Decoding the ACT and SAT: How to Ace the Test

Webinar Transcription

2024-06-18 – Decoding the ACT and SAT: How to Ace the Test

Lonnie: Hello everyone. My name is Lonnie Webb, and our webinar for today is called, “Decoding, the ACT and SAT: How to Ace the Test.” to orient everyone with the webinar time and we are first going to begin with a live presentation and then we’ll have the opportunity to answer your questions and our Q&A. You can also currently download our slides by going to the handouts tab and downloading them.

At any time, if you have any technical difficulties, feel free to send me a private message and I would do my best to support you. So with that, let’s go ahead and meet our panelists.

Mariko: Hi, everyone. My name is Mariko Rooks. I graduated from Yale actually twice. The first time with a BA in the history of public health and ethnicity, race and migration. And the second time with a master’s in public health and social and behavioral sciences. So if you haven’t figured out what I do for a living, I do indeed.

Um, work as a public health practitioner, and I focus primarily on public health equity or how people can get the care that they need in the face of systemic oppression. But today I’ll be talking to you about standardized testing, and I’m really excited to be here.

Lonnie: Great, we are so happy to have you.

Before we jump into our presentation, we want to pull the audience that’s with us, and we would like to know which standardized test or tests Have you taken actually you can just choose one. So choose one that you have taken or you are planning to take. We just want to get a general sense of where you all are at.

And while we’re waiting for the responses, I have a question I would like to ask. Um, you know, if you could go back to taking, you know, whichever standardized test that you took, what’s one thing you would do differently as you’re preparing for that exam?

Mariko: I think I would be really And of course hindsight is 20:20, but I think I’d be a little bit more realistic in regards to how important this test is in your overall application.

I think that, you know, You want to do well and you want to do your best on these kinds of tests and they are important, but I do also think that people tend to make a really, really big deal out of standardized test scores because they’re one of the few metrics that you can directly compare across kids from different schools or who are in different classes, um, and maybe even have different grades.

And so I think there can be a lot of really intense pressure and really intense sort of Type around, um, you know, what resources do you need? Are you getting a private tutor? Um, all these kinds of things. And I think that I probably could have saved myself a lot of stress if I had just trusted my instincts and trusted, uh, you know, the sort of things that we know are necessary for these tests.

And it did a little bit better of a job of ignoring sort of other people’s stress. So that would probably be. My approach, I think.

Lonnie: Yeah, thank you. I’m pretty sure some of that is already starting to resonate with our audience. So thank you for sharing that personal insight into your experience. So, taking it back to the poll, um, 67 percent of our audience have taken or planning to take the A.C. T. 18 percent um, are have taken our planning to take the ACT and then we have 15 percent that have taken our plan to take the PSAT and just 3 percent with the pre ACT. Okay, so most mostly majority is SAT. Okay, for a live audience. So with that, I will turn it over to you to go ahead and jump us off into our presentation.

Mariko: Great. Okay. So, you know, as kind of alluded to standardized testing does have an impact on your applications, but it’s a very specific kind of impact. That’s looking at a couple of different things. And remember that standardized testing while important is just 1 of many Many points of data on your profile that college admissions officers take into account when they’re thinking about whether or not you are a good fit for their school.

So the first thing about standardized testing that makes it kind of unique is that it is, again, standardized or sort of attempted to be made the same. across many different demographics, right? Each high school has vastly different class types and difficulties and assessments. Some people have AP classes, some people have IB classes, and even within those formats, Someone’s AP Environmental Science might be the hardest class at their school, and someone’s AP Environmental Science might be the easiest.

And so because there are all these sorts of differentiations in how your school performs and in how you perform within the context of your school, it’s nice to have some sort of standardized academic metric that can be evaluated in the face of all of this differentiation. And of course, colleges evaluate that differentiation as well.

Most competitive colleges will ask for what’s called a school report so they better understand how your performance at your school fits into sort of overall academic concepts of success or of benchmarks needed to hopefully do well at your higher education institution. But standardized, standardized testing does give you one standardized score that can be helpful for evaluating across, right?

These different kinds of schools. Um, What exactly is it evaluating? Standardized testing demonstrates that you can perform certain skills and those skills are hopefully going to be useful to you in college and beyond. The first one I would say is quick recall of academic concepts. So you’ll be tested on things that you’ve learned across multiple classes and multiple years of things like English and math.

And the fact that you’re able to recall Things that you’re maybe not actively studying and combine things that you’ve learned in the past with things that you’re learning in the present is a good demonstration of your ability as a sort of critical thinker and as a master of specific academic skills.

You also are being challenged to be think critically and summarize new material on the spot. So a lot of the problems that you’ll see or the questions that you’ll see on standardized tests are questions that you haven’t seen before in your previous classes, and especially when it comes to things like reading passages.

So your ability to read and understand or analyze and understand a problem that has been presented to you in kind of a time crunched environment is also, again, a skill that’s useful in college and beyond. And of course, right, some of it isn’t just based on what you know, it’s how you’re able to demonstrate what you know in a specific time with a specific kind of orientation on your test.

So timing and organization are also things that are being tested because without good timing and organization, you’re not going to be able to maximize your score. So certainly, having a strong score on a standardized test demonstrates your ability to do both of these things. And we’ll talk about different kinds of timing and organizational skills and structures that differ between each test.

And it’s important to recognize that, I will say that, you know, standardized testing has become less essential broadly. over time. There are increases in test optional schools. The peak of this was in 2020 through maybe 2022 because of COVID 19. Of course, folks could not take standardized tests in 2020 and they were not being administered as frequently.

