UWorld’s Unique SAT Prep Site

When I first visited UWorld’s College prep site, I expected what usually is included on free SAT/ACT prep sites–questions, answers, and a lot of cheerleading.

I should have known better. UWorld is a leading provider of question bank materials for professional licensing exams like USMLE, ABIM, and ABFM, considered by many to be the gold standard in test preparation. Now, UWorld has expanded into SAT prep (as well as ACT and AP prep). The site includes over 1200 questions written by experienced educators and designed to be similar to what students will find on the real SAT. With each question is a rigorous explanation, step-by-step instructions, and helpful images about the logic behind answers.

Features include:

• Choose your difficulty level–low, medium, hard.
• Get hints to help you find a starting point for the answer.
• Customize practice tests to focus on mastering specific concepts within subjects.
• Create your own flashcards for quick review.
• Track your time and performance to improve your pace.
• Monitor progress with reports and graphs.
• Compare your results to peers as a gauge of performance. This includes questions they got correct, how much time they took answering individual questions, and the types of questions they are struggling with.
• Identify weaknesses and improve strengths.
• Flag questions that you’d like to review later.
• Define difficult words from within the app (for reading prep).

Registered students can access questions at the pace they’d like, take full timed tests to build test-taking stamina, pause during testing, flag questions they want more work on, save generated tests to finish or retake later, and more.

UWorld College Prep can be used on iPads, smartphones, or desktop computers. It is free to try for thirty days. After that, subscriptions vary from $49-$99 for a full year.

How to get started

This is simple:

• Sign up for a UWorld account.
• Select SAT.
• Follow the brief tutorial before starting.
• Create a test. Options include:
  • timed or tutor mode
  • questions to include (all, flagged, or missed) and how many
  • difficulty level
  • subject
• Go!

Pros

Using UWorld College Prep is intuitive, straightforward, and allows much customizing to suit student needs. Students can craft a test to their level of expertise and change it as they become more knowledgeable. This prevents the frustration and stress of getting too many questions you don’t have a clue how to answer!

The best part of using UWorld for SAT prep is their explanations. They are detailed, easy-to-follow, with supportive pictures. I like that they explain why incorrect options are incorrect.

While I didn’t test it out, UWorld promises fast and friendly customer support for those with problems. Any experience in this area?

Cons

There is a forum with lots of participants in the other question banks but few in the SAT option. I assume this is due to the newness of the SAT prep option.

***

Overall, UWorld College Prep is thorough, scalable, agile, granular, and student-centric, offering a dynamic method of achieving success on the SAT test. Because SATs are no longer simply the gateway to college but often a normative measure of high school learning, success is more important than ever. UWorld provides a real way for students to deliver their best on what to many is a stressful but transformative step on the way to becoming an adult.

Here are a few screenshots to take you into the program:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

–this is a sponsored post

Jacqui Murray has been teaching K-18 technology for 30 years. She is the editor/author of over a hundred tech ed resources including a K-12 technology curriculum, K-8 keyboard curriculum, K-8 Digital Citizenship curriculum. She is an adjunct professor in tech ed, Master Teacher, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice, CSTA presentation reviewer, freelance journalist on tech ed topics, contributor to NEA Today, and author of the tech thrillers, To Hunt a Sub and Twenty-four Days. You can find her resources at Structured Learning.