SAT 1600 Club: Everything You Want To Know

MEK Review is proud to present our newest elite course: 1600 Club!

This course is specifically designed for driven, top students who are aiming for a perfect 1600 on the SAT.

Below we’ve included some common questions about the 1600 Club that will help you learn more about our course and how it helps students reach a perfect score.

Question 1: Why aim for a perfect score on the SAT?

The obvious answer is that it looks amazing on your college applications.

However, a 1400 or 1500 also looks great on a college application. In fact, according to SAT’s official percentile rankings, once you’ve reached a 1450, you’re already in the top 3% of the roughly two million students who take the SAT test every year.

So it’s important for you to have a clear idea of why a 1600 is your target score. After all, students who have earned this distinction tend to all have one thing in common: they are highly motivated and laser-focused on their goal. If you want to join this elite group of perfect scorers (around 300-600 students a year), you also need to have a clear reason for why you want a perfect score.

For most students, that reason will be highly connected to the colleges they want to attend. Students who wish to attend Ivy Leagues or top 20 universities can boost their admission chances by earning a 1550+ on the SAT. They can boost it even higher with a perfect 1600.

For example, Harvard reports that “the 25th percentile for admitted students on the SAT is about 1470; the 75th percentile is about 1570.”

This means that 75% of incoming Harvard freshmen scored a 1470 or higher and 25% scored a 1570 or higher. If a quarter of the class scored a 1570-1600, and you want to be a serious candidate, you need to aim for the same range.

Many students make the mistake of thinking that since the range is 1470-1600, if they earn a 1500, they’re good to go. However, you need to keep in mind your competition. Many of the students who are near the bottom half of the score range have other outstanding aspects to their application that make up for their lower test scores.

Overall, if you have big goals for your college choices, you need to have big goals for your test scores as well.

Question 2: How does MEK Review’s 1600 club help students earn a perfect score?

Over the years, MEK Review has consistently helped students achieve great scores (1400-1550) and amazing scores (1550-1600). We have used our experiences teaching these students to design a course tailored for students ready to reach for that perfect score.

Here are a few things about how our course prepares students to earn a 1600:

#1. We create a high-level, competitive environment to optimize students’ results.

In order to enroll in our 1600 Club, students must already have earned an official SAT score of 1450.

Why?

Part of what helps high achievers take it to the next level is to be surrounded by other high achievers with like-minded goals. Through a group of top-performing students, our teachers establish an intensive fast-paced environment. Students use the mix of camaraderie and friendly competition with their classmates to push themselves to their highest potential.

Students at this level are only missing a handful of questions, and need to master different pacing, practices, and techniques compared to students with lower scores.

Haven’t reached a 1450 yet? No worries! Check out our SAT 1400 program designed to get you to the 1500s.

#2. We give students the right materials.

If you talk to any academic counselor or read any SAT Prep blog, they will all say the same thing: when it comes to test prep, it’s about quality, not quantity.

Don’t get us wrong ⁠— to reach top scores, you need to spend a substantial amount of time preparing. However, if you are preparing with the wrong materials, your score is not going to improve as quickly. Additionally, it might not improve at all, if you already have a really high score.

Believe us, there are a lot of poorly-made materials out there!

That’s why MEK Review is dedicated to giving students the right materials. We provide students with materials that are very closely aligned with the official College Board SAT. To reach a perfect score, students need to know, inside and out, the format, content, and language of the SAT test.

At this level, students often aren’t missing a question because they don’t recognize or understand the topic. Instead, it’s because they didn’t understand the unique way in which the question was worded, they fell for a common SAT trap or misleading answer, or they didn’t have a set strategy to efficiently answer the question.

So it’s important for students to have materials that will help them become proficient not only with SAT topics, but SAT formatting and language.

#3.  We show students how to handle the possible test differences.

Every SAT test is a little different. While we teach our students the many aspects which stay the same, there are always minor differences. One test may have 2 Subject/Verb agreement questions; another may have 5. One test may have a Historical document passage from 1970; another may have one from 1770.