And now, while a lot of schools have gone back to requiring standardized testing, there are still more schools that are test optional now than there were prior to the advent of COVID 19. So there is this sort of recognition that, uh, you know, due to accessibility reasons, standardized testing may not be feasible, um, equitably across all demographics.

And the second is sort of reckoning with the origins of the SAT. Um, the person who developed the SAT and IQ testing and a lot of other standardized tests. was a eugenicist, which is a fancy word for someone who is really invested in a specific kind of racism. And so I think that there’s a realization that a lot of times these skills that you’re able to demonstrate on these kinds of tests, um, That being able to demonstrate these skills has sometimes a lot more to do with the kinds of resources and access that you as a student have to supplementary resources and outside help that are test specific and less, um, a sort of pure or objective measure of test skills.

And so there has been a reckoning with that. And of course, right, like the fact that we’re requiring all students to take this test that was developed for, Less than objective reasons is also something that universities have been in a larger discourse about so That’s standardized testing. That’s what it looks like today, and we’ll go ahead and move on and talk through, you know, what you’re actually trying to do, um, to demonstrate these skills to provide the standardized metric, even in the face of less essentiality.

So. There are a number of different tests that are part of a student’s application. Um, there are some tests that are going to count more than others. And it depends on who you are and what you decide to take. Uh, the first thing is the PSAT or pre SAT, which you take either in 10th or normally in 11th grade.

And we’ll talk a little bit more about that test, but it is basically close to like a mock SAT and has Relevance for things like national merit scholarships. Um, there is the SAT now removed though This is important to note if you were thinking about this There are no more SAT 2s or previously referred to as SAT subject tests So these were supplementary tests that were subject specific i.

e biology or history that were offered by the SAT company Those are gone now. We don’t have those anymore Um, and so those are all administered by the same company, which is the college board. So SAT PSAT, and then previously, but no longer, SAT2. The ACT is a separate test that is basically analogous to the SAT, but it’s administered by a different company and the formatting is super different, and we’ll talk through the differences in formatting in just a second.

If you are an international student, there are also TOEFL or T O E F L exams that are used as part of an evaluation for your overall application. And then, of course, if you take AP and IB exams, you can send those results to colleges and colleges will take that into account as part of your application as well.

So they sort of amalgamate, right? What are you doing on your AP tests or your IB, um, sort of overall IB grade? With how are you doing on these, uh, nationally and internationally administered big standardized tests like the SAT and the ACT. So let’s talk SAT first since it sounds like that’s what most of you are taking.

She definitely has the best brand name recognition, I would say, of all of these tests. So the SAT is administered seven times a year in the US. It’s almost four hours long, three hours and 50 minutes total. And the highest score you can get is a 1600. And the highest score you can get is a 1600. And so what’s important to note here is that this score is split between math and an evidence based reading and writing portion.

And you just add those two scores together. And I will asterisk this and tell you to pay attention to this because this is very different than how the ACT scores and can make a huge difference in your overall score. So with the SAT, you’re adding whatever the number of questions you received, um, sort of correct answers for on the math section that’ll correspond to a number out of 800.

And then adding that to the number of questions you, that you, um, received correct answers to on the evidence-based reading and writing section. And again, that’ll equivocate to a composite score of 800 and that’s how you get the 1600. So that is how the SAT is scored, and that is the breakdown of the number of total sections on the SAT.

There are only two. You can throw in the essay. Most, a lot of colleges will also request an essay. I recommend doing the essay, but that will not affect your composite 1600 score. You will get the separate score on the SAT essay.

Okay, and so to break it down a little bit more, the SAT math section is 80 minutes long, which is a pretty long section, right? That’s almost an hour and a half. And you get 58 questions. The things that the SAT focuses on include, but are not limited to, Algebra, Problem Solving, Data Analysis, and Advanced Math.

The Evidence Based Reading and Writing section has two separate components. Uh, the first is Evidence Based Reading, which, as you can see here, right, you get a lot more time for this because you’re expected to read passages. And there are 52 questions that we’ll be asking you. about the passage that you read.

Some of those questions may be thematic, um, so you know what was the point of this passage or how did the author use x, y, and z to make an argument. Some of these will just be vocabulary based questions, so you’ll be identifying words in context of how they’re being used in the passage, but it’s definitely less vocabulary intensive than the old version of the SAT that was phased out in 2018.

After the evidence based reading, there’s also writing in language, and notice here it’s much less time in total, only 35 minutes for 44 questions, and that mainly just tests grammar and argument building skills, so you’ll be getting, um, sentences, and the sentences may be incorrect or they may be, are correct, but they’re, um, going to be a little bit different there.

And then there’s the essay, which is optional. Again, some students may require this. This is important to note that this is the on paper SAT, but not the digital SAT, which is premiering this year. So this, again, is the on paper SAT. If folks aren’t interested, we can also talk about the digital SAT as well.

But this is the on paper SAT that you are taking in person and going to a testing center to take.

The reason why we’re going to talk about these things side by side is because the ACT does not have a digital option yet. I think there’s a decent chance that because the SAT is moving digital, that the ACT is moving digital, but as of now, the ACT is not digital. So when you’re thinking about how are you comparing these two tests, when you’re trying to figure out what you want to take, um, this is like the most analogous way to compare these two options.

