Top 10 SAT Score Tips and Strategies

The SAT is a standardized test used by colleges to evaluate students’ readiness for college-level work. Performing well on the SAT exam is essential to have your pick of colleges. However, getting a perfect score is easier said than done. Each year, the College Board releases their SAT Suite of Assessments Annual Report. The data above shows how challenging it is to score a 1600, let alone a 1400. Here are the top 10 SAT strategies, tips, and techniques that I use with my students over and over again.

1. Practice with Authentic Materials

It’s critically important that you work on authentic materials published by the College Board. Other companies create materials that look like SAT materials but they aren’t - and the quality ranges from bad to completely awful. There is a HUGE difference on working on things that look like SAT materials vs. materials that are actually SAT materials. Since the test is given in a pencil and paper format, that’s also how you should be practicing. It is not the same to read it on the screen and then fill in your bubble sheet. It makes a difference. Make sure to incorporate official practice resources from the College Board and Khan Academy in your study schedule.

Simulate Test Day Conditions

When it’s time to take a practice test, simulate the environment you can expect on the real test day. After you’ve finished the exam, review your results, taking note of your weaker and stronger areas. Realistic practice tests will train you on both the test’s format and develop your physical and mental stamina for every section.

2. Mark Up the Test and Show Your Work

Since you now have the hard copy in front of you, mark up that test. Bad things happen in my students’ heads: 3+2=6 and any answer choice looks reasonable. Also, stuff happens - kids get sick, homecoming is the night before, or the test occurs at the end of midterms.

Draw Pictures and Make Charts

If I could get one thing tattooed across my forehead it would be this: draw a picture. A cousin to drawing a picture is making a chart. The MATH isn’t that hard on the SAT. The hard part is wrestling with the question. Also, the SAT only gives points for correct answers to THEIR questions.

Read also: Decoding Yale Admissions

3. Aim for a SMART Goal

Shooting for a “high SAT” score is great and all, but it’s vague. What’s “high?” Higher than you scored last test? Above 1300? 1400? Having a certain number in mind gets you on track to make a SMART goal. Make it realistic and attainable. For example, if you earned a 1350 on your last SAT, you could aim for a 1370 next time. If you score that, you can celebrate and set a new goal. You can also determine a score to aim for by taking a look at the colleges you’re interested in. Many post their accepted students’ average SAT scores. For instance, Michigan State University tends to accept applicants who score between a 1120 and 1330 SAT Combined.

Set Meaningful Goals

Once you know your starting scores, you can set meaningful goals for yourself. It can be helpful to have short-term goals as well as a long-term goal. Your short-term goals should be within about 100 points of your current score so that it feels achievable.

4. Pace Yourself and Work Deliberately

Often students miss a question, not because they didn’t know the math concept, but because they didn’t re-read the question and realize they asked for x+1, not x. It’s better to work deliberately through the questions and not have time to answer a few at the end, then to rush through the section missing many more questions. It will usually also net you a higher score. On the Reading and Writing section, you have about 1 minute and 11 seconds per question. On the Math section, you have about 1 minute and 35 seconds per question.

Focus on Understanding, Not Just Memorization

Many students struggle with their studies because they are focused on memorizing rather than comprehending.

5. Don't Rely on Answer Choice Probability or Patterns

Any question can have the answer A, B, C, or D. You may have 10 As in a row, or no As at all, in any given series of answers. Use the Option Eliminator tool to cross off options you know are wrong to help you narrow down to the best choice.

Read also: SAT Requirements for LSU

The Reading Section Strategy

My students think that there is some magic in looking at the answer choices in the reading section. Here’s the thing - the answer choices are practically irrelevant. Read the question, go directly to the passage and find the answer, and then go back and look at the answer choices to see which one matches what you are looking for.

Avoid Half-Right Answers

Apparently in school, if you get even remotely close to the answer, the teacher will give you full marks. My students fall for half-right answers all the time. However, getting a perfect score is easier said than done - only 7% of test takers in 2025 managed to score above a 1400.

6. Create a Realistic Study Plan

A realistic study plan is a study plan you can stick to. The most important ingredients are quality, consistency, and intentionality. When it comes to quality, consider when you will be able to do your best work and set that time aside. For consistency, plan to work on the SAT at least four times a week and for at least 45 minutes at a time. And lastly, studying with intentionality means being thoughtful about what you are studying. Don’t just churn through practice problems without a sense of direction.

