When it comes to the SAT, 60 points can really make a difference, thousands of dollars in fact. In my case, $16,000.

All I ever wanted to be was a fashion journalist, the next editor-in-chief of Glamour or Vogue. So when I was a junior in high school, I ignored my guidance counselor’s warnings about having a backup plan and a safety school and only applied to one college, the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. And since my dream school didn’t pay much attention to SAT scores, I decided not to retake the exam.

The next September, I applied to the fashion institute. And while I was lucky to receive an acceptance letter three months later, I didn’t anticipate my parents’ rejection. They weren’t ready to let their 18-year-old daughter move to New York City alone. And after three months of fighting, I appeased them by applying to King’s College, a private liberal-arts school in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., only 30 minutes from home.

Again, I was lucky. King’s accepted me even though I applied in March. But my prior tunnel vision hurt me in the scholarship department. While I received an academic scholarship for my GPA, class ranking and SAT score, I missed the next scholarship level by 60 SAT points, which I could have easily earned by studying and retaking the test. Knowing I could have chopped down my $50,000 undergraduate student-loan debt by $16,000 is a depressing thought.

My SAT blunder wasn’t the first or last mistake leading to these famous words: “If only I knew that when I was in high school.” I learned it all the hard way. But now you don’t have to. Every Tuesday, I’ll provide information and tips on how to prepare for college and get the most out of your postsecondary experience, giving you everything you need to know before you leave high school.

LESSON LEARNED: Many postsecondary schools administer scholarship awards based on your SAT or ACT score along with your GPA and class ranking. So take the exam seriously, even if your dream school doesn’t, because you never know where life will take you.

Ashley Cerasaro is a graduate student studying journalism and electronic media at the University of Tennessee. In a regular textme column, she shares her college experiences with high school students so they can be more informed about higher-education issues than she was. E-mail her at acerasaro@utk.edu.