Although again, we can talk a little bit more about the digital, which is rolling out. This year. So the ACT is also administered seven times a year. It is three hours and 35 minutes, which is also again, pretty long test. Um, the highest score you can get is a 36, but again, very different than the SAT scoring.

And this is whether you take the digital or the in person, the way that you add scores is super different. And you want to keep this in mind because again, it may affect your overall scoring. The SAT is a composite score, so you just add things together and call it a day, but the ACT is an average across four separate sections, and this is very different.

So there’s, there are four sections, English, Math, Reading, and Science. Just like with the SAT, the number of questions correct in each section translates to a 1 through 36 score. Um, and again, just like the SAT, sometimes you can lose one question, but it’ll still be a 36. But the important thing for that composite ACT score is that scores are averaged across all questions.

And so the average means, right, you add them up and divide by four. So you’re not just adding these together, right? They’re being averaged across. So if you are someone that really struggles with one of these sections, you can really get pulled down, um, by having an average score as opposed to a composite score.

But on the other hand, if you’re someone who does relatively well across sections, you can get boosted up if you have, for example, a 28, a 28, a 27, and a 28. That will still calculate up to a 28, so it’s really important to know that this is again, regardless of whether you do digital or regular, the scoring is super, super different, and that may impact, right, depending on what kind of student you are and what your strengths are, the score that you end up with.

Okay, so for the ACT, and again, for now, this is only an on paper option, you can score up to 36 in each section, and the average of those four scores is your composite score, right, as previously discussed. English, 75 questions in 45 minutes. Um, and this is mainly focused on what the writing section of the SAT is focused on as opposed to the reading.

So it’s grammar, usage, punctuation. Sentence structure, strategy, organization, etc. You’re going to get passages, but the questions about those passages will be about specific word choice, specific grammar choice, that kind of thing. Math, 60 questions in 60 minutes. So notice it’s not as much time and not as much attention total paid to math in this test, which might be beneficial to you if you’re someone who is not math girly.

Testing, pre algebra, elementary algebra, and intermediate algebra. So those are very similar to the 8th grade. to the SAT and kinds of questions asked, but there is a much higher emphasis normally on the ACT when it comes to geometry and trig or trigonometry. And so if you are, again, someone who really likes geometry, then this test might be a better test for you, or if you’re currently taking geometry.

Um, but again, there are a lot of factors that go into that, but that’s a big difference on the math. Reading is 40 questions in 35 minutes. And so again, this is like they give you a full passage and they’ll ask you questions about the passage as a whole. Um, and then what is completely different from the SAT is the science portion, which is also 40 questions in 35 minutes.

And so the way that science works, um, You’re going to be given basically experiments that are written out, and it’ll describe the experiment, it’ll describe the results, and then it’ll ask you questions, um, analyzing or evaluating the experiments, or potentially having to do some relatively elementary math to determine results that are maybe missing from the experiment.

Or that are, that need to be adjusted or corrected in an experiment. So, this is a very, very different kind of section. It’s basically like, a combination of like, reading comprehension with science material. And so that, for some people, makes this test much more appealing. But for some people, that makes this test much more difficult.

So, Again, somewhat optional in there and notice to write the total number of questions here is pretty high and the total amount of time you have is pretty low. So this also tends to benefit folks who are faster test takers, but who do not want as much weight placed on every individual question. And so that’s sort of the balance of the SAT versus the ACT.

And then of course, right, there’s also writing section one essay in 40 minutes. It’ll be an argumentative essay for both tests. So this is the direct comparison of the on paper SAT with the on paper ACT. If you have any questions about these two tests, feel free to drop them in the Q& A section. So we’ve sort of alluded to these things already, but what factors should I consider right when taking, when Deciding which test to take, right?

Again, the quality versus quantity of questions is really important, right? The ACT has more questions and less time, but each question counts for fewer overall points. And again, there’s that additional averaging of your score across sections. The SAT does have less geometry, but it has higher algebra skills on the math section, and you will have more time per question, but there are fewer questions, so the weight of getting one wrong is really important.

is going to impact your score a little bit more normally. They’re asterisked for the fact that every test is a little bit different. Um, and the second thing is reading comprehension skills, right? Again, the ACT science section is basically just reading comprehension across STEM questions, but if that is not something that feels comfortable to you or that you’re familiar with, um, then I would not recommend doing that or you’re going to have to practice it to get Sort of better at it.

And again, this means that three total sections of the ACT require more reading versus arithmetic ability. And just a reminder that if you are going to ask me questions, I’m happy to answer them, but please do not directly message them to me in the chat. Please put them in the public Q& A tab. If you are direct messaging me, I see them very briefly and then they disappear.

And also, um, it’s just helpful for the overall flow of the webinar to put them in the Q& A. Portion of the chat. Please do not directly message questions to me. Okay, we’re continuing onwards. So, right, when we talk about when students first take standardized tests, again, most folks take the PSAT a little bit earlier.

I think the PSAT is really good practice for the SAT and it’s administered by your school, so I would strongly recommend taking the PSAT if you can take it multiple times especially. Um, the most important thing for the PSAT if you’re caring about sort of that award section on your various applications is National Merit Scholarship.

If you are a national, if you take it in 11th grade, your scores automatically are considered for National Merit Scholarship, which is basically a certain number of, um, a certain number of people for each state, depending on their percentage in terms of the overall score. Thank you. score, um, are considered National Merit Scholarship winners, and then finalists, and then semi finalists.

It does depend on your state. So states with fewer people, like, like, um, for example, Wyoming, have, tend to have lower threshold scores than places like California and New York, which are pretty competitive. Um, but it’s worth entering. It’s worth being considered. Definitely would recommend taking it also just for practice.

