<li>I’ve been beating myself up, even though people keep telling me “that’s okay, I got 150” or “They don’t really count for anything”. I’m wondering if I should still even holding out for UC Berkeley, if I can’t even make more than a mediocre test score.</li>
</ol>
<p>Nobody IRL cares about this.</p>
<p>is that telling me to shut up, or did you mean it encouragingly? sorry, I can never tell about these things</p>
<p>Look at your score report and take note of what you got wrong. Then, study up in these areas. The SAT is a bit harder in that the math is more advanced and there is an essay to write, of course. But the PSAT's main value is to get you ready for the SAT. If you work hard, you can do very well on the SAT. Don't give up now! Best of luck.</p>
<p>My score broke down to Reading-63, Math-64, and Writing-60. thanks for the advice.</p>
<p>Srabiee, what score would satisfy you? I got a 191 as a junior, then a 2030 on the SAT. I was hoping for a 203 to get commended, but I realized that the the PSAT was merely a practice test and that the SAT was more important. Here's a breakdown of my scores from the PSAT to the SAT:</p>
<p>Math: 64 to 710
Reading: 60 to 640
Writing: 67 to 680</p>
<p>A 124 to a 1350 is a decent gain in my opinion. If you want the same kind of increase, just study some SAT prep books and your score could go up quite a bit.</p>
<p>that makes me feel a bit better. How many books did you study and how long did you study? I'm planning on taking the SAT in March.</p>
<p>The Math is what I prepped the most for, as you can see by the increase. I did all of my prep out of 2 books: The Princeton Review Cracking the SAT book, and the the College Board blue book. I took about 5 practice Math tests and only 2 practice Reading tests. I only took 1 Writing test because I really wasn't that concerned about it. The increase in CR was mostly due to luck, but I credit the math increase to the preparation. The Blue Book gives good tests and the Princeton Review book gives good advice for guessing on challenging questions. Once you're over 600 in a section, the only thing stopping you is the stupid tricks hidden in the tricky questions. Good luck on the SAT.</p>
<p>I retook in December. I'm hoping for a higher Critical Reading score.</p>
<p>Isn't 150 average? My first PSAT, I got 182, and got a 200 point increase in terms of SAT. Don't worry - for starters, 1800 is good for the first try on SAT anyway, and PSAT isn't a good indicator of SAT performance if you don't prep for PSAT and do prepare for SAT.</p>
<p>I'd buy a book and go through it entirely. The blue book is good for practice tests - really good. You fill them out and then type up the answers online and gives you a breakdown of your strengths and weaknesses (nothing paper couldn't do, but I found it useful). When reading the section in the prep book (PR, Barrons, whatever), as you read the math section, do the math sections from the practice test and note improvements in scores. And also sign up for the SAT question a day on the CB website, and maybe get a word a day calendar or something...</p>
<p>Overall, I'd aim to do as many practice tests as possible. But you have plenty of time until March, so relax!</p>
<p>srabiee=nobody gives a hoot about the PSAT. Don't stress. Why test in March and not the June exam? More time to learn and prepare.</p>
<p>As I said before, the PSAT seemed like a big deal to me when I was a junior. All I wanted was to get a commended score. When I came up short, I was upset, but I eventually told myself that the SAT is all that matters.</p>
<p>thank you all for the book recommendations. I don't know whether I'll take the SAT on March 10th and the SAT Subject Tests on May 5th OR take the SAT on May 5th and take the SAT Subject tests on June 2nd, but I'm leaning toward the first.</p>
<p>My girlfriend got a 151 when she was a sophomore last year, which percentage-wise for sophomores was well, well above average.</p>
<p>However, if you are a junior...work on those scores.</p>
<p>It's okay. I got 145 in 9th grade.</p>
<p>151 for sophomore is like 61-63 percentile....</p>
<p>Last year it wasn't. I just looked at her scores a few days ago...the percentiles for each category were like 80s Verbal 60s Math 80s Writing. I'll look into it for accuracy.</p>
<p>DONT WORRY! Really, you' will not end up a garbageman because of the SAT. Do not get caught up int he whirlpool of "If I don't do well ont his, I won't get into a good, then I won't, etc, etc"...the most successful people are not the smartest-they are the hardest workers.</p>
<p>The PSAT isn't that good at predicting your overall SAT score. I'd take some practice tests and see what range you're in and compare this range with the target range for the universities you're planning on applying to.</p>
<p>I TOTALLY agree with Anon<em>Person</em>1. <em>applauds</em></p>
<p>But in any case, the PSAT is just a PRACTICE test for the SAT.
For the SAT, review, accumulate a nice vocabulary set, and take it.
The SAT is what's important. If you want, take the ACT instead (it counts for SAT II's as well! yay!). Those are the tests that matter.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that test scores are NOT the only thing colleges look at, though. So don't beat yourself up over your scores anyway. Just do your best and keep working hard. :)</p>
<p>same feelings with me..</p>
<p>i feel like an idiot. my parents sent me to a wonderful private school and i continued to disappoint them with a idiotic 204 on the psat (junior year). How much does National Merit even matter? I am not trying to act stingy but I just hate myself when I knew I could do better. by the way, i just got it back and winter break just let out.</p>