How much does SAT prep help?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spending the $1k is possible yet will be felt in budget.

So, I’m wondering how necessary is this prep? My kid is likely to benefit from the external motivation to study through a teacher as opposed to studying on their own with Khan Academy. Technically, I think it would work better to have them take a class.

Yet I read that the increase in score is modest, so is it worth $1k?

As background, kid took PSAT and scored 1150, which I think equates to 1300-something on SAT. Strong writer with good vocabulary. Slightly anxious test taker. 3.9 GPA.

What grade are they in now? Asking because of PSAT score. Was this the 11th grade score?

Yes, 11th grade score. They never took a test in 10th due to Covid.

It’s low, right? I didn’t want to make kid feel bad but I thought it seemed low for their capabilities.

My kid prepped with Prep Matters for like 7 weeks and score went up 10 points, Extremely frustrating. SAT score was 20 points higher than junior year PSAT, which was 1120--taken around the same time. So you should not assume that SAT score will be higher. Mine is moving on to ACT and hoping for at least a 26 at this point. My kid is no dummy, so this is very frustrating.

[Anonymous]

It just depends on the kid. Do you have ideas for specific schools your kid would like? If so, I would look at their scores and see if they are in range. If not, ask yourself how you will feel later if they don't get in. For us, I realized I would feel "penny-wise, pound foolish" if I saved the prep money but then my kid didn't get in. We paid for it and his score went up 230 points from his first practice test (but the practice test score seemed low, so we think it was more like 130-150 point gain).

If his score hadn't gone up much, I would have just thought "Oh well, we did what we could. Prep was expensive, but a drop in the bucket for what we are looking at for tuition.

One thing your kid can do now, for free, is take a practice SAT and ACT. You download them from the respective websites. Some kids who don't do well on the SAT rock the ACT. And, honestly, many prep companies start by having you do this anyway to help you decide which your kid should prep for. My kid was pretty equal on both, but just liked the SAT better. He has a couple friends who prefer the ACT, You can read about the difference.

[Anonymous]

My DS took the PSAT and the SAT within weeks in the 11th grade. His PSAT score was 1230 and his SAT was 1300, literally within two weeks. So yes, there will be a slight bump but an 1150 is not probably not going to be a 1300. I'd invest in at least some kind of tutoring, maybe not a full $1K program but some targeted tutoring in whatever section that DC needed. For my DS it was math that killed him on the PSAT and the SAT so that is where we focused. Just as an FYI he ended up with a 1380 super score, 710 verbal 670 math.

[Anonymous]

I think if the kid is disciplined, Khan plus a decent book from Amazon would be enough.

I used to teach test prep for Princeton Review. My students did make some phenomenal progress (one went up 300 points), but that stuff is expensive. I also had some students who made no progress (found out they cheated on the homework and practice tests, so no surprise there). I think if you have a kid who is motivated, a book geared towards test strategy like PR plus Khan academy would give a significant boost. At least make them more comfortable with the test which is worth something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spending the $1k is possible yet will be felt in budget.

So, I’m wondering how necessary is this prep? My kid is likely to benefit from the external motivation to study through a teacher as opposed to studying on their own with Khan Academy. Technically, I think it would work better to have them take a class.

Yet I read that the increase in score is modest, so is it worth $1k?

As background, kid took PSAT and scored 1150, which I think equates to 1300-something on SAT. Strong writer with good vocabulary. Slightly anxious test taker. 3.9 GPA.

1150 on the PSAT equates to 1150 on the SAT. Perhaps you're thinking of the average increase in score between the taking of the PSAT and the SAT?

Maybe we are referencing different things? I saw charts that “translate” the PSAT score into an SAT score. The total points are not the same so not sure how it could be completely equal.

This was just one source I looked at:
https://scholarships360.org/college-admissions/psat-to-sat-score-conversion-predict-your-score/

OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1150 on the PSAT as a junior may not translate to a higher score on the SAT. If you DC was a freshman with an 1150, I think you might see a steep climb in the SAT by the time they are a junior.

