Hi Mike, I scored a 660 on the math section on the SAT. I did not answer the last two or three math questions from each section so I wouldn’t risk getting them wrong and so I would have more time for the easy/medium questions. My main question is how do I deal with the hardest math questions on the SAT? Are there certain strategies that work better for the harder questions (i.e. backsolving tends to work better on the harder questions)? I do own a copy of your Math Guide, by the way.

Skipping the last few questions is a good move if your goal is to have more time to get the earlier ones right for sure, but you’re pretty much maxing out your score at 660 if you’re skipping that many (on average, skipping 3 per section and getting EVERYTHING ELSE RIGHT will get you about 660). So yeah, if you want to go higher, you’re going to have to answer more questions.

If you look at the Blue Book Breakdown at the back of my book, you’ll see that the hardest questions come in many forms. A fair amount of them are susceptible to plugging in, so if you’re looking to, say answer 1 out of the last 3 in each section, you might start that process by scanning for questions you can plug in on. There’s no guarantee that you’ll always find one, but it’s a good way to start.

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