Even as newspapers bemoan annual drops in average SAT scores, colleges are raising the bar. “Even colleges that have historically been perceived as ‘second-tier’ are becoming more and more selective. Colleges are seeing record numbers of applicants, but they haven’t increased the number of students that they are admitting, so their standards are getting more and more stringent,” says Mr. David Kim, co-founder of C2 Education.

“Parents constantly ask about the strategies and tricks for SAT success,” Mr. Kim says, “but the fact is that there is no magic trick. Unless a student is already scoring above the 650 mark in each section, they lack the necessary foundation and all the strategies in the world won’t significantly raise their scores. Improvement doesn’t happen overnight – it’s a long road.”

According to Mr. Kim, there are several things that students and parents can do to make SAT preparation more effective and less stressful. “For one thing, students must study consistently,” he says. “We have a lot of students who take the SAT more than once. It is common for these students to take the test, and then take a two or three month break from SAT preparation, and then begin studying again for the next test. The problem is that long breaks will make it harder for the student to master the information. By the time they return to their studies, they have forgotten a lot of what they learned and they have to start all over again.”

Also important is practice. “But it’s not just practicing, but practicing in the right way,” Mr. Kim notes. “A lot of parents feel that practice makes perfect, and in a way, it does. But students who take practice test after practice test don’t really improve all that much – they quickly become frustrated and unmotivated and that shows in their scores. What is more important is to space practice tests out and then go over them with a fine-toothed comb. Even questions that the student answered correctly should be reviewed, because the student needs to make sure that he knows why he got it right and that it wasn’t just a lucky guess.”

The most important thing a student can do to prepare for the SAT is to read. “Reading is the key to success,” Mr. Kim says, “not just on the SAT, but for all future academic endeavors. Reading increases vocabulary, instills an instinct for grammar and syntax, provides good practice for critical reading passages, and helps improve students’ writing abilities. Ideally, students should read material from a variety of sources – newspapers, magazines, novels, nonfiction, and so on – but as long as what they read is challenging, anything is better than nothing.”

When Is It Time to Seek Help?

There is no specific score that a student must get in order to go to college. “The SAT isn’t a pass or fail test, and there is no specific cut-off point at which a student should seek help,” Mr. Kim says. “A lot of parents will ask if a certain score is good or bad, but really it’s all relative. It depends on where a child wants to go to college. If a student hopes to apply to Harvard and is only scoring a 1500 on diagnostic tests, then taking structured SAT classes is probably a good idea. But for students who are hoping to attend less selective colleges, their SAT goals will be lower.”

The SAT is formally known as the “SAT Reasoning Test.” This is at least partially because it primarily tests a student’s reasoning skills, not material students have learned in school. “There is no regular school curriculum that teaches the SAT,” Mr. Kim says. “In general, SAT math is covered by the ninth grade, but even that only provides the very basic foundation of knowledge needed for the SAT. The SAT is all about reasoning, analysis, and problem-solving. There are strategies and thought processes involved that simply aren’t needed for high school. As a result, for students applying to selective schools, SAT preparation is virtually a necessity.”

Mr. Kim suggests that all students take a diagnostic test before deciding whether or not they should seek outside help. “At our centers, the first step is always a diagnostic test. Then, once the results are back, our directors can discuss a student’s scores and goals and help parents decide the best course of action,” he says.

For more information about C2 Education and its programs, please call 1 (800) 777 – 7000 or visit them on the web at www.c2educate.com.