Avoid Cramming

You can’t cram for the SAT the night before your test. It’s not material you can memorize. The only way you can improve your SAT score is by studying. A study schedule over several months can help you tackle your weaker areas while keeping you on top of your stronger spots. While you are doing it, it feels like you are retaining so much information. But within a week much of that information vanishes. Instead, you should make sure to prep at least a few times a week and review what you’ve learned. And there is no need to do more than three hours total prep on a day; you’ll start to get diminishing returns. You’ll also want to take a break in between all that studying to let the information sink in. So break up studying throughout the week, and break it up throughout the day.

Identify Your Ideal Study Approach

Not every student retains information the same way. We always recommend that students take the time to identify the ideal study approach or to speak with a tutoring expert to learn what works for them. It's also important to switch up how you study.

Read also: Decoding Princeton Admissions

Study Techniques

Pomodoro Technique: Studying in 25-30 minute intervals, followed by a short 5-10 minute break. This approach allows students to stay energized and break their studies into more manageable pieces.
Flashcards: Flash cards are a creative way to test your knowledge.
Explain to Someone Else: This approach is simple, but effective. In short, this approach encourages the individual who is learning a concept to explain the concept, in their own words, to someone else. Why is this effective? It allows you to take complex concepts, simplify them, and understand them in a way that makes the most sense to you.
PQ4R: PQ4R stands for: Preview, Question, Read, Reflect, Recite, and Review. This approach is great if you're looking to improve your reading comprehension skills. By taking breaks in between your studying sessions to question what you're learning and reflect on your findings, you'll walk away with a better understanding of what you're reading.

7. Focus on Your Weaknesses

Missed questions are extremely valuable because they tell you what you need to work on. Use the questions you miss or get stuck on to identify what concepts you need to practice. Too often, students waste their time by practicing content that they are already good at. In many cases, our best opportunity for progress is by working on our weaknesses. Many students find that when they revisit older topics, like geometry, they actually find that it feels easier, and things that didn’t used to make sense now feel straightforward and logical.

Review Missed Questions Thoroughly

For every 30 minutes you spend doing practice problems, you should be spending at least 10 minutes reviewing the questions you missed and making sure that you understand what the question is asking, why the correct answer is correct, and why the answer you chose is incorrect. In the Reading/Writing section, this can come down to a specific vocabulary word you didn’t know or a single word that ruined an otherwise good answer choice. In Math, you may find that you wrote down an equation incorrectly, made a mistake in your operations, or solved for the wrong value.

8. Don't Go At It Alone

Find a partner (or two!) and keep each other accountable when preparing for the SAT. Share strategies, resources, and SAT study tips. Test each other, compete against each other, and, most importantly, commiserate with each other. The SAT is a rite of passage, full of its ups and downs. Working with someone else might inspire you to work harder. If you're not a competitive person, there are still many benefits to working with a partner. Sometimes it’s too hard to do it all by yourself, and study groups can help you improve and stay motivated. If you’ve been working on improving scores or problem areas and hit the wall, then don’t be afraid to look for help from peers.

Consider a Tutor

Many students can increase their SAT scores by working with a tutor. However, it can be an expensive option. Collegewise counselors and tutors are at the forefront of the ever-evolving admissions landscape. Our work has always centered on you: the student. And just like we’ve always done, we look for ways for you to be your best self - whether it’s in the classroom, in your applications or in the right-fit college environment.

9. Manage Test Day Anxiety

Taking the SAT can be nerve-wracking, but it doesn’t have to be. When preparing, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the test and pressured about failure. Don’t let that fear overtake you. Instead, when studying with practice tests, look at every wrong answer as a learning opportunity. If you miss a question, focus on why. We hear many students say that they have “test anxiety.” It is a real phenomenon, and it’s one that can be addressed. We talk with students about managing their stress and turning anxiety into excitement. We view these tests as a performance of sorts-and many of our students are performers, whether in athletics or dance or drama or music. The reality is that tests are not going to go away, especially if you go to college or want to become a certified professional (a nurse, doctor, lawyer, psychologist, even a driver).