And then for most books, um, you know, The SAT and ACT are taken your junior year, or into senior fall. I would recommend if you can knock it out before your senior fall starts to do so, because your senior fall is when you’re actually applying to colleges, and writing all of your essays and your actual deadlines are, and so it can be a little stressful to try to tackle all those things at once.

Um, but normally folks don’t take this earlier than junior year, simply because, particularly for math, the level of what you’ve learned, um, is, it’ll take until around junior year for you to know. All the math, and then of course, um, sort of less relevant to this, um, but feels worth mentioning is right.

Obviously, AP tests are also considered standardized tests within this context. Um, and once again, please put questions in the Q and a don’t direct message them to me. All right, continuing onwards. Okay, so when we talk about how we want to prepare for these tests or best practices, and these apply for whether you’re taking a digital test or an in person test.

Here are my biggest recommendations and the things that I’ve seen have made the most difference, both for me and for students that I have tutored. The first is when you do your practice tests, Test in actual testing conditions, right? So, phone should be off, people should not be in the room with you, um, if you’re on your computer, you should have everything shut off and everything sort of non accessible besides your actual testing window.

If you’re testing on paper, then you should have no electronics at all. Right. But when you do your practice tests and also adhere to the timing on those practice tests, you practice like you play. And so having more familiarity with the timing and the nerves and just like the spatial comfort of testing in real testing conditions, um, that will be a lot more beneficial than doing 8 million practice problems with no time limit.

So making sure that you’re testing the way that you practice and practicing the way that you test. The other thing I would say is, again, more so than doing a million practice problems in terms of improving your score is going to be better in terms of what’s important. Improving your score is going to be critically reviewing why you missed the questions you missed in practice problems and review.

If you don’t know why you are getting questions incorrect, then you’re not going to be able to adjust your answers. And so that would be my strongest recommendation, is to really, really review and make sure you understand exactly why you got wrong, what you got wrong, And adjust your strategy from there.

It’s also totally okay. If it’s like a math specific or reading specific question to just stay back and ask an English teacher or ask a math teacher, Hey, I was doing this practice test, this one question. I can’t seem to crack. I don’t know what the correct answer is or how to get it. They will normally be happy to help you.

Um, in like the five minutes after class. The next thing I would recommend is concentrating your time and efforts on topics that are more difficult for you. So studying smarter versus studying harder is going to be important here. Um, and again, quality over quantity of study practice. And the last thing is making sure you’re figuring out how to minimize errors that are made, not because you don’t know something, or you don’t know how to do something correctly, but because of the way in which you take tests.

Um, so if you underthink answers and you change, And you don’t read a question carefully, or if you overthink answers and you’re changing from your correct answer to an incorrect answer, those kinds of things, and then also being strategic with how you guess if you don’t know an answer, those kinds of things.

So all the sort of test taking strategies and the sort of mental part of test taking, make sure you take care of that as well. Because oftentimes, being conscious of those things can really sort of make or break a score that you. Are happy with with your best possible score. I would also just remember to Be really thoughtful and strategic about What you’re doing on the day of the test and also the days before your test.

And so the sort of habits and the routine that you create as you’re test prepping are again, just as important as making sure you know all of the content. So my first recommendation is, um, good sleep. The, the night before, um, I would recommend two nights before, because normally exhaustion does not kick in until, um, Um, like 24 to 72 hours after you don’t get a good night’s sleep.

Lay out all of your testing materials in advance. Your IG, your water, your snacks, um, your pencils, if they’re not giving you pencils. Because even if you have the digital version, you’ve got like, pencil and paper to do math with. Don’t cram the morning of the test. In fact, I would say don’t cram the like, 48 hours before the test in general.

Because you probably will not retain anything that you’re trying to cram in before then. If you are being forced to cram, it probably means you are not ready to take the test at this particular administration. So that would be my other recommendation. And also have a plan for your breaks, right? When is it most helpful for you to eat if you are allowed snacks?

Um, Do you need water? Are you someone who often has to go to the bathroom? Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. So that would be my recommendation here. Okay. Then, right, um, I’ll just take a moment to talk a little bit about my Testing experience that if you have any questions specifically about how I tested or why I tested, I’ll explain that and then we’ll be pretty close to wrapping up this portion and I’ll be able to start answering questions for the last roughly 20 to 25 minutes of this hour long webinar.

So when I was still in high school, we did still have subject tests. So I actually started by taking subject tests in things like biology and other classes where I was taking APs. And I think that was really helpful in preparing me for how the college board, which administers the SAT designs tests and how it administers tests.

So I thought that was useful. And then my junior fall, I took the PSAT. And the old version of the SAT. So I am less applicable for folks who are taking the new version, but my PSAT was the new version of the SAT, which is what’s being administered now. I obviously did not take the digital version of anything.

And also, again, this is sort of its first big year in the world. So, um, I sense we’ll learn a lot more about this test as more students take it this year. Um, I did okay on the PSAT, but I wasn’t really satisfied with my overall score. And I didn’t really like it. the formatting of the PSAT. And I would say I also did moderately well on the old SAT, very specifically like struggled with math more than I was expecting to on that test.

Um, ultimately sort of after taking these, I was like, this is okay, but I think that part of my, um, sort of score ceiling is being produced by how the test is being run as opposed to like how good I am at reading, right? And so my junior spring, my junior spring, I flipped the ACT and that made a huge. Huge difference for me.

