Psat

Test Preparation
1

<p>I am going into the 10th grade. When should I start studying for the PSAT? (i'll be a sophomore next year) Thanks</p>

2

<p>As a sophomore, the PSAT is really a PPSAT (Practice PSAT). You don’t really need to study at all. You also can’t qualify for any National Merit Stuff, nobody really sees the test score except for you and your guidance counselor. I would just go in and see how you do. Then after you get your results, you can evaluate your performance to see how much studying you should do for when you take it Junior Year. PSAT provides a pretty decent analysis of your test performance too.</p>

3

<p>I took it last year in 8th grade and got a 52 Math, 53 Reading, 46 Writing. How does that rank?</p>

4

<p>That’s a 151, around the 60 percentile. It’d translate to a ~1500 SAT (Little lower than the national average I think?) and a 22 on the ACT. Neither of those scores are that stellar, but it’s fine for an 8th grader because you’ll probably improve over the course of the next three years. </p>

<p>If it makes you feel better, there were some kids in my grade (11) who got around that score and even lower too.</p>

5

<p>haha, what is a normal year-to-year increase?</p>

6

<p>10 points on PSAT, 100 points on PSAT to SAT conversion per year. In reality, though, it can be as much as ~30 PSAT points per year (I jumped 25 points from sophomore year to junior year with a little studying).</p>

7

<p>If you took it freshman year, assess your weaknesses in the score. By the way, this is coming from a sophomore (I’m going into my junior year) I know what I’m talking about. Essentially (I figure you want to be National Merit) find the minimum score, and aim for 5-10 points higher. (Luckily for me, mississipi is around a 205) </p>

<p>You don’t have to burn out–you have time. Just study your weakness, get an SAT review book. I personally think its killing two birds with one stone by studying for the SAT. And do practice!!! </p>

<p>In short, no matter how much you study, the fact that you’re studying will help you in both grasping the feel of the test i.e. the question type and assess where you will need work!
Good Luck!!</p>

<p>Forgot to tell you. I went from a 187 to a 223. Study!</p>