If I scored a 640 on my 2nd CAT

[Milanproda1]

Should I start practicing Advanced material? Or only if I am able to reach 700?

[terence.battle1]

I never studied the advanced material and scored a 710. In short, the advanced material is great but to get a 700+ you really only need to cover the normal coursework. If you are aiming for 740+ then I would cover the advanced material but it's not necessary to get 720 or so.

[Milanproda1]

Thanks for the advice.

[StaceyKoprince]

This is what I tell my students:

1) start with the "regular" chapters
2) if the material in a particular "regular" chapter was really easy for you, take a look at the corresponding "advanced" chapter; if it seems okay, go for it; if it seems really hard, save it for later
3) in general, prioritize the "regular" material over the advanced material; if you feel ready for advanced algebra, but you're still really struggling with regular number properties, it's important to be solid on the regular material first

At a 700 level, you might review some of the advanced material, but you certainly don't need all of it. If you're looking for 85th+ percentile in either section, then you start to need more of the advanced material for that section, and if you're looking for 95th+ percentile in either section, then you need most of the advanced material.

When I say "some" and "most," the specific material depends entirely on your strengths and weaknesses. Do the things that you're good at, and don't worry about the things that are harder for you. You don't need to review "some" or "most" of every Advanced chapter.

[Milanproda1]

Makes sense, thanks!

[StaceyKoprince]

you're welcome!