The sound of pencils scribbling answers at a furious pace fills the room. The occasional stressed sigh is let out as teens glance at their tests. Hours pass and then months before a student will find out their score. Yes, this is the infamous SAT.
The SAT is a test that most colleges require a student to complete and obtain a high enough score for them to be admitted into that college. The test is three hours and 45 minutes long with three breaks. The sections include: writing, reading, and math.
For students this can be stressful especially if it is their first time taking the exam. For the nervous or possibly curious teens here a few tips.
1) What to bring
- A few number two pencils
- An acceptable calculator for the math portions (This can be a graphing calculator but it can’t have a talk function or a QWERTY keyboard)
- Admission ticket
- School ID or license
- Snacks (This is optional, but sometimes nice)
2) What not to bring
- Phone
- MP3 player/iPod
- Timers
- Anything that makes sound
- Electronics in general
3) Tips
- Breathe, it’s not the end of the world
- You can buy an SAT book which has both practice tests and pointers on how to get a higher score
- Eat a good breakfast before hand
- Make sure you’re awake and alert. The test occurs pretty early in the morning, so if you’re one of those people who absolutely needs coffee to wake up, then drink some
- Look at the SAT site (http://sat.collegeboard.org/home) This site has tips, practice questions, and more to help you out before the test day.
- Relax, you can always take the test again if you don’t do so well
The next testing day is Mar. 9 and it is held at multiple campuses including here.