PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — One local high school student received a perfect score on the SAT!
With just a pen and paper... and a lot of studying, a junior at Largo High School, Grayson Burns, changed his life forever.
“It’s still kind of a shock, even two months later," said Burns.
He received a perfect score on the practice SAT and then a perfect 1600 score on the SAT this school year.
“Unbelievable. I never thought of myself as that person who is in the top one percent, and I still don’t really," said Burns.
According to the College Board, almost two million students take the SAT every year, and only 1% of those students receive a perfect score.
Burns was shocked when he saw his.
“I was checking continuously throughout the day, and apparently, the one 30-minute time interval that I didn’t check, my mom checked, and she texted me scores were out," said Burns.
Burns’ mom, Tracy Ellis, said she always knew he had the potential to do something so incredible.
“He had started talking before he was two, so I knew he had the brain power for it, and he just loves math. He does math for fun. He did calculus ahead of time," said Ellis.
But it’s not just natural intelligence... Burns says getting ready for the SAT took dedication.
“There’s a lot of practicing involved. I took quite a few practice tests. There’s PDFs online that you can look for test questions and answer keys, and then you can self-score and see how you did," said Burns.
He is now sharing some of his study methods with others.
“I always suggest do a lot of practice tests, then the night before, do one practice test, and then leave it for the rest of the night and then go to sleep early and wake up the next morning feeling refreshed and do your best on the test," said Burns.
Now instead of using his pen and paper to study... he’s using it for college applications, with his dream of getting into Stanford University.
“I’m definitely going to continue to try my hardest," said Burns.
“He’s always just been very focused on the things he loves, and lucky for me, he loves learning," said Ellis.
