The SAT is an important test in more ways than one. For students, it is one of the most crucial steps for getting admissions in a US college. Though it’s not required for all colleges, it is mandatory for most. The well-known colleges, including the likes of Stanford and MIT, need you to take the SAT.
Taking the SAT isn’t enough, of course. You need to score, and score well. Though most colleges don’t go by only your SAT scores, they are taken into consideration. In fact, apart from the best colleges, most other colleges would weigh the SAT scores highly. The good thing, though, is that taking the SAT test prep course and scoring well isn’t difficult.
That doesn’t mean it’s a cakewalk either. You have to prepare and prepare well. First of all, you need to understand the format of the test and then work according to your strengths and weaknesses. There are three sections, as you would perhaps know: critical reading, writing & mathematics. All of them have 800 points each.
There’s also the SAT II which allows you to choose your own subjects. In some colleges, for some subjects, taking the SAT II is also essential. In any case, it might be worth it to take the SAT II and see how you fare. Prepare for it, and if you do well, it will increase your chances in just about any college. Having said that, it would be foolish to spread your time between the two only to find out you don’t score well in either.
As much as SAT tests your knowledge, it also tests your judgement and test-taking ability. There are negative points for incorrect answers which means you have to choose what you want to answer and what you don’t. If you answer some correctly and leave the rest, that’s okay. If you answer some correctly and the others incorrectly, you will score less than you would have had you left those questions. So, it’s important to be absolutely sure of what you are doing. You will get better at it with practice, of course.
There are numerous SAT course online that can help you. Even the CollegeBoard’s official website has a $70 course that can help you prepare for the SAT. It can give you some tests to take that simulate the entire exam; you can see how well you score there, judge where you stand and accordingly prepare thereafter. Just be careful to look for the right courses though-check their reviews, and a sample, if possible, before you go.