SAT's

that's exactly why its a stupid test. it makes no sense to go to school and learn and then be tested on completely irrelevant material. thats why colleges look for a well rounded student who scored well on the sat, has a high gpa/class rank, and took challenging classes in school. college don't really care if a student scores awesome on the sat, but has a 2.5gpa and took special ed classes in high school or vice versa.
 
i wasnt really emphasizing what i expect them to look for. i was just commenting on the fact that its stupid that we go to high school and study the required subjects, yet the sat essentially doesn't test you on anything you've learned in high school. but i really am quite biased on the whole thing b/c i despise these test and have taken them over quite a few times. i just wish there was a more accurate way for a college to pinpoint a student's inteligence. but its cool b/c im done with them and i already got into three schools. my scores were solid but i think that the colleges made their decsisions based more fully on my gpa/rank/class rigor/recommendations.
 
You would be surprised. They love adding "false trap" questions, and love using "attractor" answers. ETS has a think tank of people just dedicated to making you choose the wrong answer, its really an unfair system.
 
And a word about SAT's in admissions: When applying to a public school, SAT's and GPA's are worth about the same, combined probably 80%-90% of what gets you into that school. The rest is your personal statement. Its crap, but they have a lot of applications. Even in smaller private schools, your SAT and GPA will still be weighted about the same.

My advice - go to your college advisor. Or dont, as most college advisors know frighteningly little about actually college admissions, just due to the rapid rate of change each year. Anyways, find out if the school you want accepts ACT instead of SAT. If so, do that. While still having some of the problems of the SAT, the ACT is, in my belief because of how new and "un-devolved" it is, better at measuring your scholastic aptitude.

And also, remember that SAT and GPA scores by no means determine your intelligence. Lots of smart people I know had terrible grades, and I know even more people who get 4.0's and are completely clueless.
 
is the SSAT a bunch of crap too if you know?

It's for applying to private high schools and I'm taking it this saturday.

I have a practice book and the test looks super easy so I don't think I'll have to worry, but does it also measure intelligence as much as the ACT?

 
well just being smart isnt going to get you anywhere in life. You also have to try and succeed. The SAT's are a test taken by everybody and every time there are people who get 2400's. So somewhere there are still people who get around all the tricks and traps, people smart enough to figure it out. It is a standardized test that I believe they regulate just fine. There are people who score in the whole spectrum between good and bad. They test people on intelligence and ability. Some people can figure it out and some cant
 
Subject tests, right? You choose two subjects, get tested? Same type of test made by the same people. Lots of private schools like to see them, but other public schools like them too, especially because they can see what you're likely to go into. Read the books, know what ETS will throw at you and try to do well. And most importantly, practice. IF you dont get it ingrained in your head, you waste all that study time.
 
hurray for failing at life and somehow getting into Northeastern Business with a scholarship due to the SAT's!!!
 
SAT's are coming up soon, thought a bump to this thread might be helpful for some people. Taking that thing is monstrous...
 
yea, im taking an SAT prep class. we had to take a full length SAT the first day. holy shit. that was soooo long, i thought i was going to die. twice.
 
i hate the sats. i dont understand why i cant do well on them. ive always been an above average student up until now, almost all a's except in math classes which i always get nothing worse than a b+ on. (90-93 is B+) and ive always considered myself smart. i always do extremely well on standardized tests, i even took the SATs in seventh grade through john hopkins. i got an 1130 then. now i took them in january, and i found them extremely difficult, and i did terrible. i got a 1730, with math being my best by almost 70 point over writing and reading. i just took them again last saturday and i can tell i did worse than last time. its not like i did bad on the essay i consider a 10 pretty good, but i still did really bad got like a 510 on writing. i dont know why im sucking so badly. whatever i dont care anymore.
 
So lots of people have been getting back their scores from the fall test. I've had a lot of students contact me, some with good news, other with bad. I just want to bump this thread, mainly as a reminder of how shitty the SAT really is and why you shouldnt be down if you didnt score well. Its not a measure of intelligence, its a measure of how well you can take a standardized test.
 
Isn't testing an integral part of college?  They don't want to accept kids who are going to fail out and lower their graduation rates.  Anyone can get a 4.0, but very few, even with unlimited studying can get a 1600.  General intelligence isn't everything.  Test taking, logic, spotting errors and commonsense can be more important than just being "smart" in the long run.
 
Tests are a way for people to measure what you have learned. There are

tests in college, but the purpose of those tests is much different than

the SAT. Tests should be a opportunity to show what you know from the

class, but the SAT isnt testing you on that. When, in high school math,

or in life, do you need to figure out Cindy's age if shes half as old

as Bob and three times as young as Joseph, in terms of x?

I cant get a 4.0. I know a lot of people who dont have one either. I

can also go out there and pick all of the kids who scored a 2400 on the

SAT this round, and I'll bet you that half dont have a 4.0. The SAT is

just a test, and it can only test you on how good you take standardized

tests. Take me for example - give me 4 hours and I can easily whip out

above 2350. I'm not even planning to study for the GRE. Standardized

tests are easy for me - it doesnt mean I'm smarter, it just means my

mind works in a way thats conducive to finding the right answer out of

5 choices.

I agree that it would be nice for colleges to have some measure of

logic, attention to detail and commonsense. However, the SAT, no matter

how many times its re-formatted and re-made, will never be able to

accurately do all of these.
 
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