These difference can change the difficulty level of a test for an individual student. It is these differences that often account for score fluctuations.

While the SAT curves their tests to account for these changes in difficulty, the curve has consistently proven to be somewhat unpredictable. We would much rather our students rely on what’s in their control rather than what’s outside of it. With that in mind, we give our students full-length tests and study material of varying difficulty levels. By encountering tests with unexpected changes during prep, students are mentally prepared and have strategies in place to handle these changes on test day.

Also, more difficult tests can reveal to a student a hidden point of weakness. Sometimes a student may not know they have a gap in knowledge or strategy when it comes to a particular topic because they have only come across this question once or twice on a practice test.

However, when you’re aiming for perfection, every question matters! When students take a practice test that asks the same type of question 6 or 7 times, it often reveals the weakness to the student, so they can work on eliminating it.

#4. We build up student mindset.

Although a student can sometimes miss 1-2 questions on the SAT and still earn a perfect score, the key word is SOMETIMES. So students really must aim to miss 0 questions.

Our teachers help students build up the mental endurance, proven strategies, motivation, and positive attitude that is required to accomplish this difficult task.

One of the most important things we teach students is how to study. To earn a 1600, it’s not enough for students to show up and complete their assignments. They need to thoroughly understand why they picked a wrong answer. We show students how to effectively reflect and resolve their work.

Question 3: What is the length of the course?

The course is 3 intensive weeks of prep just before the August SAT. However, before students even come to class, they are given preliminary coursework to complete.

During these three weeks, students come to MEK Review 5 days a week. During 3 of those days, they are taking full-length practice tests. The remaining 2 days, they come for lecture and review. They meet with their SAT Reading teacher for 1.5 hours, their SAT Writing teacher for 1.5 hours, and their SAT Math teacher for 30 minutes.

Question 4: Why do students have pre-course work? Are they obligated to complete it?

Our expert teachers have created a special set of coursework for students to complete before the first day of class. The coursework will be graded and students are obligated to complete it as part of their course responsibilities.

Remember, this is a course for highly motivated students, so independent study time is important. This coursework helps students create a strong study routine and stay in tune with SAT content. When 1600 Club begins, it’s important for students to hit the ground running with little to no adjustment period.

Furthermore, our teachers have created multiple coursework plans that align with when a student first registers for the course. So students who sign up early receive more study materials because they have more time over the summer to complete it. So signing up early is a great way to get started!

Question 5: Why do students take a full-length test 3 times a week?

For students who have already reached a 1450, it’s imperative to have plenty of comprehensive practice. In other words, these students need to take many full-length simulation SAT tests in a timed and realistic testing environment.

These students don’t need to learn foundational knowledge or highly focus on building up a specific skill. Rather, they need to work on avoiding silly mistakes and getting the most difficult questions correct on a 3-hour mentally exhausting test designed to trick them!

After all, at the 1450 level, they are only missing a handful of questions. The key difference between scoring a 1450 and a 1550 is concentration and strategy. The difference between a 1550 and a 1600? Silly mistakes!

We give students the mental practice and strategies needed to avoid tricks or mistakes that can cost them their perfect score.

Question #6: Why isn’t the lecture time longer?

3.5 hours of lecture time a week may seem short when students are taking 3 tests a week. However, we’ve used our many years of experience with high-level students to specifically design this lecture time for maximum effectiveness.

Again, students at this level aren’t missing many questions, especially on the math section. As a result, reviewing missed questions doesn’t take much time. What matters more is learning strategies and study techniques to avoid missing a question the next time.

Our teachers show students how to get to the bottom of why they missed a question. Was it a silly mistake? A lack of or wrong strategy? A gap in knowledge? Or a SAT trap?

We help students discover the reason, give them tools to fix the problem, and time to practice independently.

Question #7: How do I sign up?

Call 855-346-1410 or contact us here to sign up today!

We can’t wait to hear from  you.

To learn more about dates, location, and costs, click here.