<p>Is it possible to take the PSAT as a Sophomore somewhere else besides my son's high school? At his school they take the EXPLORE in 9th, PLAN in 10th, PSAT in 11th, and SAT in 12th. There doesn't seem to be any flexibility in this. I would like him to have the opportunity to get started earlier and take the PSAT next year, and SAT his junior year. Thanks for any information.</p>
<p>There is no point in taking the PSAT as a sophomore. The score won’t count for anything.</p>
<p>Just buy some practice PSATs from CB and have him prepare off of those. No need for him to actually take the real administration.</p>
<p>How about for practice, to get used to taking the tests?</p>
<p>^ That is what practice tests are for.</p>
<p>He can still take the SAT as a junior (and should). My daughter took the SAT in October of her junior year, and the PSAT a few days later. It worked out well for her; she didn’t do as well as we had expected on the SAT, but scored high enough on the PSAT to be a NMSF. The other advantage of taking the SAT in October is that it is one of the dates for which detailed score information is available (by paying an extra $18), for students who choose to take it again. The PSAT and SAT are similar enough that preparation for the SAT also prepares one for the PSAT.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies; taking the SAT at the beginning of the junior year seems like the best option. That would be the same time as the PSAT at school. It sounds like SAT prep and practice tests at home are good enough for the PSAT. I am mostly concerned about my son’s timing for tests. He seems to not pace himself well.</p>
<p>Another option is to register trough collegeboard . com … and take the sat any time. The only catch will be if you go to a school that requires all scores to be reported. If he does not do well as a soph, he would still ethically have to report that score. My kids have take the sat since 7th grade as part of the duke program. My son also took the dec of his junior year. The plus in waiting … is to take the psat … order your answer book and he can review what he missed and prep for the next test. My son took the sat once in Dec, once in June …ACT in June …before his senior year and he was done. He did not take any tests his senior year, helped him focus on his apps.</p>