How can I increase my chances at an 800 SAT Math?
Okay, I was in the same boat as you, when i took it. Getting a 1600 was a mini-obsession. If you haven’t hit 800 by now, there’s nothing you can do to really prepare for it. The kids that I knew that got 800 consistently were amazing at math, and no amount of prep was going to help them- they hit 800 from the get go. The kids that were “coached” up, well…we just have to be lucky. an 800 to a 780 basically amounts to luck- it’s basically two questions. The only factor you can control is your mental fatigue- you can get rid of this (or try to limit it) by taking lots of full-lengths. In the end, I never got it. I took the SAT 6 times, with my last 3 scores being 1570, 1570, and 1580. I was upset, but in the end it didn’t matter (like everyone else says). I still went to a top 5 school, and life went on.
Ah, to the responses since I last refreshed to post that comment^^^ I have targeted my weaknesses, yes. I’ve brushed up on a few embarrassing algebra concepts I’d gotten rusty on that I’d always just kind of “cheated” by using my TI-89. I memorized the stupid formulas for combinations and permutations, because those dumb ones about picking 3 unordered from a list and 4 ordered are ridiculous. I most certainly have looked over every question I’ve missed, thoroughly understand why I missed it, what concept(s) it’s testing, and what I should have done to solve it quickly and accurately. I don’t constantly get the same questions wrong. There are no more holes in my math education from Arithmetic to Algebra to Geometry to Trig (still working on the Calc, lol). The prep’s made sure of that. I finish each section generally with enough time to check every answer in the latter 3/5 of the test or so. The first 2/5 I never miss any, so no point in even going back there.
Yeah, I think the only way you can guarantee an 800 is if you take the test enough times. It really does vary, and you’re probably smart enough and prepared enough to hit the 800 mark with a few tries. But man. That’s a lot of time spent studying, and a lot of Saturday mornings, and a lot of stress, for twenty points. You could spend all that time and energy on extracurricular activities, or interesting volunteer work, or maybe some cool research project since you’re smart. Those will help sway the admissions office, too, probably more than those last twenty points can.
I got an 800 on the math SATs back when it was hard, and like nasreddin it got me into my safety school in spite of my shitty GPA, but not into Caltech or MIT; it didn’t impress anyone in my department once I was there; and twenty years later I can barely do arithmetic. Don’t sweat it.
