Thanks! That makes sense. I agree just one more time is plenty. The timing is what I’m unsure of (on the one hand, fall will be right after prep, on the other hand, spring will be after another year under belt). It doesn’t sound like PSAT/aiming for NMF is worth it though.
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Thanks! That was actually my thought process - originally I just wanted him to have a baseline but with a decent score under belt, if he can prep this summer with tutor to see if can squeeze out enough to get to 1500 with superscore - then be done by Oct test and “relax” a bit so he can focus on tough classes and enjoying his ECs. He won’t have time to prep over school year. Then spend next summer working on lists/applications etc. So far, the tutor has said she’ll be able to assess how much is realistically possible to gain after a few weeks so will see what she thinks about Oct vs June. I’m leaning towards not asking him to take PSAT though who knows what he decides after talking to friends.
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Most people do PSAT in school with minimal prep, there’s little point in opting out. I certainly saw a lot of progress between fall and spring of junior year, just in terms of maturity in test taking. It wasn’t in any way a matter of intensive prep immediately before the test. In my view PSAT matters a lot more than SAT, especially as colleges that are test blind still seem to take account of National Merit awards (even Commended is helpful).
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Thanks that’s extremely helpful. Sounds like what everyone is saying is consensus - PSAT in Oct and then SAT in spring. Even though no time to prep during school year maybe the extra test will be prep in itself. Thank you!
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If he’s liking coops, look at Temple too. NEU has become so popular that it should be considered a reach for anyone. If i recall correctly, this one had a single digit acceptance rate last year!
Pitt could be worth a look too.
While I agree with the other posters about PSAT in fall and SAT in spring, I can definitely see a benefit to having it behind him sooner than later. If he’s super prepared, there could be a benefit to taking it in fall or winter. I would not advocate for a strategy that requires investing a lot more time on prep during junior year, which is a busy and stressful year.
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