I am no stranger to the standardized exam. In my time in high school, I have taken more than 10 of them! Before you can zero in on any kind of advice I might give, I would recommend taking both the SAT and the ACT to get a baseline score, and also to see which of the two tests you prefer. Some people like the SAT better because there is no Science section (as there is in the ACT). In my case, I found the ACT to be a better fit for me, and so I will refer to tips that helped me ace the ACT test specifically.

My first piece of advice would be to pick up the official ACT review guide put out by the company who writes the ACT tests. This book has review material as well as several practice tests that have questions that have been on actual ACT tests. So often, other companies like Princeton Review or Kaplan make up questions that, while they might be similar, are not official test questions. You will want to practice with the real deal when you can.

Second, familiarize yourself with the test format itself. How many questions long is it? How much time do you have to take the test? Time management is very important when taking standardized tests. So many first-time test takers find that they run out of time. Learning to pace yourself accordingly is key. Do this by taking several practice tests before test day to work out the timing and see where you need to focus your studying. If you do find yourself in a time crunch when the real test day rolls around, remember… never leave any question blank. There is no penalty for guessing. If you have 5 minutes left, take that time to make sure every bubble is filled in.

Once you’ve determined where your strengths and weaknesses lie, you can develop a study plan. Start formulating a study plan well in advance of the test (months if you can). Work your way through the ACT study guide and work the problems they give you. If you have certain areas of weakness, devote some extra time to them if you can.

On test day there are a few pieces of advice I will give you. First, don’t be afraid to mark in your book! Write out those math problems if you need to. And for those reading, science, and English sections… circle, underline, draw arrows… whatever you need to do in order for you to bring attention to things you need to watch out for in text. In addition, do the questions you absolutely know how to do first. You want to be sure and get all the points you can and then come back to the questions you are unsure about or ones that take more time to figure out. And again, if you absolutely don’t know how to do something, bubble in a random letter. A tip that I read somewhere was, choose a letter of the day as your “fill in letter” and stick with it. Fill in every unknown answer with the letter of the day.

Finally, be sure and eat a good breakfast before you take the test. Take a few deep breaths. You’ve got this! Remember that no matter what the outcome, you’ll want to take this test again. Many schools these days will accept super scores (the best score from each section). Most likely, your score will only go up from here. Now go in there and give it your best!