<p>how good is scoring a 202 on the psat as a sophomore? </p>
<p>by the way, what around what scores do you need for national merit commended, semifinalist, and finalist?</p>
<p>Use the search function. These questions have been answered many times before.</p>
<p>202 is not bad for a sophomore, but if you are looking to get into an Ivy League (or any school of the same caliber), you should work hard to significantly improve that score for your Junior year. </p>
<p>Commended: The cutoff usually wavers between 199 and 202. This cutoff is the same nationwide and adjusted annually.</p>
<p>Semifinalist: The cutoff is adjusted each year and differs for each state. For some states, it's as low as 205 or so; in others, it can be in the 220's. Check collegeboard.com (or find old topics on these forums) to find out what your state's cutoff is.</p>
<p>Finalist: Finalists are semifinalists who have undergone the National Merit application process - filling out an app, writing an essay, etc. Most people who make semifinalist eventually become finalists also.</p>
<p>That's great for a sophomore. Study a bit between now and this fall, and you should definitely be a semi-finalist/finalist (which by the way, 90% of semi-finalists become finalists).</p>
<p>yea, don't worry too much. i went from a 193 in sophomore year to a 220. just studied some basic math concepts (my weak point). I've heard of people dropping the following year however....my poor friend went down from a 210 to a 180-something (he has a drug problem), and i'm sure it happens to others. they are exceptions; they probably aren't working on their score or aren't very vigilant. just be aware of strenths and weaknesses, and study a bit before. math is generally much easier to raise than verbal.</p>
<p>Here is a 02-04-04 USA Today article that lists the 2001 PSAT qualifying score by state. At that time, California's qualifying score was 215.</p>
<p>the California cutoff for the past couple of years has been 216-217</p>
<p>kfc4u</p>
<p>btw: 202 is a GREAT score for a Soph. Only ~four more correct problems would get you to 217 -- the math curve is brutal on this test. With another year of english, your grammar/writing should naturally improve. I strongly suggest you prep hard this summer for the SAT using CB's Ten Real SAT books. You should be able to get a good score on the psat, and then follow it and take the SAT at the same time. If you do well enough for the colleges you are considering, you are done with the SAT, and can focus on SATII's.</p>
<p>My God, I freaking hate the math curve! Lol, I know, we all do, but geez louise! I missed 2 questions, omitted none, and got a 730!! Meh. I never knew it was THAT bad...</p>