SAT/ACT

By Dr. Wayne Adams

Upcoming Exam Dates: SAT on June 4th and August 27th; … ACT on June 11th, and July 16th.

May is one of the most intriguing months on the school calendar with AP Exams (ouch! or hooray!), most seniors having some level of “senioritis”, juniors anticipating being the “top dogs” next year, and sophomores feeling a little “salty” as they move towards finishing the year.

Then there is the question, “What about those SAT and/or ACT Exams?

Right now I have SENIORS intently working to boost their scores to qualify for the 75% or 100% Bright Futures’ Scholarship. The good news about Bright Futures is the last exams to qualify are the SAT on June 4th, and the ACT on June 11th. And each of these exams has some days after school is done for final studying.

Sometimes this involves the full exam, sometimes only one or two areas in what we call “SKILL STRENGTHENING”. One student in the verbal strengthening came to me with a 520, over 150 points below her math score. Now, she is testing at a 650+ range in Writing and Language and Reading which combine into what I call the “Verbal” score. Another on the ACT is working on his math and science, which have already jumped four points in each category. One of my current seniors has already scored a 1540 on his SAT, and wants to aim for a 1600 to improve his chances of admission to his “dream school”. Two years ago I helped a young lady from Palm Harbor University High School with the same profile and goal, and she did score a 1600 on her SAT.

Most of my JUNIORS would like to hit their desired scoring levels in spring or summer so they don’t have to worry about this factor during their senior year. Usually, these students have relatively high GPAs, but lower than expected exam scores. The good news is this type of student usually “takes off” with their exam scores after they build on their current, academic foundation with our techniques, increasing familiarity witH “curve balls”(those questions seldom encountered but when it happens a student either knows how to do them or is guessing), and, of course, reducing the number of questions where a student has to guess.

Many of my current SOPHOMORES/RISING JUNIORS are getting familiar with the exam(s) and preparing for the PSAT next October which is the only national qualifying exam for National Merit Scholarships. Having helped three National Merit Finalists, qualifying can mean major, additional scholarships and a strong position for applying to “Top 5” through “Top 25” schools.

My JUNIORS and some SOPHOMORES are usually focused on getting ahead with preparing for the SAT and/or ACT and either work over the spring, or get set to prepare starting right after school finishes for the ACT in mid-July and/or the SAT the last Saturday in August. For students wanting to do a combination class of ACT and SAT, we can finish either the week just before school resumes in August (with a complementary, additional review class the week before the SAT), or the week before the actual SAT Exam. During the summer, we easily schedule around family vacations, summer jobs, athletic commitments, and “surprises” as they may arise.

If You Would Like To Talk More About Your Student … Please contact me at 727253-0639 or send me an email at wwa0811@mykolab. com.

Dr. Wayne Adams is one of the leading SAT and ACT tutors in the country. His students normally improve 200+ points on the Writing, Reading, Writing and Essay, and Math, and 4 – 7 points on the ACT composite. They have been admitted to 8 of the top 10 universities in the country, 18 of the top 25, and many schools in Florida. These schools include Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Stanford, U Chicago, Duke, U Penn, Johns Hopkins, Cornell, Notre Dame, Emory, UC Berkley, UCLA, USC, UNC (Chapel Hill), NYU, Northeastern (Boston), Boston College, Georgia Tech, Naval - Air Force - Merchant Marine Service Academies, Penn State, LSU, Auburn, UF, U Miami, FSU, USF, UCF, Florida Atlantic, Florida Gulf Coast, FIU, New College of Florida, Stetson, and Julliard – Manhattan - New England - and Berkley Conservatories of Music. Many have received academic, athletic, or music scholarships. This year, he also tutored three juniors who scored at the national merit finalist/semi-finalist levels on the most recent PSAT. He is a former Dean of a Graduate School of Business and Full Professor, and began college teaching at the University of Maryland in 1968. He has degrees and advanced studies at Harvard, Yale, Vanderbilt, Columbia International, and Luther Rice.