My child got 36 in ACT at 14. Please advise if she should take PSAT in junior year. If she should, she will need to take either SAT or ACT after PSAT to confirm PSAT score; is it correct? Thank you!
the only advantage to taking the psat is that many colleges love to tout the number of Natoinal Merit Scholars that they have; thus, they give out automatic merit money to NMSF’s. (That’s easy tax-free money so well worth it, IMO, if such colleges are of interest.)
well done to your kiddo, homeschoolers2.
umm, no, my kids have not done that.
however, if they had, and we were on the hunt for auto merit from colleges that sponsor NM scholarships, then yes, I do believe I’d have my kid take the PSAT junior year.
There are rules about when the confirming SAT/ACT scores can happen - I don’t know them; hopefully you can google that or someone else will chime in. This website is an awesome forum (no debates, no politics, with very wise posters. Stick around and read up on so much!) but for my family -money talks – so yes, I’d do it.
Do it if there is any interest in National Merit scholarship money.
If you want to get NMSF, then she will need to take the PSAT. My own kid will be NMSF for 2021, and I have discovered there are a number of very valuable scholarships automatically available, including full rides at University of Florida and other Florida schools, even for OOS.
Assuming she scores high enough to make NMSF, then she will need a confirming score on SAT or ACT. As far as I know, this score has to be within two years of the PSAT date, from as early as one year prior to as late as one year after.
Congrats to her on the ACT score.
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Why wouldn’t you? What is there to lose? The PSAT scores don’t go to colleges. If she gets NMF status and has to take the SAT, only a small handful of colleges (I think Yale, Gtown, CM) require ALL test scores be sent. So for most colleges you can still send the ACT and not the SAT scores.
Some colleges, such as Carnegie Mellon, prefer (prefer… not require) that tests submitted as part of the app be taken in junior or senior year, though.
My S20 didn’t have a 36, but we were still pretty happy about his 35 during Sept of his junior year (before October PSAT). If I could go back in time, I probably would have encouraged him to do a bit of prep-work for the PSAT. It is a somewhat different flow and approach to the ACT, and he didn’t do well enough for NMSF. You sometimes see it mentioned on these forums that some kids just test better with ACT or SAT. We didn’t think it held any importance so shrugged it off. It turns out that some of the schools that interest him have great merit scholarships for NMF kids, (as others have mentioned).
Even if she’s not targeting the big NMF schools, I’d have her take it. The $2,500 NMF scholarship may not be huge, but it’s not a bad hourly rate for a teen to take a 3 hour exam and if they scored a 36 at 14, I’m guessing they don’t need a whole lot of prep.
Mine didn’t take the PSAT after getting a 36. She also planned to apply to the schools that request all testing.
She just focused on the Subject Tests at that point.
The PSAT/SAT are different enough from the ACT that some prep is probably a good idea. Practice problems and timed sections on Khan Academy should suffice.
Will colleges accept an ACT/SAT score taken at age 14 (assuming that means she was in 8th grade at the time)?
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ACT scores can now be used as a confirming score for PSATs, so she doesn’t specifically have to take an SAT. The problem is that the one that her daughter took is to early, so she would have to retake the ACT for it to be considered a confirming score, or she could take the SAT.
ACT scores are valid for 5 years, so yes.
Regarding score reporting, keep in mind that, currently, only three colleges require applicants to report all SAT scores if an SAT score is being reported, four require all ACT scores if an ACT score is being reported, and only one college requires all sittings of both SAT and ACT.
And the PSAT is never reported to colleges.
If you have no problem paying what could end up costing $80000/ year in college tuition, and an additional $200000- $400000 if your child decides to go to graduate school, then no, there is no reason for taking the PSAT.
But if you would like to have the chance of paying NO tuition for college, then taking a 1 hr test is a very small price to pay.
My D had a 1560 SAT at 13 and still took the PSAT this year as practice and will take it next year for NMS qualification/scholarships.
SAT/ACT is required within one year of the PSAT to confirm it. You can take the opposite test if worried about a lower score, then just don’t send the other one in.
Thank you so much for your helpful inputs. Do you think if UoF considers full ride for NMF, they will consider her if she does not take PSAT? Do you think in a HS resume (for college scholarship and admission), a perfect score vs NMF, which one is more significant? To my logic, a perfect score ( and other test scores, of course) but why I read many profiles of scholarship recipients which mentioned NMF but no mention of “perfect scores” in SAT/ACT/subject tests/AP? Is that because NMF happens at junior year (young) vs ACT/SAT/subject tests /AP scores are at “older” age? If that is the case, should she be considered since she accomplished at even younger age? I am quite confused!
We understand that ACT/SAT scores are just a small part of the whole process. Since we are home-schooled, we do not have free access to AP classes, we have to pay also for classes at community college. She has received 4.00 of the classes taken at CC but knowing that OOS colleges will not appreciate much CC classes, she has to juggle her time to self-study for APs and subject tests together with CC’s classes. She is reluctant to do PSAT/SAT/ACT again if she does not see the benefits.
Thanks to ONEMORETOGO2021 mentioned UoF, I went to UoF site and got this https://admissions.ufl.edu/afford/scholarships
Looks like NMF does not get much from this school ($500/year) but they have Gator Nation Scholarship: Up to $20,000 per year (Fall/Spring, total $80,000 4 years) which does not seem to require NMF.
I would have your child take the PSAT in 11th and make any decisions about taking a confirming score test after you see her results. If she scores high and she needs to take a test for confirming score then you can make that decision then and if for some reason she doesn’t score high enough then your decision is made for you.
No.
Some schools value both NMF and perfect scores (Alabama), some value only one or the other, and some don’t value either.
Perfect scores are great, but they often don’t count for much.
The Benaquisto is the UFL scholarship to look at.
You have to read the details…Benaquisto is full COA for NMFs, including OOS students… https://www.sfa.ufl.edu/types-of-aid/scholarships/
She must take the PSAT if she wants to become an NMF. There are other schools that also offer full COA for NMF.
OP- one does not need to take AP classes to take AP exams. With your homeschooling you can always arrange the material covered to match that for AP courses. Some regular HS students will have enough self study to get 5’s. Having good AP exam scores will add credibility to your home schooling. It could also mean meeting college course requirements.
What grade level is your 14 year old? Could easily be a HS sophomore for a gifted kid like mine was. Do check on when the PSAT needs to be taken to qualify for NMS- it could be junior year only. We didn’t need the money (unlike for me when that scholarship money meant a lot) but it was nice to know our son ranked right up there. Some college students will start at age 16 or even age 15.
Do pay attention not only to required courses for colleges but the courses admitted students typically will have. Look at foreign language- having 4 HS years’ worth can mean meeting college graduation requirements at some schools, along with being common for applicants despite only two being required.