Most SAT prep tips are either obvious (sleep well) or wrong (learn 500 vocabulary words). The digital SAT is a short, predictable, adaptive test, and preparing for it well is a matter of twelve specific habits, most of which come down to one idea: prepare for your own weaknesses on the test's own question types, under the test's own conditions. This page gives the twelve, what to ignore, how long it takes, and an eight-week plan.
The twelve tips, in order of how much score they move
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Take a full official practice test first, before any studying. The College Board's Bluebook app has the real test. The score is not the point; the marked test is. Sort every wrong answer by question type and you have your study plan. Students who skip this step study everything equally and improve slowly.
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Learn the test's own question types, not "reading" and "maths". The digital SAT asks the same kinds of question every time. Reading and Writing has about a dozen: words in context, main idea, inference, text structure, cross-text connections, transitions, the grammar conventions, and so on. Maths has four content areas with recurring forms. Study by type: ten of one kind in a row, until the method is automatic.
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Get the first module right. Each section has two modules, and the second is harder or easier depending on how you did on the first. The hardest second module is the only route to the top score range. So accuracy in module one matters more than speed anywhere else; slow down there and check.
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Master the Desmos calculator. It is built into every maths module and most students barely use it. Graphing both sides of an equation, finding intersections, checking an answer by plugging in: a student fluent in Desmos solves many questions faster and with fewer errors than by hand. Practise with it from the first week.
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Learn the grammar rules the test repeats. The Standard English Conventions questions test a small set of rules again and again: subject-verb agreement, pronoun agreement, punctuation between clauses (the comma, the semicolon, the colon, the dash), modifier placement, verb tense consistency, and apostrophes. Two hours on this list, done properly, is worth more than any other two hours in Reading and Writing.
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Keep an error log and redo every wrong question a week later. One line per wrong answer: the question type, why you got it wrong (did not know, misread, careless, ran out of time). After two weeks the log shows your pattern, and nearly every student has one dominant pattern. Redoing the questions a week later, from a blank page, is what turns a correction into a skill.
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Practise under time from the fourth week, not the last. About 70 seconds a question in Reading and Writing, about 95 seconds in Maths. Timing is a skill that takes weeks to build. Students who practise untimed until the final week discover their pacing problem on the day.
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Read the question before the passage, in Reading and Writing. The passages are short, one question each, and the question tells you what to look for. Reading the passage first and then the question means reading it twice.
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Answer every question. There is no penalty for a wrong answer. Eliminate what you can and choose; never leave a blank.
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Use the process of elimination on the hard ones. Three of the four options are wrong for a reason, usually "too extreme", "not in the passage" or "answers a different question". Learning to see why a wrong answer is wrong is faster than learning to see why the right one is right.
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Plug in numbers and work backwards on maths. Many algebra questions are faster to answer by trying the options or substituting a simple number than by solving. The test rewards the right answer, not the elegant method.
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Do a full timed test once a week from week four, in the real app, at the real time of day. Then mark it, log the errors, and spend the week on the three worst types. The test itself is the best study material there is, and the official practice tests are free.
What to ignore
- Vocabulary lists. The digital SAT tests words in context, not rare words. Reading widely helps; memorising lists does not.
- Speed reading. The passages are short. Accuracy, not speed, is what the section rewards.
- Test-day tricks ("pick C when in doubt"). There is no pattern to exploit; the time is better spent on one more question type.
- Studying everything equally. The score comes from fixing your two or three weaknesses, which the diagnostic finds.
- Cramming the final week. The SAT tests skills built over months. The final week is for timing and the error log, not new material.
How many hours, honestly
| Starting score | Target | Typical hours | Over |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below 1000 | 1100 to 1200 | 40 to 60, with the algebra rebuilt first | 12 to 16 weeks |
| 1000 to 1200 | 1250 to 1350 | 25 to 40 | 8 to 12 weeks |
| 1200 to 1350 | 1400 to 1500 | 20 to 30, mostly on hard questions and timing | 8 weeks |
| Above 1400 | 1500 plus | 15 to 25, on the specific question types still lost | 6 to 8 weeks |
Nobody honest promises a number; the ranges above are what students in each band commonly achieve with the method on this page. What decides it is whether the hours go on the right question types, which is what the diagnostic and the error log are for.
An eight-week plan
| Week | What |
|---|---|
| 1 | Full official practice test, marked, errors sorted by type. The three worst types named. The grammar rule list learned. Desmos basics |
| 2 | Weakest type in Reading and Writing: 30 questions, untimed, every wrong one logged. Weakest maths area: the same |
| 3 | Second-weakest types, both sections. Desmos used on every maths question that allows it |
| 4 | First timed full test. Marked, logged. Pacing checked per module |
| 5 | Error-log week: redo every logged question from weeks 1 to 4 from a blank page. Third-weakest types |
| 6 | Second timed full test. The hard second modules practised separately |
| 7 | Third timed full test. Only the error log and the three worst types; nothing new |
| 8 | Light week: one timed section a day, the error log reread, sleep. Test day |
The maths formulas the test gives you and the ones you must know are in the SAT math formula sheet.
The night before, and the morning
Nothing new the night before. Read the error log, redo the three most recent wrong questions, check the centre and the time, charge the device, sleep. In the morning, a normal breakfast, arrive early, and remember that the first module of each section is where to be slowest and most careful. If stress is the problem rather than the content, what works in the month, the week and the morning before an exam is in exam stress tips.
Where to get help
A 1-on-1 online SAT class with a tutor who holds a master's in mathematics or English: the diagnostic in the first class, the three worst question types named, an 8 or 12 week plan to your test date, and every timed test marked and logged between classes. For students in the USA at 7 am before school and on weekend mornings, and for students in India preparing for US and other admissions. The free 30-minute first class is a real lesson on the question types you bring.
Questions parents ask
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2How long should I study for the SAT?
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4Is the digital SAT easier than the paper SAT?
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Shobha
Founder and lead tutor, Science with Shobha
Teaching maths, science and English to children online since 2018. 500+ students, 20+ tutors, families in nine countries.