When To Start College Entrance Exam Preparation

Parents frequently ask me when we recommend that students begin preparing for college entrance exams. We recommend that students start preparing for the SAT or the ACT in the fall of their junior year (when they return to school), so they can be done with their college entrance exams by the end of their junior year.

Our students typically take their first test in January or February of their junior year, and their final test later in May or June. We recommend that student take these tests at least twice, and ideally not more than three times. It is also helpful to space out the tests so that there is time between the tests to get the results and focus on the areas that need improvement.

Students who complete their college entrance exams at the end of their junior year have the summer between junior and senior year to finalize their college list and work on their applications and essays. Students who wait to start college entrance exam test prep until the winter or spring of junior year often find that they are spending the summer leading up to their senior year and that fall cramming for their final SAT or ACT exams, and they give their college applications and essays short shrift. Given the importance of the applications and essays in the college admissions process, students need to give them careful attention.

The spring of junior year and fall of senior year are some of the busiest times in a high school student’s career. The spring of junior year often includes driver’s education classes, prom preparations, and studying for AP exams. Student trying to start college entrance exam test prep amidst all these other activities often do not do as well on these exams as they should.

Every spring and summer we see many stressed-out high school students who waited too long to start preparing, and they wished they had started sooner. With the high cost of college, and the weight these tests hold in the admissions process, it is smart to get a jump on prepare for these tests. As with many things in life, the better prepared you are, the better the outcome.

Next week: SAT versus ACT, how to decide.

Miss Anne founded Boston Tutoring Center in 2003 to help students with standardized test prep, academic tutoring, and private school entrance exam test prep. BTC has worked with hundreds of students over the past 14 years in the Boston area, and via Skype across the United States, and in Asia, Europe and Central America. Send your questions about education to Miss Anne at: bostontutoringcenter@rcn.com

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