I think test prep would help-- it's not so straightforward as "my child is not a good test taker." I recall many, many years ago on the GRE that *how* you take the test (e.g. prioritize which questions to answer) makes a lot of difference. The skill and underlying knowledge has to be there, but if the foundations are there, taking a test is a skill that can be taught and learned.

I’m persuaded by this and other posts. I will sign the kid up.

Thank you, all!

OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Spending the $1k is possible yet will be felt in budget.

So, I’m wondering how necessary is this prep? My kid is likely to benefit from the external motivation to study through a teacher as opposed to studying on their own with Khan Academy. Technically, I think it would work better to have them take a class.

Yet I read that the increase in score is modest, so is it worth $1k?

As background, kid took PSAT and scored 1150, which I think equates to 1300-something on SAT. Strong writer with good vocabulary. Slightly anxious test taker. 3.9 GPA.

What grade are they in now? Asking because of PSAT score. Was this the 11th grade score?

Yes, 11th grade score. They never took a test in 10th due to Covid.

It’s low, right? I didn’t want to make kid feel bad but I thought it seemed low for their capabilities.

My kid prepped with Prep Matters for like 7 weeks and score went up 10 points, Extremely frustrating. SAT score was 20 points higher than junior year PSAT, which was 1120--taken around the same time. So you should not assume that SAT score will be higher. Mine is moving on to ACT and hoping for at least a 26 at this point. My kid is no dummy, so this is very frustrating.

I’m sorry.
I feel a similar way about my kid. They are so smart yet the score does not show that. Other people say they are smart. Not just me being a braggy parent. So yeah. Frustrating.

OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Repeated, timed practice tests on Khan Academy. Also, link your CollegeBoard PSAT and SAT scores with Khan Academy and you will get a customized study plans.

You need to do at least the 8 original collegeboard PSAT and SAT tests, and it needs to be TIMED. DC was doing 1 paper based test every weekend that I used to to proctor it. He retook the same exam after every few months and basically was practicing only from official Collegeboard tests. I had made copies of the blank answer sheets for the tests so that he could take them again and again.

Even if you choose to go with a prep-company, it is better that you are first doing the various tests, figure out where you make mistakes and then get help for the parts that you do not have understanding of = so less prep, more tutoring for missed content.

I am a parent who is willing to spend thousands on my kids tutoring and prep and have done so in the past. SAT is one test where it is truly dependent on the child practicing and filling gaps in knowledge. You cannot test on something that you have never understood well. Once kids master the math by figuring out what they don't know and then learning it, it is really not a big deal to score more.

My kid went from getting in low 1200s in PSAT in 10th to being a NMS semifinalist in MD.

Very inspiring!!

Kid scored high in language. It’s the math that lags. I feel like that would be easier to learn in a shorter time period.

Plus, they had no warning or prep at the school before test was taken. It was a surprise to us all! I had not been through it all before so did not know to expect it and neither did kid. School let us down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think its worthwhile unless you think your kid is motivated to do it alone. That can be done, but a kid has to be really focused. My DCs school says that if you are going to spend any money on outside resources for the college process, spend it on test prep.

+1 not all kids, especially boys, are that motivated to do self-tests of 3 hours

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1150 on the PSAT as a junior may not translate to a higher score on the SAT. If you DC was a freshman with an 1150, I think you might see a steep climb in the SAT by the time they are a junior.

I think test prep would help-- it's not so straightforward as "my child is not a good test taker." I recall many, many years ago on the GRE that *how* you take the test (e.g. prioritize which questions to answer) makes a lot of difference. The skill and underlying knowledge has to be there, but if the foundations are there, taking a test is a skill that can be taught and learned.

this this this. so much here is on how to take the test. took a test prep class for GRE - the best $900 I ever spent. once i figured out how to take the test, i put most of my time into augmenting my lagging math skills. For DC2, once he learned *how* to take the ACT, he devoted his time into locking down his math skills, which was the weakest section for him. Scores went from low to mid 20s across all four sections to a 34 on the first sitting with no section below 30. DC opted to not sit again to see if score could pop to 35/35, mainly b/c DC thought there had been a degree of luck in that sitting and may not be able to replicate again.

