
admissions, standardized tests, test optional, test prep

Test Optional–What You Need to Know

test optional

Does your student want to avoid taking a standardized test? Do they bomb them every time they take them? Are you hesitant to pay for a test prep tutor? Good news. There are hundreds of schools, large and small, who will use the SAT or ACT for placement only or other minimal requirements.

Due to the 2020 pandemic, most colleges became test-optional because students were unable to take standardized tests. Rumors abound that this will have a future impact on the value colleges place on standardized tests or eliminating the test requirement altogether.

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admissions, SAT, test prep

The New Digital SAT

digital sat

Moving into the digital age, the College Board has made the move to provide students with a new digital SAT and PSAT.

The College Board is trying to retool the exam that has stressed out millions of students in the face of questions about whether college admissions tests are fair, or even necessary.

A growing number of colleges have eliminated the requirement that applicants submit scores from the SAT or the competing ACT, and the trend of “test-optional” admissions accelerated greatly during the coronavirus pandemic. More than 1,800 schools did not require standardized test scores for 2022 admissions, according to the nonprofit organization FairTest.The number of SAT test takers declined from 2.2 million high schoolers who graduated in 2020 to 1.5 million in the class of 2021, according to the College Board. About 1.7 million students in the class of 2022 have taken the test to date.

Priscilla Rodriguez, vice president of college readiness assessments for the College Board, said the changes would make the test more relevant.

“In a largely test-optional world, the SAT is a lower-stakes test in college admissions,” Ms. Rodriguez said in a statement. “Submitting a score is optional for every type of college, and we want the SAT to be the best possible option for students.”

Continue reading The New Digital SAT →
SAT, test prep, tutoring, Uncategorized

Should You Hire an SAT or ACT Tutor?

Hiring a test prep tutor might just be the best investment you can make toward a college education. It may seem like a large investment, but the return you receive on the investment can be astronomical.

Consider this:

  • You pay $100 an hour for 5 hours for a test prep tutor = $500
  • Your student scores as well or better than the state index and qualifies as a National Merit semi-finalist
  • Colleges who have money set aside for the finalists will use merit aid to entice your student to attend: full tuition, room and board, books and fees, laptops, study abroad and even spending money.
  • Your student receives a full-ride scholarship for thousands of dollars
Continue reading Should You Hire an SAT or ACT Tutor? →
admissions, college guidance, college planning, college prep, essays, financial aid, scholarships, test prep

Everything You Need to Know About College from 5 of the Best Experts

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It’s a jungle out there–cluttered with all kinds of college advice. How does a parent hack through the massive amounts of advice and find what they need with confidence? It’s not easy. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of college help websites, Facebook groups, YouTube channels and more offering paid and unpaid advice about college.

There are five experts I turn to when I need added advice about all things college:

Debbie Schwartz-admissions/financial aid

Debbie Schwartz founded Road2College in 2016 to educate families about college admissions and empower smarter college financial decisions. Her facebook group has a huge following with parents and experts sharing advice about paying for college and finding colleges with the best merit aid.

Website: https://www.road2college.com/

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/payingforcollege/

Monica Matthews-scholarships

With all the scholarship search sites and information out there, you need someone to help your student WIN the scholarships they are eligible for. Monica fits that bill. She successfully helped her son graduate debt-free with $100,000 worth of scholarships by using her unique method of packaging the scholarship application. She knows her stuff and she knows what you need to know to make the scholarship application process successful.

Website: https://how2winscholarships.com/

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/How.To.Win.College.Scholarships/

Jodi Okun-financial aid

Perhaps the most complicated aspect of the college application process is financial aid. Jodi has experience in this area from working in a college’s financial aid department. She has advice related to the FAFSA, student loans, financing college and helping your student budget for college. If you have a financial aid question, Jodi knows the answer.

