<p>In my view, it is MUCH easier to do well on the SAT/GRE than in school. These lame verbal/math/writing exams don’t test students on any subject matter taught in class, and they aren’t very in depth. The verbal section requires being familiar with the ETS’s favorite esoteric words and the ability to quickly zero in on the information in the reading passages that’s actually relevant to the questions. The math sections don’t require higher math - just lightning speed and the ability to evade the ETS’s booby traps. The writing section (from what I’ve read) requires memorizing and sticking to the basic outline and format of the essay.</p>
<p>The Princeton Review books and <em>Up Your Score</em> provide the important SAT/GRE principles that are critical to the warped world of ETS but worthless everywhere else. The ETS books of practice exams provide the opportunity for students to practice the Princeton Review and <em>Up Your Score</em> principles.</p>
<p>Doing well on the SAT/GRE is a MUCH more efficient way to earn brownie points than doing well in school. The former requires a little progress each week for a few months. The latter is a full-time job and lasts for YEARS!</p>
<p>Everyone should earn an SAT/GRE score that is at least as good as one’s GPA. These exams count for far more than they should, and doing well on them requires only a tiny fraction of the work that doing well in school requires.</p>
<p>And all this is a sad comment on why schools need to abandon the SAT/GRE. I already talked about this more at: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=49416[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=49416</a></p>