Since the age of four, your parents, teachers, siblings, and the creepy lady across the street have all been telling you the same thing: you need to do your homework and get good grades, or you'll never get into a decent college. Well we have the perfect retort for you: "it doesn't matter how I do in school; all I need to do is ace the SAT. So pass over the remote and the Cheetos!"

Well, it's not quite that simple, but the SAT does hold tremendous power in determining where you'll go to college. To go to virtually any college or university in the United States, you need to have taken the Scholastic Aptitude Test, a standardized exam that assigns you a score that ranks your verbal and math abilities.

Look, you have to take the SAT. You have no choice. Some people will claim that the ACT (another standardized test) is easier, so you should take that instead. You think that colleges aren't already onto that little trick? You can take the ACT if you like, but you should still take the SAT too, or college admission committees will wonder why you didn't take it. Fortunately, we at SoYouWanna.net know tons of little tricks that'll boost up your SAT score.

1. KNOW WHY YOU NEED TO TAKE IT

Only by knowing your enemy can you defeat it, young samurai. And trust us, many of you will consider the SAT your enemy.

The first thing you must do is sit down and look at a sample SAT, just so that you know what we're talking about. You can get a free copy of a practice test from your high school college counselor, or you can go to the SAT website and go through some practice questions there. Don't worry we'll wait.

Back? Good. First thing's first: the SAT is not an intelligence test. Rather, it's considered to be a predictor of college success. Many people are extremely intelligent, but 1) they are bad test-takers, 2) their intelligences can't be examined in the way that the SAT tries to measure them, or 3) they are extremely intelligent, but just not in the way that top-notch colleges require.

In spite of this, college admissions committees use the SAT to get a general idea of your scholastic aptitude-it means that the admissions committee does less work. It's much easier and much less costly for the committee to look at a score than to analyze all of your recommendations, interview you, and talk to your first grade teacher to find out what a sweet little boy or girl you are. So since committees place such importance on the test, you should as well.

Here are some important tidbits about the SAT:

  • The SAT is written by the Educational Testing Service. They are also responsible for writing the GRE, GMAT, and AP Tests. The SAT I is the general SAT that we're writing about. There are also SATs about specific subjects (called SAT II tests), but this SYW won't help you with those. And frankly, they're not nearly as important as the SAT I.

  • The test is about three and a half hours long, and it consists of two major sections: math skills and verbal skills.

  • Schools that receive a larger amount of applications (generally bigger state schools) will place even more importance upon your SAT scores because they have so many more applications to weed through.

  • The SAT is given 7 times during the year, and you can find out those exact dates by clicking here. You can even register online. Ah, the wonders of modern technology.

  • If you already have a school or two that you're interested in, you can either speak to your counselor or pick up a book that surveys different schools, and you will be able to find out what the average SAT scores of their students are. That can give you a goal to work towards.

  • Each section of the SAT is graded on a scale of 200 - 800 (that is, you will receive one score for the math section and one for the verbal section). A score of 500 on each means that you scored right about average for each test. These scores change by units of 10, meaning that you can get a 590, 600, or 610 on a section, but you can't get a 596 or 605.

2. LEARN SOME GENERAL STRATEGIES

While most of the tips we're going to tell you about are specific to either the verbal or math sections, there are some overall tips that will also help you achieve your top score:

  • You MUST practice. Merely reading this SYW will give you a slight edge, but the way to really bump up that score is through practice. We'll give you some great practice tips later.

  • If you think that you bombed, you can cancel your score before finding it out. You can also take the test again. In fact, you can take it as many times as you like, though we recommend that you NEVER take it more than three times.

  • You get 1 point for every question you answer correctly, you get 0 points for any questions you leave blank, and you lose or a point (or 1/3 of a point on certain math questions) if you answer a question incorrectly. However, on the math "fill in your own answer" questions, you will not be penalized for a wrong answer, so guess away.

  • If you can ever eliminate even ONE of the choices, you should guess. Statistically, you'll win out in the end.

