Engineering major - cannot get verbal SAT up

[Anonymous]

My son has taken the SAT twice. Highest score for math was a 780, but despite having taken a prep class, verbal remains relatively low at 620. How badly do you think schools will look at this, assuming he wants to major in engineering?

[Anonymous]

Verbal is hard to improve. How much time does he have? My DS was also much better at math but improved verbal quite a bit by forcing himself to read outside of class.

[Anonymous]

Junior or senior? If this is a junior, retake in June or Aug/Sept. Often, junior year AP classes, and time, may help improve the verbal score in ways that prep does not.

[Anonymous]

It depends on which schools he is interested in but he should try to get the verbal score up. To be competitive it needs to be at 25%, then his math score being at the 75% helps.

[Anonymous]

I had scores like this, but opposite (strong verbal). I was unable to raise my math because I studied on my own, ineffectively. In my late 20s, with my own money on the line for tuition, I was able to eliminate the math asymmetry on the GMAT through lots of focused practice on my weaknesses.

I think the score may limit him at some schools. But there are definitely engineering-centric schools that won't care.

If he is a current senior, and a retake is in the future, get a live tutor to professionally analyze his pattern of mistakes and make sure he's mastered all the hacks.

If he has a year, and he's flexible, I'd buy him a subscription to the New Yorker magazine and ask him to read each issue. The writing is complex and college level but the article topics are varied and shorter than books.

[Anonymous]

If this is a junior, retake in June or Aug/Sept. Often, junior year AP classes, and time, may help improve the verbal score in ways that prep does not.

He's a junior. However, he selected DE vs. AP language and history classes. They still seem to have a lot of reading, so hopefully they will help.

[Anonymous]

There are a lot of schools he can get in with those scores for Engineering. Auburn has a very good engineering program, if he wants to go south.

[Anonymous]

If he has a year, and he's flexible, I'd buy him a subscription to the New Yorker magazine and ask him to read each issue.

Thanks, this is a good idea. I already have a subscription, but currently I am the only family member who reads it. So easy to ask him to do.

[Anonymous]

Auburn has a very good engineering program, if he wants to go south.

He's not opposed to going south - NC state is on his list. We will take a look at Auburn, thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Auburn has a very good engineering program, if he wants to go south.

He's not opposed to going south - NC state is on his list. We will take a look at Auburn, thanks.

Not in the south but he should look at Purdue as well

[Anonymous]

Have you looked at the question breakdowns (easier to do on practice tests than official tests). Parts of the test are easier to move the needle on than others. If he's not maximizing points on grammar, that might be a place to focus because it's about applying decision rules, which should be natural for him.

Also, you might plan to have him take it a few more time. The tests vary enough on focus (some have more science related reading passages, for instance) that just through random luck one of those sittings might yield a score up to 40 points higher.

I agree that the reading comprehension and vocab will be most difficult to see changes on.

[Anonymous]

my kid raised from 690 to 760
it came down to just learning lists of vocab words
your son probably also needs to learn grammar rules if his score is that low
if he does the above two he can get to the 700s

[Anonymous]

Look at the CDS for Purdue, UICU, Cal Poly, and Rose-Hulman.

Also, look at UC-Boulder and Colorado School of Mines.

I'd also suggest 1-1 tutoring if still a junior. Can do WONDERS.

[Anonymous]

+1 for tutoring. There are some strategies for verbal, too, even though it is harder to raise than math

[Anonymous]

Don't forget all the rules for commas, colons, semicolons, and dashes. My kid had to brush up on all that. (Yes, I like the Oxford comma but no idea how CB feels about it!)