Unique Original Articles » Preparing For The SAT and ACT, Should You Take a Course?

Do you advise a student take a college test preparation course? In my opinion, absolutely. A student might be doing themselves a gross injustice and put themselves almost at a dis-advantage with respect to other potential college applicants if they don't.

The SAT and ACT tests are very important components of the college admissions process. As I’m confident you’re aware, competition at Select colleges is greater than ever.

Although like a job interview, the SAT and ACT’s aren’t necessarily fair. The good news is that both the SAT and ACT can be conquered with focused practice and review!

In a follow-up article, I’ll provide a detailed comparison between the PSAT/SAT/ACT as well as the SAT II Subject Tests.

For now, let’s take a minute to review the pros and cons of your options for College Test Preparation.

The 1st option is to Self-Study. So for between $15 and $30, a student can purchase a book that contains practice tests, answer keys and written answer explanations. The benefit to this option is that it’s rather inexpensive and thus, very affordable.

The downside to this option is that the material tends to be pretty dry…and even outright boring. Working through the questions and problems is generally a very labor intensive process. Generally, the material presents only one solution to each problem…even when multiple approaches are valid. This also requires the student to be extremely talented academically and highly independent and self-motivated.

A 2nd option is the traditional Classroom Course. So for between $800 and $2,500, a student can participate in a live group classroom test preparation course. There are many advantages to this: 1)Practice tests are taken under conditions that closely replicate the actual test-day environment, 2)Instruction can be dynamic in nature and instructors can answer student-generated questions and 3)Students can interact socially with their peers.

The disadvantage to this particular option is that it is very costly. It requires the otherwise busy student to make a long-term and regular time commitment to attending the class. A challenge to overcome is that Instructor quality is difficult to regulate. Many of these same instructors have little or no actual teaching experience.

To increase profits, classes are often overcrowded and are typically populated with students who vary greatly in academic ability

A 3rd Option would be to attend an Online Test Prep Course. For between $30 and $1,000, students can purchase online College Test preparation products and courses. An advantage is there are a wide array of products and services available, as well as prices. Some of these courses offer diagnostics and other programs cater to the various and changing ability levels of students. You’ll find that a properly designed online course offers convenience.

A potential downside for you might be confusion in choosing the best option with the range of products and prices available. You should be sure the online college test prep course is interactive and dynamic and that it’s able to simulate real test taking conditions.

The 4th and final option is to have a Private Tutor- For between $50 and $350 per hour, students can are given one-on-one private tutoring. Keep in mind that you could very well end up paying between $1500-$3,000 or more for this option.

No doubt, an advantage would be that your student’s experience is more personal, dynamic and uniquely tailored to maximize the individual student’s test scores and academic potential. A personal relationship between the private tutor and the student often enables the tutor to inspire the student to practice with enthusiasm and, ultimately, to test with confidence.

But as I’ve already mentioned, a downside to this option is that it could become rather expensive, if you’re even fortunate enough to find an experienced and qualified private tutor you like.

William Lynch is an Author, Speaker, Coach and leading expert in the College PlanningIndustry.
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