  • Within each section of the test, the questions at the beginning are the easiest and become harder as the test goes on. This means that the first "reading comprehension" questions are easier than the ones at the end; the first "sentence completion" questions are easier than the ones at the end, and so forth. This also means that at the beginning of each cluster of questions, the answer that seems obviously correct is probably the right answer. However, toward the end of each cluster, the answer that seems obviously correct is probably wrong because the test is trying to trick you.

  • In answering your questions, circle the correct answer in your test book in groups of 5, and once you have completed 5 questions, bubble in those answers on your answer sheet. This is because it takes a lot of time to go back and forth, so you can save time by bubbling a bunch in at once. Just make sure that you match your bubbles to the right questions.

  • If you find yourself wasting time over a question, skip it and move on. It's not worth it to lose 10 minutes answering one question when that'll keep you from getting to the 5 questions that you could've gotten right.

  • There will be a total of 7 sections on the test: 3 math, 3 verbal, and 1 "experimental." The experimental will be either another math or verbal section. However, you won't know which section is experimental. The good news is, though, that it won't count towards your score. So if you think that you bombed one section, take heart in the fact that it might not count.

3. KNOW TRICKS TO ACE THE MATH SECTION

The math section tests your ability to stay awake math class. The bad news is that to improve your math score, you have to do a lot of work and practice. The good news is that your math score is much easier to raise than your verbal score because even though the numbers change, the concepts are always the same across SAT tests.

There are three math sections on the test: two 30-minute sections and one 15-minute section. Within these, there will be a total of 35 "five-choice multiple-choice questions" (that is, you'll have to pick the right answer out of five options), 15 "four-choice multiple-choice questions," and 10 "student-produced questions" (that is, you'll bubble in your own answer instead of picking one from a group).

Up until a few years ago, the SAT people actually expected students to do calculations for the math section using only scratch paper and their own brainpower. But because very few people add using an abacus anymore, you are now allowed to use a calculator. So you better bring one. Bring two, in case the battery in one dies. Scientific calculators are fine, and so are some of those fancy "graphing calculators" (as long as they don't have a keyboard with letters). The SAT website has some calculator guidelines so that you can see if your model measures up.

What you'll be tested on

There will be at least three different types of math questions: arithmetic, algebra, and geometry. Here are some examples of each:

Artithmetic: This is where you have to perform basic operations, such as addition, multiplication, division, averages, fractions, and ratios.

  • 12 + 45 = ?
  • 40% of 30% of 20% = ?
  • How many factors does the number 4408 have?

Algebra: This is when you are given pieces of a puzzle, and you have to figure out the missing pieces.

  • Y + 24 = 35; so Y = ?
  • If Tim has exactly 3 times as many cookies as Estera, and Josh has 4 more cookies than Tim, what's the minimum number of cookies that Tim and Josh could have together?

Geometry: This is when you are shown a picture (or told about one) and you have to figure out the mathematical properties of that picture. So remember things like the formulas for the circumference and area of circles, squares, and triangles.

  • The radius of a circle is 10. What is the area of the circle?

So first here's our first tip: refresh yourself on how to work with algebra, percentages, slopes, ratios, graphs, variables, circles, word problems, fractions, decimals, and triangles. You'll soon figure our what your weak areas are, and then work even harder on those. The good news is that you won't have to memorize too much because 1) your practicing will make you an expert in these things, and 2) the test-writers have kindly included a little box that will remind you of certain basic formulas, such as the area of a circle.

What the questions look like

As we stated earlier, there are three types of questions: 5-choices, 4-choices, and fill it in yourself.

The most common questions are the 5-choice multiple-choice questions. For example:

x + y = 15 4x + 2y = 50

What does y=?

A) 5
B) 10
C) 15
D) 20
E) 25

(The answer is A:5)

There will also be ten questions where you will have to actually fill in a number instead of making a choice. For instance:

Michelle walks east 10 feet, then north 5 feet and then west 10 feet. In feet, how far is Michelle from her original spot?

(The answer is 5. You would fill in 5 on your bubble sheet directly, instead of picking out of 4 or 5 choices.)

