Nguyen Kieu Anh, a 12th-grade student at the Foreign Language Specialized School, received her SAT results just a few days ago.

With a perfect score of 1600, she joins a small group of students globally who have achieved this rare feat. Earlier in March, she also scored 8.0 on the IELTS.

“These certificates are crucial stepping stones toward my dream of studying abroad,” Kieu Anh shared.

Kieu Anh's breakthrough in English began in middle school after a "shock" of receiving low marks in the subject. She spent her entire summer after seventh grade relearning grammar and language skills. Her efforts paid off as she rose to the top of her class and was selected for the school's English team.

“The more I studied, the more I found the subject fascinating. That’s what motivated me to aim for the Foreign Language Specialized School,” she said.

After being accepted into her dream school, Kieu Anh found herself immersed in a rich language-learning environment that nurtured her skills and inspired her to pursue international education.

After earning an 8.0 on the IELTS, she began preparing for the SAT in late April. She found SAT prep more time-consuming than IELTS, particularly due to the challenging vocabulary and complex reading and grammar sections. She initially set a target of 1530 - the minimum score for many top universities.

However, her first two attempts did not yield the desired results. One major misstep, she admitted, was her belief that doing more practice tests would automatically lead to better results.

“At the time, I was doing back-to-back practice tests. When I got answers wrong, I barely reviewed them before moving on to the next one. As a result, my score remained stagnant.”

Kieu Anh then changed her strategy. Instead of focusing on quantity, she concentrated on each practice test, analyzing every mistake, identifying the causes, and finding solutions. She adopted the "error log" method.

“This involves listing out all the mistakes, explaining why they happened, and how to fix them. Before starting a new practice test, I would review the notes to avoid repeating old errors. This approach helped me gradually improve,” she said.

Before her third attempt, Kieu Anh had completed over 100 SAT practice tests. Having thoroughly addressed her weaknesses and revised her study tactics, she entered the exam calm and confident - and earned a perfect score.

Kieu Anh shared that the math section in the SAT is generally manageable for Vietnamese students. The test focuses more on logical thinking than on in-depth knowledge. However, many questions are designed to be tricky, requiring test-takers to stay sharp.

Geometry had previously cost her points due to lengthy problems and tight time constraints. To overcome this, she reviewed formulas thoroughly, practiced speed, and learned how to manage her time more effectively.

In the reading section, topics span a wide range of fields - from science and environment to economics, society, history, and literature. Kieu Anh explained that the aim of this diversity isn’t to test knowledge but rather to assess logical thinking and critical reasoning.

The most challenging questions, she said, require students to infer the author’s intentions based on provided data.

“Inference questions demand strong critical thinking and the ability to connect information. You also need a broad vocabulary across different fields to understand the passages and answer accurately,” Kieu Anh explained.

To strengthen these skills, she regularly read international publications rich in technical language to expand her vocabulary and subject knowledge. This also helped sharpen her logical thinking and comprehension.

“When you understand the structure of a passage, it becomes easier to locate key information and eliminate wrong answers,” she said.

Her homeroom teacher, Le Thi Thanh Ha, described Kieu Anh’s achievement as “well deserved,” noting the student’s dedication and discipline.

“Kieu Anh is curious, hardworking, and has clear goals. She is one of the few students at our school to reach this level. A perfect SAT score of 1600 is exceptional,” the teacher said, adding that it will open many opportunities for her.

Looking ahead, Kieu Anh hopes that her 1600 SAT score and 8.0 IELTS will give her a competitive edge in the upcoming international university admissions cycle.

Thuy Nga