The Scholastic Aptitude Test, better known as the SAT, has been a major source of stress for the juniors of DHS. Fear of failure has been haunting the Class of 2017 as the dates of the test loomed ever closer, and those days have arrived. The only thing to save testers now is the effort they have made to prepare for the SAT. Some have put zero time into prep for the most important test of their lives thus far, while others have worked arduously to give themselves an edge going into the assessment.

This involves forfeiting precious free time on weekends and breaks, junior Arhant Srivastava explained.

“Over Spring Break it was almost, like, two-and-a-half hours to three hours every day, except for like two or three days,” Srivastava said.

Srivastava estimated to have spent somewhere between 15 and 20 total hours on standardized testing prep during Spring Break alone. As a result, Srivastava feels “pretty confident” about taking the SAT, which he “know[s] is an important test”.

Having senior advice at your disposal is another useful crutch for any junior test-taker.

“If I had to redo it, I wish I had prepped for the SAT first, because I prepped for the ACT first and then switched,” senior Sunny Kim said.

Srivastava and Kim agree that the SAT is a substantial step up from the typical unit test given out by teachers.

“The SAT, or the ACT, is like a game that you have to prep for, it’s different than any test,” Kim said .

For this reason, one must compensate for that next stair by investing time outside of the  homework and studying that is expected during the normal school grind. Though it will be difficult to manage one’s time in order to fit time for preparation, the end result may be well worth the sacrifice.

By: Ben Zeitler