<p>I'm planning on taking the ACT in April but my school is offering the PSAT on october 18. Should I take it or not. Also when should i start studying for ACT.</p>
<p>What grade are you? The PSAT is the only way to qualify for the National Merit scholarship program. However only the PSAT taken in your junior year of HS counts for NMS. If you are a freshman or sophomore it will not count for NMS but would be practice to give you an idea of what the test is like and you can do more prep for it for your junior year.</p>
<p>i'm a junior, but don't think i'm taking the SAT at all so would the only benefit be the NMS</p>
<p>If you get a high enough PSAT to be a semi finalist you would have to take the SAT to be able to become a finalist. Some schools offer excellent scholarships to National merit finalists so it may be worth your while. </p>
<p>Scholarship purposes is the main reason for PSAT.</p>
<p>If you are a junior I would suggest taking the ACT before April to give you the opportunity to retake it if you need to for a higher score.</p>