PSAT and SAT

greysxo

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Hi, I'm not sure if this has been posted before, but I would like a newer opinion on this.

I'm a sophomore in high school and I did not take the PSAT this year. I plan to take the PSAT my junior year and the SAT my senior year. I'm worried that I will not do well on the PSAT and will then not do well on the SAT. Do you think that me not doing the PSAT in my sophomore will effect the SATs?

Can you recommend a few ways for me to study for both?

Thank you.

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The PSAT's only real significance is for the upper ~1-2% percent (depending on state) that qualify for National Merit from it.

For almost everyone else it's just an annoying waste of half a day! Don't get discouraged from it.

When the real SAT rolls around, most people get some SAT prep books (e.g. Princeton Review) and do a few practice exams. That's all there is to it. It's not an exam that is supposed to be heavily studied for.
 
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The PSAT's only real significance is for the upper ~1-2% percent (depending on state) that qualify for National Merit from it.

For almost everyone else it's just an annoying waste of half a day! Don't get discouraged from it.

When the real SAT rolls around, most people get some SAT prep books (e.g. Princeton Review) and do a few practice exams. That's all there is to it. It's not an exam that is supposed to be heavily studied for.
Thank you!
 
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I'm a senior in high school and PSATS were a waste of time and as for it's effect on the SAT I never heard of anyone who was set back. To study for the SAT's I went on Khan Academy and studied that way. It helped me get a 1380 and I got accepted into decent pre-med schools so I haven't considered taking them again.
 
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Hi, I'm not sure if this has been posted before, but I would like a newer opinion on this.

I'm a sophomore in high school and I did not take the PSAT this year. I plan to take the PSAT my junior year and the SAT my senior year. I'm worried that I will not do well on the PSAT and will then not do well on the SAT. Do you think that me not doing the PSAT in my sophomore will effect the SATs?

Can you recommend a few ways for me to study for both?

Thank you.

Don't worry about not taking the PSAT. Contrary to what others have said, I find the PSAT to be a helpful way to get a feel for what the SAT is going to be like, but by no means is it required in order to score well on the SAT. In your junior year, the PSAT is usually only taken to try to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program. My advice to you would be to start studying for the SAT this summer. Khan Academy's SAT Prep courses are a great resource. Taking SAT practice tests and paying attention in your English and math classes are also great ways to prepare for the exam. Here's the plan I recommend:

1) Fall of Junior Year: Take the PSAT, and if you want, you can also take your first SAT as well. You don't have to, but it'll give you a baseline to see where you're at.

2) Spring of Junior Year: Take the SAT. Whether it's a retake or your first time, just make sure you take the test.

3) After you get your results back, if you're happy with your scores, that's great; you're all done. However, if you're not pleased and want to improve, keep studying and then retake the SAT later on. If you end up finding yourself in the latter situation, I'd study for the rest of the spring and the following summer.

4) Fall of Senior Year: If applicable, take the SAT again.

Not only does the SAT test your knowledge of math, reading, and writing, but it also tests your ability to take a test. For example, to score well on the exam, it's imperative that you develop strategies for multiple choice questions, such as being able to quickly rule out choices that are incorrect until you've narrowed your list down enough to choose the best answer. Another caveat is that you're going to have to read several passages that vary wildly by subject and length. Not only will have you to read them quickly, but you need to simultaneously absorb the information that it gives. Spending too much time on each question or reading the passage at a significantly slow pace is only going to make things more stressful; I know what this is like firsthand. It was my first experience with the PSAT, and I was taking my sweet time on every question. But when the test proctor told everyone that there were only 15 minutes left, I silently freaked out because I still had a lot of questions to answer and passages to read. Fortunately, I was able to finish the section just as the time ran out. Don't do what I did. Move quickly, but don't rush. Spending 1-1.5 minutes on each question is a good pace and will allow you to finish each section on time. Best of luck to you! :)
 
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I'm a senior in high school and PSATS were a waste of time and as for it's effect on the SAT I never heard of anyone who was set back. To study for the SAT's I went on Khan Academy and studied that way. It helped me get a 1380 and I got accepted into decent pre-med schools so I haven't considered taking them again.

If you don't mind me asking, what schools did you get into?
 
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