Finally, there are quantitative comparisons, where you will look at information in two columns and decide whether one side will always be bigger than the other, if they will always equal, or if it is impossible to tell from the information given. For example:

Column AColumn B The sum of all even numbers 1-9 The sum of all integers between 1 and 6, inclusive

The answer here is B: the sum of all even numbers 1-9 is 2+4+6+8=20. The sum of all integers 1-6 are 1+2+3+4+5+6=21. No matter how you look at it, the value in B is always greater than the value in A, so you'd bubble in 'B.' If the two columns are ALWAYS equal, you'd answer C. If you can't find a solid answer (A could be bigger at some times, B bigger at others), then the answer would be D, which means that you can't tell which one is bigger because you don't have enough information.

Now that you recognize everything, here are some tips for slaying the math section:

  • Always use your scratch paper (that is, the pages of your test book). Make a mess; you're not getting graded on neatness.

  • If possible, always draw pictures. If the question says that someone has 3 beads, draw 3 little beads. It helps you visualize. Picture-drawing especially helps with the geometry questions. If the test states that a circle has a radius of 5, then draw a circle with a radius of 5.

  • For the grid-ins, remember that:
    • None of the answers will be negative.

    • Your answers can only be 4 bubbles long. You can use decimals or fractions for your answers. But the "." or the "/" will take up its own bubble. So if your answer turns out to be 14.58, you should bubble in 14.6 (because the "." takes up a bubble).

    • You can't have "mixed fractions" in your answer. That means that if your answer is 1 , that you have to enter it as either "3/2" or as "1.5"

    • You don't have to reduce your fractions (that is, 4/8 is just as good as 1/2).

    • Some questions may have more than one right answer, so don't freak if you have two.

    • Remember that YOU CAN'T LOSE POINTS FOR GUESSING! So even if you only have 30 seconds left and 5 more questions, put something in (we recommend a "1" or "0").
  • For the quantitative comparisons, if you're not sure of an answer, try plugging in 0 or negative numbers. These often help you figure out quick info.

3. LEARN TRICKS TO ACE THE VERBAL SECTION

The verbal section tests how well you can keep yourself from falling asleep while reading a college textbook. Performing well on the verbal section requires an immense amount of concentration, because you'll have to read stories that you don't care about and figure out what words that you've never seen before mean.

There are three types of verbal section questions: reading comprehension (40 questions), sentence completions (19 questions), and analogies (19 questions).

Reading comprehension

The reading comprehension (a.k.a. "critical reading") questions will test your ability to read an incredibly boring passage and answer questions about it. These take a bit of practice, but there are ways to improve your score:

  • Convince yourself that the passage is really interesting. Yes, a little self-deceit can go a long way. The more interested you are in the passage, the more carefully you'll read it.

  • Don't skip any of the paragraphs. The intro and conclusion can be extremely important.

  • Look for things like the tone of the passage, assumptions the writer makes, and evidence the writer cites. There will usually be questions asked about these.

  • As you're reading, underline what you think are really important points.

Sentence completions

There will also be sentence completions. This is when you will be given a sentence with one (or two) blanks, and you have to pick which word(s) best complete the sentence. For instance:

Her egregious behavior was the reason that she was given a huge _____________.

A) punishment
B) celebration
C) free subscription to SoYouWanna.net
D) gift
E) flight

"Egregious" means "really bad or offensive." You may not know this exactly, but you can tell from the sound of the word that it doesn't sound like a good thing. So the answer is "A."

When doing sentence completions, remember the following:

  • First read the sentence without looking at the choices. Try to fill in your own word, and see which of the choices matches it best.

  • If you have to fill in two words, make sure that BOTH complete the sentence properly. Sometimes you'll see that one word completes it nicely, but the other doesn't fit. Then that choice is 100% wrong.

  • Use the context of the sentence. If the sentence implies that you're looking for a "good" word, then your answer should be a "good" word. The context can tell you tons about the sentence. For instance, you should look for buzzwords like "nevertheless," "although," "but," "however," and "moreover," which can give you clues.