OP, has your DC taken a diagnostic to see if the SAT really is the best test for them?

[Anonymous]

My Junior did the Princeton Review 1400 course online. DC had a 9th grade PSAT score of 1220. DC got a 1430 (750 verbal and 680 math) on the SAT at the end of the summer and then a 1440 on the PSAT this fall, which equates to commended level. DC is redoing the Princeton Review course (it is no cost because of their satisfaction guarantee but I rebought the books so DC could start fresh) and will retake the SAT in March. This was DC's choice and having a class is much better for DC's temperament than self study would be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1150 on the PSAT as a junior may not translate to a higher score on the SAT. If you DC was a freshman with an 1150, I think you might see a steep climb in the SAT by the time they are a junior.

I think test prep would help-- it's not so straightforward as "my child is not a good test taker." I recall many, many years ago on the GRE that *how* you take the test (e.g. prioritize which questions to answer) makes a lot of difference. The skill and underlying knowledge has to be there, but if the foundations are there, taking a test is a skill that can be taught and learned.

this this this. so much here is on how to take the test. took a test prep class for GRE - the best $900 I ever spent. once i figured out how to take the test, i put most of my time into augmenting my lagging math skills. For DC2, once he learned *how* to take the ACT, he devoted his time into locking down his math skills, which was the weakest section for him. Scores went from low to mid 20s across all four sections to a 34 on the first sitting with no section below 30. DC opted to not sit again to see if score could pop to 35/35, mainly b/c DC thought there had been a degree of luck in that sitting and may not be able to replicate again.

OP, has your DC taken a diagnostic to see if the SAT really is the best test for them?

Not yet. I’m ignorant. Where would we find a diagnostic? With a test prep company?

Good news!! I confused 8th grade and junior scores. Yeah, big mistake!! Score shows 99th percentile for reading BUT mat is not good. I see where we need to do work!

OP

[Anonymous]

Look at your kid. I have one that was self motivated and prepped entirely on own to get high score by taking some practice tests.

My other 2 benefitted from scheduled time to ensure they prepped. (Not a lot but to go fully through several tests to understand timing, format, some strategies, etc)

Depends.

[Anonymous]

It depends on the kid. I think the biggest question is whether it matters and whether the test score is in line with the kids' grades.

One of my kids did test prep and not only didn't it help, but scores kept going down because her anxiety increased. She eventually applied to a test-optional school and was accepted.

The other kid did more than one SAT prep but kept scoring significantly below ability (grades were 4.0W, had a B in BC Calc but couldn't break 500 on either section of the SAT). Kid then did three tutoring sessions with an ACT tutor to learn the format of that test, took the ACT and scored much better (a 30) and that's the score they used.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Spending the $1k is possible yet will be felt in budget.

So, I’m wondering how necessary is this prep? My kid is likely to benefit from the external motivation to study through a teacher as opposed to studying on their own with Khan Academy. Technically, I think it would work better to have them take a class.

Yet I read that the increase in score is modest, so is it worth $1k?

As background, kid took PSAT and scored 1150, which I think equates to 1300-something on SAT. Strong writer with good vocabulary. Slightly anxious test taker. 3.9 GPA.

My kids just did the practice tests in the $40 book. Did extremely well, near perfect scores. No need to spend the $$ if you and your child are willing to do the practice tests, which take 3 hours each. My kids did 3-8 tests for both SAT and ACT to learn how each is structured. I would not go in cold, but I don't think you need to take the prep classes unless your child refuses to take the practice tests. Mine were willing, and it paid off. There's no "studying" you can do for the SAT anyway. Reading vocabulary lists is a complete waste of time. Reviewing math is useful though, but you can do that with Khan Academy for free.