When Is The PSAT Just For Practice?

My daughter is a sophomore and will take the PSAT in October.  Does she need to take a prep class?  We don’t want her scores to have a negative impact if she tests poorly. The PSAT is a month away and for many parents it is the first recognizable step in college planning.  Then the questions begin . . .

• Does my student need to take the PSAT?
• Will these scores be sent to colleges?
• What if my student does poorly?
• Do we need a prep class?

For 95% of students the PSAT is just a practice version of the SAT.  Scores won’t be sent to colleges or used for admissions, so a poor PSAT score will not hurt a student’s future opportunities.  For most students the PSAT is a perfect occasion to experience the questions and format of the SAT under official, timed conditions.  To understand when the PSAT is just for practice, you need to know more about the test. The PSAT is given once a year in October.  School districts have a choice of a Wednesday or Saturday administration and, unlike the SAT, PSAT registration is done through the school.  (Home school students should contact the guidance counseling office at a high school in their area to register.) The significance of the PSAT differs by grade level.

• 9^th Grade – Some schools offer the PSAT to freshman; it is just for early practice.  (Usually the test is offered to freshman because the majority of the school will be taking the test, so it is easy to add more students at the same time.  Don’t worry if your school doesn’t offer the PSAT for 9^th graders.)
• 10^th Grade –I strongly recommend ALL sophomores take the PSAT as a predictive tool for National Merit Scholarship qualification. Again, scores are only used for practice, but students who do well in 10^th grade may need to study before the PSAT in 11^th grade.
• 11^th Grade – 95% of juniors are taking the PSAT for practice; the top 5% of test takers are attempting to qualify for National Merit Scholarships.  This is the only year a student can use his or her PSAT results to qualify for the National Merit program.
• 12^th Grade – I have families ask about taking the PSAT senior year.  Don’t bother.  Seniors need to take the SAT in the fall and can find a full-length practice test on the College Board website.

So for all 9^th and 10^th grade students – show up, pay attention, do your best, and use your PSAT results to plan for the future. You don’t need to take a prep class this year. Juniors—use your results from 10^th grade to decide whether you need to get serious and prepare for the PSAT or whether you are taking the test for practice. (In the following weeks I will give more information about National Merit Scholarships and how students can prepare for the PSAT as juniors.)]]>