Um, it played to a lot of my test taking strengths. It’s super fast paced as a test. Um, as someone who’s a pretty avid reader, I know that I can make it through about 100 pages an hour. That worked really well for me in terms of being able to test to my strengths. Um, I also do a lot of science based stuff, even still.

And so being able to read a lot about science worked out really well for me in terms of that fourth science section. Um, I also found that in terms of test materials, the ACT practice test book, the official one, the red one, was really, really good and felt like it was preparing me more analogously for all the questions that I was going to see on the test versus some of the SAT prep materials, though I do think a large part of that was because the SAT was transitioning tests.

And I took a really well written test when I took my ACT, um, like I just genuinely enjoyed taking it, which is a very weird thing to say, but all the reading prompts were super fun. So, And so I was really happy with my score, um, by the end of, by the end of that. And so I actually only took the ACT once. I was one and done.

And then moved on with my life. And so, based on that, my sort of advice here would just be, Find a test that feels right for you. I would recommend taking practice tests for both the SAT and the A CT and evaluating from there, which feels like it makes more sense. These tests are ultimately equal in the eyes of college admissions officers.

One is not better than the other. One is taken more often than the other, but one is not better than the other, so it truly does not matter which one you take. I would recommend therefore taking both as practice tests and figure out which test feels right for you. Remember to that again, these tests are only a small part of your overall portfolio, right?

If you’re struggling with these tests, really think about what in your portfolio makes up for the fact that you’re struggling with these tests. How can you demonstrate that you can do all the math and you can do all the reading, right? And if you test well, congratulations, but just remember that when you’re applying to elite schools.

everyone tests well, right? You do have to develop a profile beyond test scores and numeric metrics. Um, and I’ve seen folks with lower test scores get into more highly ranked schools and vice versa based on everything else in their profile too. And lastly, I would just say studying smarter is greater than studying harder.

So your strategy is going to be much more important than just hours and hours of repetition, unless. You really, really like repetition and you know that works best for you. But for most folks, the strategy is going to be a lot more important. So I’ll go ahead and flip it over to Lonnie to run this Q& A session.

And you can go ahead and get started.

Lonnie: Yes. Thank you so much. That was a lot of great information. Um, while you were presenting, we were definitely getting a good, um, some good questions that were coming in. So just a reminder, um, if you did happen to send a question, Private message. We’re going to ask if you can send it to our public Q and a so that we can make sure that we can answer your question accordingly.

Um, so we actually got a few questions in regards to the digital S. A. T. And so our audience wanted to know if you could provide some insight into, you know, what Transcribed Is the digital S. A. T. Um, are there any differences? Any pros and cons study strategies? Any any insight that you can add would be really helpful.

Mariko: Absolutely. So let’s go ahead. And yes, talk a little bit more about the digital S. A. T. Because she’s very new. Um, and so this is definitely a thing that we’re again, sort of seeing more. So for this year, the first time. So the digital SAT is also two sections, right? Um, the reading and writing section is the same, the math section is the same.

The time that you have to complete these sections is also relatively the same overall. But the difference between, the biggest difference between the digital and the in person test is that you have four total modules instead of two. So, and I think this is largely because they don’t want you staring at a screen for that long.

Um, basically, the first, for both sets of the test, um, there’s a first module that’s give or take 30 minutes long for reading and writing. It’s 32 for math. It’s 35 and then you break and then you take a second module for that section. The total number of questions for reading is 54. The total number of questions for math is 44.

The thing that is different, the biggest thing that is different, um, with this sort of testing strategy is the algorithm that the digital SAT produces. And I truly am going to be very curious to see how this turns out. Instead of getting the same questions as everyone else in your digital test, right, um, your second module is actually going to be based on how you perform in the first module.

So depending on what questions you get correct and which questions you don’t, your second module questions will either be more or less difficult than the first module. So that’s something that’s super, super different than anything we’ve seen before. And I don’t know how I feel about that as like an advisor.

I think we’ll have to see how this rolls out. And like sort of what the algorithmic structure is for this, um, and then I guess the other big difference is that most of the questions are multiple choice, but a couple of the math questions actual ask you to actually enter an answer rather than select it.

So you’re not going to get a multiple choice option. So those are the big differences on the digital sat. And I apologize for not having a slide for this test. Um, But I would say, like, keep those things in mind. Um, and again, yeah, the biggest thing is going to be this sort of predictive algorithmic second module for both tests.

Um, The, like the current SAT and the ACT, uh, there’s no penalty for guessing, so you can still just put whatever you want if you’re not sure. Um, and like the current on paper SAT, the digital SAT will give you more time for questions, but fewer questions total.

Lonnie: Okay, thank you, thank you, thank you. I’m pretty sure there might be some more questions that are going to come up, so feel free to ask them as it relates to the digital SAT.

Um, someone asked, is SuperScore still available for the SAT?

Mariko: Yes, as of the last update on in February 2024, Superscore is still available. For folks who don’t know what Superscore is, Superscore is when you can take the highest section score from each test and combine them to form one like big super score that is evaluated by colleges.

So if you do better on one section on your first try and better on a second section in your second try, then you can add those together instead of having your test by test composite scores. Now, not all colleges super score though. So the most important thing in evaluating whether super score makes sense for you is to Look at the colleges that you’re applying to and make sure that they take superscore because if they don’t then it will not help you.

