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Health & Fitness

Road to College - PSAT

What is PSAT and is it worth taking it?

PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) is a standardized exam that opens doors for National Merit Scholarship programs. It is offered once a year and most schools invite their sophomore and junior students to sit for this test. For 2011, PSAT’s are offered on Oct. 15, with some schools offering it on Oct. 12. Registration is through the school’s guidance office and for most the deadline to register is Sept. 30. Results are available in early December.

Some of the questions that concern parents are: What impact does the PSAT have on the college application process? What kind of effort should go towards preparing for this test? 

PSAT scores have no effect on a student’s candidacy for admission. In fact colleges don’t even get to see your scores. However, if PSAT scores are competitive, then a student is entitled to national merit scholarships. For Pennsylvania, qualifying scores were 216 in 2011 and 214 in 2010. Even though sophomores are invited to take this test, it is the scores from juniors that are considered for the MNSQT contest.

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Why take the PSAT?

  • The PSAT is a good introduction to exposing students for longer, more demanding tests like the SAT or ACT. Many students have test-taking anxiety. Hence, their results on standardized test may not be in line with their in-class academic capabilities. 
  • The PSAT provides firsthand practice for the SAT. Therefore, scores from this test are a powerful indicator on how students will perform on the actual SAT. It also highlights a student’s strengths and weaknesses in core topic areas, which in turn can form the basis for future test preparation.

How best to prepare for the PSAT?

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  • Taking practice tests and sharpening skills in those sections that are little rusty should be more than adequate. At Chyten, we are offering a two day review workshop that will cover every section of the test with hands-on, actual test questions, followed by an actual PSAT exam.
  • This is one time where one does not need to rigorously prepare; a small warm-up should be enough. However, if you are seriously aiming for your child to be a contender for the National Merit Scholarship, then a more thorough and dedicated effort is needed for preparing for this test.

In short – take the PSAT because this is one time where you can truly "enjoy" the process of taking a test without having to worry about the repercussions and still glean valuable information that will come in handy in future.

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