Dear Mr. Bradshaw,

I am a high school junior and a B and C student. While I do not plan to apply to Ivy League schools, I would still like to get into a good university. My sophomore year PSAT was only average, and I am signed up to take the SAT on October 5. Is there any chance I can improve my scores by taking a prep class? My counselor said studying one or two hours a week is enough. My English teacher does offer a tutoring class in the summer. In your opinion, how should I prepare for the test?

Signed,

Concerned Student

Dear Concerned Student,

In my experience, B and C students often benefit the most from practicing for the SAT. I suggest that you take the summer tutoring class. State schools received a record number of applications this year due, in part, to top students opting out of expensive Ivy League schools to stay closer to home, where it is less expensive.

This has pushed up admission requirements, and sometimes students with lower GPAs end up having to opt for a lower-level school.

Keep in mind, I am writing from inside the SAT world. I tutor the SAT, and I know many deans of admission and understand how they evaluate students. The admissions office serves several masters, and one of their charges is to look for top students to boost the school’s rankings. The higher the scores of admitted students, the easier it is to attract high-scoring students in the following years.

Many employers also now ask to see SAT scores, and some companies have cutoff scores for potential employees. If you are an average student, doing well on the SAT will give them something else on which to judge you, other than grades.

So, let’s not kid ourselves. You need to know how to take the test if you want to score higher. The key to conquering the SAT is commitment. Keep in mind that studying for the SAT is not like anything you’ve ever done. Think of it as a chance to get ahead by being more committed than other students. According to a report from the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), students who invest time in focused test preparation often see significant improvements in their scores. The rules of engagement for Bradshaw College Consulting call for tutorials to start five weeks before the test date. Five weeks out of your life is not too high a price to pay for success.

Students should study a minimum of two hours per day, seven days a week, for a total of 70 hours. That includes one or two-hour sessions with a tutor, if possible, each week. They may use any SAT prep book or online course. The bottom line is that there are no shortcuts; it must be intense immersion, like learning a foreign language. If you’re having trouble studying, start by looking at the answers to test questions. You need to figure out why the right answer is right. College Board, the makers of the SAT, suggest that understanding the logic behind correct answers is crucial for improving scores. At this point, it’s important to focus on understanding rather than reasoning. The way to outsmart a system is by figuring out how the system works. The minute you see something in one of the possible answers that’s wrong, eliminate it.

It is very hard to write a multiple-choice test. To make a wrong answer sound plausible, the test writer must make it sound correct, then throw something wrong into it. Look for the wrong word or for a concept that is suddenly out of place. If an answer looks great except for one small thing, it’s wrong. The one that doesn’t have anything wrong in it is correct. You are not looking for the best answer; you are looking for the right answer — that is, the “not wrong” answer. Eliminate the ones you know are wrong, then guess among the remaining answers. It’s better than guessing blindly. Keep moving through the test. If a question is too hard, come back later. Understand that the test developers sometimes like to confuse people by having five (a) answers in a row.

Rules on guessing — First, go with your instincts. Second, if you have no instincts, go with the letter you’ve used last. Third, once you’ve picked a letter to guess, always guess it.

Keep a study journal — This is the only way you will be honest with yourself about how much time you study. Write in it every day and list the number of hours you studied and how many tests you took. I know from tutoring students that if you don’t write it down, you likely won’t stick to the plan. My biggest fear is that you might end up taking a course taught by people who are still trying to figure it out.

If you take a course, be bold and ask the instructor how they scored on the test. If the tutor balks at telling you, that should tell you something. Look for tutors who have scored in the 99th percentile.

Best of luck with your preparations.

Gerald Bradshaw is an international college admissions consultant with Bradshaw College Consulting in Crown Point.