<p>Hey would you guys take pity on a mom and help me understand something? I know this is self-evident to all of you, but please help me out.</p>
<p>I've always thought that by adding a zero to the PSAT score you'd get an idea of the SAT score. Would that be the SAT score right then or the SAT score when taken at the approprirate time? Here's my confusion: daughter took PSAT in freshman and sophomore years. Scores made sense. Slightly lower in freshman year, 213-ish (don't remember exactly) in sophomore year. She took a practice SAT test last week at a required prep class. This was (I think) the first full-length SAT she's ever taken and she took it at night after a full day of work under less-than-optimal conditions. Scored 400 points-ish lower than the sophmore PSAT, including a three on the essay. She is a professional writer, for heaven's sake. Does this make sense and the PSAT has no relationship to the SAT or is it possible that bad testing conditions can have a large impact? Also, how much does fatigue really factor in?</p>
<p>as for the PSAT-SAT conversion, i'm pretty sure you multiply it by 9... but i have to say that on the SAT writing it is a completly different ballgame than professional writing. get a prep book because there are specific things that SAT graders look for, and by knowing these criteria i think that she can improve on that 3 drastically. As for fatigue, it definatly factors in, i would recommend getting at least 8 hours of sleep the day before and taking the test the next morning, just as you would on an actual SAT. that said, i don't think that fatigue can be used as an excuse for low scores. </p>
<p>And also, depending on the prep class that she is in, the practice test may not reflect the actual SAT. hope that helps!</p>
<p>PSAT scores are usually a fairly good predictor of SAT scores, so your "add a zero" understanding is usually fairly accurate.</p>
<p>Test conditions and fatigue can play a huge role in scores, including fluctuations of hundreds of points.</p>
<p>Also, some test prep companies start with a very hard tests so that they can inflate their apparent score improvement (unethical, in my opinion), and some use their own tests that aren't as accurate as real SATs. So, find out what test your daughter actually took, and if it's not a real SAT, take the score with a grain of salt.</p>
<p>And get a copy of her essay to see how that actually looks.</p>
<p>Bottom line...don't sweat it yet. It's probably just an anomaly.</p>
<p>Hey thanks a lot. You guys have good information. Pete, it's great that you said that about starting with hard tests. My daughter came out of the test and said "I feel like I was set up" because the conditions were so chaotic. She believes that they set the kids up to fail for exactly the reason you stated. I thought she was nuts. As for the three, I clicked on the tab and the score is a 3 factored into the total score, but it appears to be an actual zero. She wonders if she didn't even write her name on the essay part. She's a great essay writer, has won awards and done a program at Barnard, so a zero/three has to be an indication of a problem, no?</p>
<p>Do you guys really think that these prep companies set-up students in this way?</p>
<p>if you tell us the name of the prep company we could probably give you more information, but keep in mind that companies like PR and Kaplan are just that: companies. their goal is not to teach, it is to make money. So, to answer your question, yes, it would not be out of character for big test prep companies to do those things. </p>
<p>oh and btw, i was wrong about the PSAT to SAT conversion, you were right, it is 10 not 9.</p>
<p>So if as a student goes on about her business, the family finds in good faith that fatigue is a huge problem for this particular student, would you refrain from sending SAT scores anywhere and then concentrate on ACT?</p>
<p>What I'd recommend is taking a real practice SAT and ACT and comparing scores. Both tests are extremely long, so fatigue is not more of an issue on the SAT.</p>
<p>Since your daughter is a junior this year, she has the advantage of being able to pick and choose which SAT scores to send to schools (some schools might choose to accept only full SAT transcripts, but I honestly don't know if any have decided to go that way or not...its an option the College Board is apparently offering), so she should take the SAT even if she eventually scores better on the ACT...</p>
<p>And yes, some companies do set up their students that way. When we give an initial test, we choose one that covers a relatively broad range of SAT material (some tests are a little more narrowly focused than others) so that we get a broader picture of a student's skills, but definitely don't give them a harder or easier test to start.</p>
<p>omg i think multiply by 9 is actually alot more accurate lol.
no seriously,
i took oct sat last yr ,scored a 1430, few days later, i took the psat,i got a 159.
159 X 9 = 1431, omg lol/???</p>
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Also, some test prep companies start with a very hard tests so that they can inflate their apparent score improvement
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<p>That is some nice company you have here. In the prep course I went to, they simply mark you off for right answers just to show improvements later.</p>