Website: http://collegefinancialaidadvisors.com/

Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/374562589403896/

Ethan Sawyer-college essays

I love Ethan’s information because he knows what he is talking about and much of it is free to anyone who takes the time to browse his website. He offers samples of essays, tips for writing them, brainstorming ideas and more. He also provides personalized help with the essay and web training for students as well. You can’t go wrong by using Ethan’s expertise and he even has a “pay what you can afford” option for his seminars. What could be better?

Website: www.collegeessayguy.com

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CollegeEssayGuy/

Jenn Cohen-test prep

If you have a learning disabled student or simply a student who can’t seem to focus on preparing for standardized tests, Jenn is the expert. Her unique method of coaching not only helps prepare your student for the test, but she helps them learn study habits to help with more than test prep. Jenn has the training and the experience to help your student do their best on any of the standardized tests. Plus, she’s a Duke alumini and proud of it!

Website: http://www.launchpadeducation.com/

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/LaunchPadEducation/

Disclaimer: I don’t receive any fee or commission for recommending these experts. These are simply my own “go to” experts when I have a question or need to collaborate in any of these areas of college prep. I trust them implicitly and you can too!

Guest Posts, SAT, test prep

Tips for Taking the SAT

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sat

Ah yes, the dreaded SAT – one of the most popular standardized tests out there. As a test taker, there are several things you can do in advance to increase your chances of scoring higher on test day. In addition to these 3 must know tips for the SAT, here are a few more things to keep in mind:

Know how the test is scored

Not all tests are created equal, and not all tests are scored the same way. Luckily for us, the current version of the SAT has a great scoring policy – your raw score is simply the number of questions answered correctly. That’s it! There are no deductions or penalties for incorrect answers. If you answer 40 questions correctly and 4 questions incorrectly, you’ll get the same raw score as if you answer 40 questions correctly and just leave 4 blank.

This means that you should answer every question (even if you are guessing) because an incorrect answer will not count against you, but guessing will at least give you a chance of getting the answer right. But wait…there’s more!

The SAT’s multiple choice questions have 4 answer choices (A, B, C, and D). Since each answer choice has an equal probability of being correct (1/4 or 25%), you can maximize your chances of being correct by guessing the same letter every time (unless, of course, you know it’s wrong). However, if you guess randomly, you’re just chasing a moving target. So, just pick a letter (A – D), and if you have no idea what the answer is, just bubble in that same letter every time.

Study using the official SAT materials first

Standardized tests, like the SAT, tend to be pretty tricky. The word problems are intentionally confusing and can throw off even the most experienced test takers. For this reason, it’s very important to see as many different types of questions as possible, so that you can be exposed to the variety of ways a question can be asked.

The best way to get used to SAT questions is by studying official SAT material published by the CollegeBoard and concentrating on test prep. The more practice problems you will see, the more familiar you will become with the way they are structured, worded, and presented. So when it comes to taking the real SAT, you’ll be in a much better place to say “I’ve seen this type of question of before, and I know what they are looking for!”

There is a ton of third party material out there, but it may not look like the real thing. So it’s best to practice with official material right on the CollegeBoard website!

Look for shortcuts

The beauty of a standardized test where showing your work doesn’t count is….it doesn’t matter how you get to the correct answer! The only thing that matters is that you get the question right. This affords test takers the ability to solve problems in any way they choose!

The math section is a great place to take advantage of this luxury! Instead of solving the problem using the “high school Algebra II way,” is there a simpler way to get to the correct answer?

  •  Can you just plug in the answers?
  • Can you eliminate answer choices that are obviously too big or too small?
  • Can you use your graphing calculator to find solutions or intercepts?

As you work through practice tests and sample problems, see if you can find faster ways of solving the problem. In a timed test, a few seconds here or there can really add up, so knowing shortcuts can help you out big time!

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Today’s guest post is from Leo Rusinov, the founder of TutoringBoston, an education company specializing in K-12 Academic and SAT tutoring in Newton, MA. TutoringBoston is focused on providing both content and strategy instruction, and is committed to helping students achieve their academic goals through customized lesson plans, tailored instruction, and content differentiation. Tutoring Boston serves students in the Greater Boston area, as well as all over the country through online lessons.