SAT/ACT prep courses: Helpful? Waste of money? Necessary? What were your experiences?
My parents have been pressuring me to take an SAT prep course as well as an ACT prep course. I feel like they are too much money. I have bought prep books and have been taking practice tests. I was wondering what everyone’s experiences were with SAT prep classes.
Would just using books and studying a lot suffice? I need to save money
2 Responses
Jenn
13 Nov 2009
Alexander
15 Nov 2009
I haven’t taken a course yet, just started the research process. My friends have said the classroom courses are a total waste of time becuase they don’t help. Everyone has said to get a private tutor or do an online course. The three online courses I am looking at are eprep, prepme, and brightstorm. Sorry I don’t have more to say but here is what i’ve read about the three.
Your instinct is correct that most prep courses are not worth the money (especially Kaplan – total rip off!). Prepping is a necessary evil, though. There’s a few things I’d suggest. Rather than a course, you might hire a tutor for a few sessions. It’s generally cheaper than a course, and you can get your specific questions answered. You can find tons of tutors for hire at wyzant.com
But outside of tutoring, you’ll want to do the vast majority of your prep on your own. The gold standard for books for the SAT and ACT are those published by the test companies (the Real ACT prep guide and the College Board blue book). Buy them both and practice, practice, practice. The same concepts come up over and over again, so by doing as many questions as possible, you’re going to have seen it all by test day.
The only other suggestion is have is being sure you hit the vocabulary for the SAT. There are books out there, but my favorite resource is http://www.word-nerd.com – it’s a really fast and efficient way to study, and the price is reasonable for a one month subscription.
Best of luck to you!