I often hear people label themselves as either a “good test taker” or a “bad test taker.” While I will acknowledge that certain people react better under test conditions, I would ask that people stop using the “bad test taker” excuse.  As with most challenging activities in life, you are good at what you practice. Would you say you are a “bad driver” if you only drove a car once or twice in your life? Taking a 4 hour exam like the SAT takes discipline, endurance and most importantly practice.

I was fortunate enough to start taking the SAT in 6^th grade. While the test was well beyond my twelve year old capabilities, taking it at a young age allowed me to understand the mental endurance I needed to succeed. By the time I took the SAT as a junior in high school, I had taken it 7 times under real testing conditions. While most school districts don’t offer the SAT the way mine did, there are plenty of available free practice tests: The Official SAT Guide has 10 tests that could be used to accomplish this goal.

Ryan