“Through Halstrom's program, I overcame my preconceived notion that I was not a good test taker. With my significantly improved score, I am now one step closer to getting into the colleges of my dreams.”
– Jessica, Halstrom student
June SAT results were recently announced. Were you disappointed at the results? Is it because the student is not a good test taker? Not prepared? Had a bad day?
We recently launched our official SAT program and are happy to share with you our first case study. Jessica, a full-time Halstrom student, took the SAT in Nov 2010, and having had no formal instruction or preparation for the test, received a score in the 65% percentile. She enrolled in our program 4 weeks prior to her June 2011 exam and increased her score by 300 points (approximately 90th percentile).
Her improved score leapfrogged her over 500,000 students who will be applying to colleges this year. We would like to share with you more detail how she raised her score. Please click on the following chart to see how Jessica progressed: SAT Score Improvement Chart
Techniques. The SAT is carefully crafted to draw students into solving answers the “traditional” way. Here are a few techniques she learned to break her old habits:
-
Filling in the blanks without looking at the answer choices
-
Reading the questions before reading the passage
-
Leaving parts of the test blank
-
Not answering reading passage questions in order
-
Working backwards on math problems
-
Math formula shortcuts and tricks
Endurance. The most common reason why students do not perform well on the exam is lack of concentration. Because the SAT is long and boring, we designed the class to build her tolerance to sit through long sessions and complete long problem sets in class. Solving practice problems while watching American Idol will not improve your score as full concentration is needed.
Practice. She took all of her assignments and practice tests very seriously. She made vocabulary flashcards, took her exams in one sitting, and completed / reviewed all of her problem sets. Classes + assignments + 4 practice tests = 52 hours of total study. Your scores will not improve if you do not dedicate the time.
Please fill out the form to contact one of our directors if you would like to learn more about our program and take a free diagnostic test + evaluation. The October 2011 SAT exam is approaching fast so spend the last 2 weeks of your summer preparing for the test before school begins. Remember, a strong score will significantly increase the chances of getting into your desired college so take this test seriously and go in prepared!