I would also say Superscore within reason like I think any college that sees that you’ve taken the test like six times and you’re requesting a superscore May be a little judgmental about that. So my normal rule for superscores is somewhere between three and four tests. So if you have three tests that you want to submit and there’s very clear need to superscore off of each of them, then go ahead.

Um, you can also write, if you take the test four times, but you want to use your superscores from try number two and try number four, you can just submit two and four to the College Board. Um, you don’t have to submit all four. Gotcha, gotcha.

Lonnie: Okay, next question. Can colleges see all of the SAT tests I have taken?

Mariko: No, only the ones that you send to them. So after you get your score, you’ll get sent an email that says, Hey, do you want us to send this score to colleges? And if it’s a good score, you can send it. And if you don’t like it, you can bury it forever. Will PSAT scores be sent to colleges? That’s a good question.

Um, not the ones that you take prior to 11th grade. Um, the ones that are not for national merit scholarship are just sort of used as like free practice. Well, not they do cost money, but practice opportunities for you. Um, colleges do know who has fallen into national merit scholarship brackets. Um, and you also have the option of sending your PSAT to colleges.

So similar to the ACT and the SAT, you can opt into sending them out. Um, if you want like the fun little recruiting pamphlets and things and the emails and you have a good PSAT score, it’s not a bad idea to send it out, but. Yes.

Lonnie: Um, does it look better in college applications if both SAT and ACT scores are sent?

Mariko: Nope, not unless you do really, really well on both of them. Just choose the score that is the highest and go from there. Again, it doesn’t matter whether you take the SAT or the ACT, they count equally. There are a number of verified score converters online, so if you google like SAT to ACT score, you can sort of see where you fall on the other test if you’ve taken both tests.

Lonnie: Okay, next question. Um, looking at SAT practice books, I’ve seen that there is an optional essay section. Is this true?

Mariko: Yes, both the SAT and the ACT have optional essays. I would recommend completing the essay section, um, particularly if you’re looking at applying to more selected colleges. Um, The main thing though is just check with the schools that you’re applying to and see who requires the essay and who doesn’t because some schools will ask for it or some schools will say like it’s helpful if we have this.

which is code for we expect you to do this. Um, again, both essays are like relatively short in terms of total time, 40 for the SAT or 40 for the ACT minutes, 50 for the SAT. And it’ll be an argumentative essay based on a prompt that is given to you at the end of your, um, multiple choice slash like non written section.

Lonnie: Um, do colleges tend to prefer if applicants take one test over the other?

Mariko: No, you can take

Lonnie: whatever you want. Yes. Um, what study or practice books would you recommend buying?

Mariko: Oh, so I, I am a big, big fan of the official ACT prep book. If you’re taking the ACT, it’s like the red one. It says official ACT. I think it’s really good.

I think it walks through the sections really well. And I think it also does a good job of writing with like five practice tests. Um, there’s also a free full length practice test for both tests online. SAT, for the SAT, um, in terms of free material, a couple years ago the SAT partnered with Khan Academy to produce a lot of free study materials online, so I would maybe say start with that, especially for specific concepts.

And then there is also, if you are taking the test non virtually, the like official book that you can buy. I think Princeton Review and Kaplan are also pretty solid for the SAT. I would not actually recommend them for the ACT though. I don’t think they do as good of a job as the official prep book. But I would say that My general recommendation, though, is start with the ones that are officially distributed by the companies themselves, because it’s the same people writing the actual tests as are writing the practice tests, versus like, Secondary companies like Kaplan or Princeton Review.

They are very good at what they do, and they do sometimes poach people who used to work for like the college board, but at the end of the day, it’s not the official material.

Lonnie: Um, someone asked, how can you limit overthinking? Sometimes I change my answers a lot on tests, and I don’t go with the initial answer.

Mariko: Oh, good question. Well, I think part of it is going to depend on why you’re overthinking, right? Is it like overall confidence in yourself as a student? Or is it like specific confidence in mechanics or whatever that is? So that might be a little bit more of an introspective question. But I would say a general rule of thumb is that in a lot of the like test taking statistics that have been run from a psychology perspective, the majority of the time, that someone changes their answer, the second answer ends up being wrong.

So unless you know for certain like, oh, this is very clearly the mistake I made the first time around, like I can pinpoint to you exactly why I thought it was this answer and why it’s actually not, then I would say, Don’t change your answers as much and see what happens. But obviously also analyze based on that.

Um, that is a general rule of thumb, but your case may be specific.

Lonnie: Okay. Next question. Uh, what would be your advice for someone who has already taken a test and will retake it? What is the best way for one to raise their score?

Mariko: Analyze, analyze, analyze, right? Um, both in terms of what questions you actually, Did not get correct because they will send you your full test back, right?

So even though it might be like painful, you have to go through your own score report and look through like, what are the kinds of questions that I was getting incorrect? Are there patterns with the kinds of questions and the material covered in those questions? Do I not have time? Am I rushing my like last four or five questions?

Am I, yeah, overthinking. And it’s always the second answer that has been, um, Incorrect, right? Whatever that might be. Um, and also like, you know, do a real thoughtful in depth analysis of yourself and how you felt on your test day and how you approach that test and when you feel best when you’re testing because it’s the Without knowing you more personally, it’s hard to say, right, what’s mechanical and what’s sort of mental, right, but do an analysis, a thorough, thorough analysis of both.

And again, really focus on like, why are you getting the questions incorrect that you’re getting incorrect, because often there are patterns there. And so being able to figure out those patterns and those concepts that are still tricky to you, um, will be the best way to improve your score.

Lonnie: Okay, so we are going to continue with our questions and answers.

