How to Study

Put Me in, Coach
There are a variety of companies specializing in preparing students
for each of these tests—your school might even sponsor its own
course, and any bookstore will probably have shelves of preparation
guides.
Chapter 8
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How to Study for Tests
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Should you take one of those SAT preparation courses? Is it worth
the money, the time, the effort, the bother? According to a past 
study by the Educational Testing Service, which administers the SAT
for the College Board, coached students who took the test twice 
or more increased their verbal score by 29 points, math by 40.
Uncoached students showed an increase of 21 points on the verbal
and 22 on math. These are the figures the College Board cites to claim
that coaching does not really help.
Nevertheless, given their importance, I would recommend investing
the time and money in any such reputable course—such as Stanley
Kaplan, Princeton Review, BAR/BRI—or, at the very least, buying
one of the major test-prep books.
Because these are, indeed, standardized tests, learning and utilizing
specific techniques pertinent to them and practicing on tests given
previously can significantly increase your scores, if only because 
you will feel less anxious and have a better idea of what’s in store 
for you.
There are students who achieve exceptional test scores on their SATs
and go on to compile barely adequate college records. These people
are said to “test well”: The testing environment doesn’t throw them
and they have sufficient prior experience to have an edge on the 
rest of the competition. Others “choke” during such tests but wind
up at the top of the career pyramid.
You’ve probably been told for most of your life that your score on 
the SAT will determine whether you are a raving success eating 
in the finest restaurants or the busboy who cleans up afterwards.
How vital is the SAT to the college admissions process and, one 
presumes, to the rest of your life? Depending on whom you listen to,
“very” or “not at all.”
How to Study
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According to Michele Hernandez, a former admissions officer at
Dartmouth (quoted in the January 10, 1999, New York Times Magazine),
“Deep down, admissions officers don’t want SAT scores to count that
much, but…they do.” Yet more than 300 colleges no longer even require
the SAT or ACT for admission, believing it’s more important that 
they assess a student’s real level of learning and effort, not their “innate
ability.”
Though one method of predicting success, such tests are not, by 
any means, perfect oracles. Nor are their conclusions inalienable.
Many people have succeeded in life without ever doing particularly
well on standardized tests.