Wed, August 23, 2023 11:30 AM

Some families look at the PSAT as just a practice test for the SAT, but it is聽way more significant than that.聽The PSAT takes about 3 hours and includes four timed sections: Evidence-Based Reading, Writing and Language, Math (no calculator), and Math (with a calculator).聽聽Students聽can only take the PSAT once per year, and some students take this test in both 10th grade (as a practice test if their school offers it) and officially in the 11th grade. Taking the PSAT will definitely help your student discover if they need to do SAT test prep to boost their score for college admissions, assuming they decide to submit their SAT test scores to the colleges they are applying to in the future.

The results of the PSAT/NMSQT are used to determine if students are National Merit Semifinalists and Finalists.聽Being a Finalist can lead to additional scholarships and sometimes full-ride opportunities at certain colleges. In addition, receiving this recognition looks great on a High School Resume or College Application,聽especially聽if your student is hoping to get a scholarship or get into a competitive college.聽It鈥檚 important for your student聽to take this test seriously, and even better,聽prep in advance for it.

Please note only a certain percentage聽of students are selected as National Merit Semifinalists and even fewer are Finalists each year, from each state. The cutoff is based on how other students perform on this test.聽Since student performance can vary from year to year, be sure not to rely too heavily on past state cutoffs as the minimum your student should score.

Are you and your student struggling to figure out where to start prepping for the PSAT? I can help! Schedule a聽 FREE Discovery Zoom Meeting聽with me to get your student on track to achieve聽a high score on the PSAT.