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At the end, you’ll also learn more about the premium packages that we offer. Um, and how we’ll be able to pair you an expert who can support you in building your college list and in your essays, talking a little bit more about the S. A. T. A. C. T. And much, much more. So with that, we will continue with our Q and a, and so I’m going to move over to our next question.

Someone, uh, let’s see.

Okay, so someone just asked, like, how can I see a score increase if I’m stuck in the 1500 range?

Mariko: Hmm, well, first of all, congratulations, being in the 1500 range is excellent. And I would remember that again, at a certain point, adding like a 1560 versus a 1570, I promise you will not be the thing that makes it or breaks it on your admissions.

And if it does, come talk to me, because that is, Very, very rarely the case. I would say when you’re getting sort of that nitpicky, I would again analyze like, are you getting these, like a question incorrect or certain questions incorrect just because there’s just always one or two that are weird for you, or because there’s like one specific thing that keeps tripping you up.

Um, I would say that, uh, there are some things that I would recommend. Also sort of talking through or analyzing about like your test taking strategy as well. Um, but at that point, it’s also kind of a little bit dependent on luck. I’m like the, like two questions versus the five questions right on, on each test.

So I would say that’s part of it too. But, um, yeah, at a certain point though, I will say like the difference between a 1520 is relevant, but the difference between a 1520 or a 1590 is not. Like, unless you just want the perfect score for the for the for the flex. So, um, let’s see.

Lonnie: Okay. Are you finished with that question? Sorry. Okay. All righty. So, moving into our next question. Let’s see. Um, this question is, if you did equally well in the PSAT and the pre ACT, which do you recommend taking?

Mariko: The one that you like doing more, um, because you’re going to have to study for it, and you’re going to have to improve upon it, so if you find one is literally, like, more fun or more interesting than the other, then take the one that’s more interesting, um, combined with, like, I would think critically about your math level this year, and, like, what you’re learning in math, and how that’s impacting your scores.

Lonnie: Okay, next question. Is it good to take the A SAT in October if you are, um, sorry, that was not the question I was gonna read.

The question I read, like if I’m a senior, is it, do you advise me to take like the SAT if I’m a senior in taking it in October?

Mariko: If you are not happy with your score, then yes, I would advise taking it. If you’re applying to schools that require testing, um. You kind of have to, so you got to do what you got to do.

Um, I would say, though, that, like, also again, think through, like, your super score options and things like that, and make sure if you’re, like, very worried, but, like, I’m never going to get a score that I’m happy with at this point, um, make sure that you’re choosing some test optional schools on your list, um, to balance out your profile or your portfolio, rather.

Lonnie: Okay, so this question says, does the digital SAT still have an essay? Um, it says it’s been removed.

Mariko: I guess not. Um, I will say they’ve just sort of been piloting it for the last year. Um, my guess is probably not at this point. Um, I don’t think they’ve removed it. Figured out how to grade those in a way that makes sense.

Um, so apparently not, but again, that’s why I would check to see which colleges require or to highly request that optional essay because if they want the essay and you take the digital, then you will have no essay.

Lonnie: Um, do you still need to take the a slash act to gain admission to a BS MD program?

Mariko: Honestly, probably yes. Um. BSMD programs are some of the most competitive in the country, and so you need every metric possible at your disposal to demonstrate that you’re a student that should be selected. Yes,

Lonnie: absolutely. Um, let’s see. So this question, okay, so this is back to the essay. I love everyone’s curiosity around the essay.

So I took my SAT in June digital version at a testing center. There was no option for an essay when the score came back. It did not include my test questions. Is this traditional or am I missing something?

Mariko: So this is not traditional. Normally you get a full score report back with the kinds of questions that you’re missing and How you can improve.

I would say this is probably happening because it’s a new test. Um, and also because the algorithm is like personalized in terms of which questions you’re getting on your second modules. Um, it’s something I would say to consider, right? If you’re trying to improve score between test to test, if they’re not giving that out right now, I’m kind of, I’m kind of surprised about that conceptually, but not surprised about that logistically, just because it is such a new test.

Um, and I think they will continue to work out. Like bugs in it and what makes most sense in the next year or so. So it’s a little bit giddy piggy right now.

Lonnie: Okay. Uh, next question is, could you elaborate more on what you mean by PSAT score recruiting?

Mariko: Oh, um, not recruiting. It’s just, um, if you get a certain score on your PSAT in 11th grade, then you qualify for different levels of national merit scholarship.

Um, so I think that’s what the question was about. So if you take the test in 11th grade, then if you make it into a certain percentage, depending on your state, you automatically get a nice little commendation.

Lonnie: Okay, so if you have the SAT prep books for the paper version, would those still be effective for the digital SAT, or would resources such as Khan Academy be more useful?

Mariko: Use both, because the concept will be the same, but the actual sort of Act of answering questions will be a little bit different.

Lonnie: Okay, let’s see.

Okay, so you want to provide like any advice just on like study schedules for the S. A. T. And perhaps like what worked for you.

Mariko: Um, I would say that, uh, for me, what worked best was honestly just really drilling like practice tests and portions of practice tests and then analyzing very carefully afterwards.

I think it depends a lot though on what else you have going on in your life. So really strategically making sure that your test dates, you have enough time book ended to like study beforehand and, um, that you have enough time to be able to like evaluate and like change or, um, adapt your study strategy based on how things are going.