Optimize Your Test Day Routine

Your job for Test Day is to control the things you can and to adapt to the things you cannot. Getting good rest, eating well, and staying hydrated are all important ingredients in Test Day success, and they are all within your control. You should be sure to pack all of your supplies (including snacks and water), charge your computer, and even lay out your outfit the night before the test. This preparation helps ensure you don’t forget anything important, and it minimizes the number of choices you need to make when you wake up so that you can focus on what’s most important.

Get a Good Night's Sleep and Eat Breakfast

It’s tempting to stay up late doing some last minute cramming for the SAT or ACT, but your best bet is to go to bed early! In fact, in 2012 researchers at UCLA found that sacrificing sleep for extra study time actually has adverse effects on academic performance. To get a good night’s sleep, avoid screen time for at least an hour before you plan to hit the hay. Your SAT or ACT exam is probably going to take place pretty early on a Saturday morning, so it’s easy to rush out the door without eating breakfast first. Like any other organ in the body, your brain needs food to function properly, so breakfast is important! Prep a healthy breakfast the night before and set your alarm a few minutes early so that you have time for some brain food.

10. Review and Adapt

It’s rare for students to score a perfect 1600 on the SAT on their first try. However, you can always improve your overall SAT score from one test date to the next as long as you have a plan and put in the hard work to follow it. As soon as you can after taking the test, write down as much as you can remember from it. Write down anything that confused you, was unexpectedly difficult, sections you felt confident on, etc. This will help you plan for your next study cycle because now you’re aware of what you need the most help with on a live test. After taking the SAT, you will receive your official score report. Whether it’s good or bad, use that report to your advantage. Besides your total score and section scores, pay particular attention to the subscores. These are where you will receive the greatest benefit for your next prep round. Look at the weakest scores and you’ll know what needs to be focused on next.

Understand the Test Structure

Contrary to popular belief, doing well on the SAT doesn’t just boil down to knowing a lot of math, reading, and writing skills. To score highly, you need to understand the actual test structure itself. The trick is to learn how to take the SAT. To do that, you need to use the most accurate study materials available to realistically replicate the experience and avoid developing bad habits and incorrect skills.

Additional Tips

Read Widely: The SAT is heavy on reading. Even though the passages on the digital SAT are short, they are complex and dense enough that they can give you a lot of trouble if you are not used to reading more advanced texts. So do lots of reading when preparing for the SAT (especially nonfiction). Since your “reading brain” won’t sprout overnight, this is an area in which you’ll want to get a jumpstart.
Master Basic Math Facts: Even though you’re allowed to use a calculator on the SAT, you’ll save a lot of time on test day if you know the answer to, say, 3 × 13 right off the bat.
Learn Grammar Rules: A good portion of the SAT Reading & Writing section is made up of grammar questions. While many have to do with “big picture” questions, others rely on basic grammar. You might dread the thought of learning grammar, but it is one of the easiest topics to improve on when preparing for the SAT (check out our free guide to SAT grammar rules).
Mix Up Your Study Sessions: There are essentially three different parts to the SAT test: Math, Reading, and Writing. Often when students prep they think, Hey, I’ll just do a bunch of math tonight. Studies have shown that it is much more beneficial to do study sessions in which you do, say, 35 minutes of Math and 35 minutes of Writing and Language.
Take Advantage of Small Moments: Many of us have certain parts of the day where we are just, well, sort of hanging out. Maybe we’re waiting for a friend, the bus, or an annoying commercial break to end.
Utilize Available Resources: The College Board touts its partnership with Khan Academy-for good reason! Students who use official materials have a significantly better experience than those who do not.
Practice Reading Analytical Articles: Do you like the NY Times, Washington Post, or LA Times? Great, pick them up and start reading analytical articles from any section. More into the sciences? Read National Geographic magazine or a science blog online. See a word you don’t know? Even better! Look it up, use it in a sentence, and make a flashcard for it.
Keep Scores in Perspective: Keep SAT and ACT scores in perspective. Yes, they’re an important part of the college admissions process. But remember that these tests are not a one and done event - if you don’t like your scores, you’re free to try again or to try a different test altogether. And, as any college admissions officer will gladly tell you, you are more than just a number on a page.

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