With juniors and seniors franticly reviewing anything they can get their hands on to prep for the college entrance exams. The hope is it will all pay off after three to four hours of a mile long test. Students nationwide are registering for spring dates which are rapidly approaching.    

“It’s best to take a practice SAT test. You can’t know how an SAT question is worded unless you practice them,” AVID teacher Hubert Ham said.

Colleges are looking for many qualities other than your test score, however the higher the score, the better your chances are to get into the school of your choice.

For both the SAT and ACT, on test day, you will need your admission ticket, your photo I.D., a few number two pencils that are not mechanical, a calculator and definitely your brain. Most testing centers would like students to arrive about fifteen minutes prior to the start of the test.  

You should make sure that you have something to eat before the test and snacks are usually allowed into the testing room. Even if you don’t normally eat breakfast, the brain needs some kind of protein so it can be function to its fullest.

“Wake up early. Have a good breakfast and don’t stress out. I woke up and had to drive down to Regan High School in Austin because I registered late, and I was barely awake for the essay at the beginning of the [SAT] test,” Garrot said.  

A month or so before the date of the test, it is important to study questions from the SAT. Students receive PSAT booklets that were used on Oct. 13 which can be used to study similar questions. Unfortunately, students are not given a practice ACT, but many books are available online or in the guidance office.

“I used the Peterson’s Study book and CollegeBoard.com’s SAT question of the day where they email you a question. It was really helpful to get used to the type of questions you would see on the SAT,” Garrot said, “It was really cool because it tells you what you did wrong and why the right answer was right.”  

Although they serve the same purpose, the SAT and ACT are very different tests. The SAT tests the reasoning skills a student possesses, while the ACT tests a student on what he or she knows. The SAT consists of ten sections of reading, math, writing and an essay. The ACT, however only has four sections, but tests on math, reading, writing, science and an optional essay.

Many students ask the question: How can I get a higher score? For some students, test taking comes naturally to them; however some students suffer from test anxiety and end up doing a lot worse than they actually should.

“The first time I took the [the SAT] in my junior year in May, I was kind of stressing about it, but it was a lot easier the second time I took it,” Garrot said.

Often times the “third time is the charm”, but according to the research done by Garrot, taking the SAT for a third time doesn’t increase score all but a few points.

“You should take the tests at least twice because even if the score you sent to your school wasn’t your best, they will create a ‘super score’ that combines your best writing, reading and math score to create the best score possible,” Ham said.