Uh, so that was, that would be sort of my biggest recommendation. I would say that like, Most folks take, like, I would say like no more than three months for the first time, right, but like three months we were actually able to put in time at least twice, if not three times a week. Um, I think when I really got down to it and I was about a month out for my tests, I was like, you know, doing two or three hours every single day.

Um, but that’s also what worked for me specifically, that may not work for you.

Lonnie: Nice. Um, do you have any just information you can share about like what scholarships, um, one can apply for that are open to students who maybe get a great essay or a good SAT score?

Mariko: There are not a ton of scholarships that offer things for test scores specifically, but having a good test score can help with a number of different kinds of scholarships because they, a lot of scholarships are very similar to like college admissions in that they’re evaluating based on full portfolio.

So having a good score is a nice, like, element of total availability in terms of scholarship competitiveness.

Lonnie: Okay. Um, do you think there, the question disappeared again. Okay. Do you still need to take the SAT to have an admissions into an engineering program?

Mariko: Yes, most probably. Yes. I would say the more competitive the program is, the more likely you will need to take this kind of test.

The more STEM based a program is, the more likely you will need this test. But again, check. The college website. Always check the college website.

Lonnie: Yes. Absolutely. Um, do you think there’s an advantage to taking the online SAT version or is it just personal preference?

Mariko: I think some of it is personal preference.

Um, I don’t, I am not a very like digitally savvy Gen Z person, so I can’t imagine having to take a test like that online. I also do think that like, that like personalized algorithmic difference in your second module feels to me a little bit. Like, uh, perhaps a yellow flag and that like, we don’t actually know how that works.

And there’s no transparency in terms of like what kinds of questions it will give you on the second half and how that’s going to impact your overall score. So that to me feels like a little bit of a gamble. Um, if it’s working for you and you really like taking tests digitally and it is shorter, it’s way shorter, um, then go for it.

Uh, but I do think some of it is personal preference and some of it is like, what kind of test taker are you and what’s the most useful? Um, I also will say that like if you’re a fast test taker, it’s way easier to do breaks with a digital test because you can just leave your clock running and like go to the bathroom and that can be difficult.

Um, when you’re doing printed tests.

Lonnie: Um, when it comes down to the process of elimination, what is a viable method for these kinds of tests?

Mariko: Or is it a viable method? Yes, it’s a super viable method. I would really recommend using it and get yourself down to like two choices. So definitely, definitely use it.

Because you don’t get penalized for long answers anymore.

Lonnie: Okay, uh, ACT versus SAT for a math major. What’s your recommendation?

Mariko: Truly does not matter. Um, just depends on what math you like more. Okay.

Lonnie: Alrighty, let’s see if we got into all the questions. We have a couple more.

Mariko: Um, I want to address this maybe accessibility one because that feels important from like a disability standpoint.

Um, So, I have a question here that says, for the SAT, why don’t they have a speaker button that reads to you? For me, I read a passage and it doesn’t click, but if it was read to me, I would get the big picture and I would also understand the words. Um, So they do have this for disability specific testing.

They should have it for all testing. Um, you can sort of look into being able to potentially get accommodations for that. But my biggest suggestion is if they’re not giving that to you, to read the passage out loud to yourself. Um, because you may not be able to understand all the words, but like hearing it out loud in your own voice might be a sort of potential stop here.

Um, and then I think there’s also a question about super score stuff. Um, would you still be able to use a score that you, I think this person’s referring it to it as a buried score, but I’m understanding that as a score you did not originally send to colleges. You can still send that score to colleges later if you take a second test and it’s worse, but there is a time limit or expiration on that.

So, just make sure you check what the time limit is for that particular test. Like, you can’t send it 2 years later. So that would be my recommendation there. And then,

Lonnie: um, this last question. You want to take on the last

Mariko: one? Okay, so awesome. You should be adding all of your AP classes to your student profile.

And you should definitely also, I mean, this is a good plan. Like, I’m just reading. This person is asking about specific classes they’re taking and what’s happening. Um, I think this is a very, very solid plan, and yeah, definitely take the SAT or the ACT too. Remember that you can also take, um, AP tests if you don’t take an AP class.

You can still enroll for the AP exam, especially if your school doesn’t have one. APs for those particular subjects. And what can often work instead is a combination of taking the class at the junior college level and really working on the AP sort of test study resources situation. Um, so making sure we got a good prep book for that.

Lonnie: Do you want to take this last question? How long in advance did you start studying? Oh,

Mariko: should you start studying? It depends on you. Um, and depends on how much time you have and really depends on your baseline score. I Did a more hardcore study for a month, but I did not really do more than a month for my ACT.

Um, but I would say, yeah, depends on your base score, depends on how much time you have in your overall schedule. But I would say the important things are making sure that you’re studying consistently and that you’re studying and you have the brainpower and logistical availability to study to get better and not just sort of repeat practice problems.

Lonnie: Okay. Thank you. So that now concludes our question and answers and thank you. Thank you audience for all the great questions. Thank you to our panelists for just answering all of those questions for everyone. We really do appreciate it. You did a great, great, great job. Um, got me excited to like want to take the SAT or the ACT again.

Lots of great information. And just a reminder because I saw a question come up. You are able to download, um, the handouts or the slides by clicking on the handouts tab. All righty, so last thing. So for the month of June, uh, we’re coming to the end, but we do have three more webinars that we are hosting with CollegeAdvisor.

So we really encourage you to check us out in another webinar and. Every week we have webinars geared toward supporting your college application process. So with that, everyone, that concludes our webinar. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And have a great rest of your day. Bye. Great job.