SAT Guru Alex Gershanik ’86 Returns to the School

Acing the SATs is no easy feat, but Newman students are getting an extra edge this year through an SAT prep course for all juniors. Alex Gershanik ’86 has been offering SAT and ACT preparation courses for more than 15 years, and Newman students have made up a good portion of his clientele. But as of this year, he is working with the School to provide SAT prep classes to every Newman student who passes through 11th grade. While Newman students generally perform very well on the PSAT and SAT, the School is dedicated to providing every opportunity to help its students achieve their very best scores.

The junior class is split up into small groups of students, who take the class during one of their free periods; those with a conflict during the day can take a class that is offered at 3:00 p.m. The groups of 10 or so students then study the format of the tests, commonly asked questions and question types, vocabulary, and test-taking strategies.

Each student also takes several practice tests on Saturdays leading up to the PSAT in October and the SAT in January. All students receive personal score reports for each test they take and the School monitors test score improvement with class-wide reports. There are seven practice PSAT tests given in late August, September, and early October prior to the October 17 PSAT test date. There are eight practice SAT tests given in late October, November, December, and January for the January 26 SAT test date. The School also offers practice ACT tests throughout February and March to help students prepare for the February 9 and April 13 ACT tests.

For colleges and universities sorting through thousands of applicants, a student with a strong SAT or ACT score can really stand out. Furthermore, eligibility for National Merit and National Achievement Scholarships is determined by PSAT scores. In his time as a PSAT instructor, Gershanik has seen more than 300 of his students named National Merit Semifinalists, 100 of them from Newman. With Alex on board, we can look forward to a new crop of finalists again this year.