Analogies

The analogy questions are a bit tricky if you've never seen them before because there's a lot to think about. An analogy question will give you a set of words and then ask you to pick out another set of words that has the same relationship. For instance

APPLE : FRUIT ::

A) orange : juice
B) cow : suede
C) trumpet : musical instrument
D) mouth : eat
E) Diff'rent Strokes : Gary Coleman

How do you answer such a question? Turn the "root" (that is, the two words they give you at the top) into a sentence: "An apple is a type of fruit." Then plug in the rest: "An orange is a type of juice?" No. "A cow is a type of suede?" No. Go on with this until you get to the right answer. The answer above would be C: a trumpet is a type of musical instrument.

Here are some more tips for acing analogies:

  • ALWAYS turn the first two words into a sentence. Then plug in the potential answers into the same exact sentence.

  • Become familiar with the standard groupings: part to whole (e.g., YOLK : EGG), occupation (e.g., FOREMAN : CONSTRUCTION), cause-effect (e.g., HUNGRY : EAT), and definitions (e.g., FAT : OBESE).

General verbal tips

Of course, there are some general strategies that'll help you out too, no matter what type of verbal question you encounter:

  • READ. Even if it's Sports Illustrated or Teen People, engaging in general reading will keep you sharp and help you raise your reading comprehension score. All you need to do is find material that an educated adult would peruse (read carefully).

  • Learn vocabulary. Yes, this is easier said than done. The verbal section is so based on your vocabulary that you should prepare to encounter words you've never heard of. The best way to familiarize yourself with common SAT vocab is to take practice tests and notice which words come up a lot. For EVERY word in the test (not just the right answer), look the word up in the dictionary and become familiar with it.

  • Learn some fundamental Greek and Latin roots. These will help you figure out what words mean, even if you've never seen it before. So if you learn that "mono" means "one," "bi" means "two" and "occu-" means "eye or vision," then it's easy to figure out that binoculars means "two vision" and "monocle" is "one vision" (a monocle is a little eyeglass that you put in only one eye). It doesn't matter if you don't know what the word means exactly, but you have enough of a boost to get you to the right answer.

  • Use your hunches about positivity and negativity. If you see a word you don't know, try to get a feeling of if it's "good" or "bad." These hunches are often correct. In fact, you should always play your hunches (you're smarter than you think!). If you see the word "sagacious," you might see the "sag-" part, think about a sage (wise person), and conclude that "sagacious" means "wise." And you'd be right!

5. PRACTICE

This is the most important element of taking the SAT. Even the mere act of taking, say, 10 practice SATs will raise your score by bunches. So here's how to practice effectively:

  1. Take the PSAT (a "practice" version of the test that you can take in the 10th and 11th grades). It's almost exactly like the SAT, and it'll tell you exactly what areas you need to work on. To sign up, just go to your school's guidance counselor. Make sure you tell him/her that the people at SoYouWanna.net say "hi."

  2. Buy the book College Board's 10 Real SATs. This book is made up of SATs that were previously given. The best way to ace the SAT is to know exactly what to expect, and taking previous tests is the best way to do this.

  3. Start out by not timing yourself as you practice. That way, you won't feel pressured when you're trying to learn the concepts. For your first couple of practice tests, take as long as you need on every question, and think carefully. Then start to time yourself, perhaps keeping track but not trying to keep it under the official deadline. As you near the test date, practice under test conditions, never allowing yourself to go overtime.

  4. Decide if you want to take a prep course or get a private tutor. Private tutors and courses given by companies such as The Princeton Review and Kaplan are fairly expensive, but they will provide tips and motivation. But realize that if you're dedicated, you can completely study on your own.

  5. Don't take the exam for the first time in September of your senior year. Disasters can happen, so you always want to take the test earlier on just in case you need to take it over again.

The SAT is completely crack-able. It's just a matter of familiarizing yourself with the strategies we list above, and knowing what to expect. You are now on the road to acing the SAT. Good luck. Study hard. Get into college. Make us proud.