First Step to the Future
NASH is hosting the annual PSAT/NMSQT this Wednesday.
For some juniors, Wednesday’s PSAT is merely a practice round. For others, the stakes are higher.
October 15, 2019
With their final years in high school quickly waning, many juniors are setting their sights upon the next big step: college. To help prepare for this giant lurking in the not-too-distant future, many have registered for tomorrow’s PSAT/NMSQT.
The Preliminary SAT and National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test is co-sponsored by both the College Board and National Merit Scholarship Corporation. According to the official guide, the PSAT/NMSQT is intended to test what students learn in high school and what they need to succeed in college and career training.
The PSAT/NMSQT will be offered on the morning of October 16, 2019, at NASH. The exam is exclusively available to juniors, and the Counseling Office anticipates a large turnout this year.
“Approximately 425 juniors are taking the PSAT/NMSQT this year,” said school counselor Mrs. Rosato.
The exam can be beneficial to students by preparing them for college entrance exams. The types of questions and test formats are similar, and the time constraints differ only slightly. One significant difference of note is that the PSAT does not have an essay portion.
“I typically recommend that students take the PSAT so that they can receive feedback on their strengths and weaknesses on skills necessary for college study,” Rosato said. “This is a practice test for the SAT. Therefore, students can focus their preparation for the SAT on those areas. It doesn’t prepare them for college per se. It instead prepares them for a college entrance exam.”
A similar exam, PSAT 10, is offered in 10th grade. Both tests give students an opportunity to gain scholarships for college and evaluate their ranking nationally. However, there are a few differences between the two exams. Among the main differences between the two is that the former is always taken in the spring, while the latter is administered in the fall.
The National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test is also unique to the PSAT. The NMSQT is a test designed by the National Merit Scholarship Program. National Merit recognizes only the top-most scorers, as just 50,000 out of 1.6 million test takers are notified that they qualify for recognition. Of those 50,000, only a third advance in the competition, and from there, only 7,500 may win. The total elimination goes from 1.6 million test-takers all the way down to 7,500, which means that less than 0.5% of test-takers win the competition.
“If a student qualifies for the National Merit Scholarship, it means they scored in the top 1% in the country,” said Rosato. “If they move to finalist status, they may qualify for additional scholarships, which vary depending on the college. Some colleges even offer a full-tuition scholarship for finalists.”
Many NA juniors are hopeful of qualifying for this prestigious award.
“It’s a requirement for some scholarships to have a PSAT score,” said Meghna Behari. “I’d like to see if I can qualify for the National Merit Scholarship”
The NMSQT isn’t the only reason students take the test, though. Juniors are also taking the test for benchmark purposes — to determine where they stand nationally.
“I would also like to see how I rank when compared to the entire country’s PSAT scores,” said Behari.
Some students, however, are opting out of participating in the PSAT/NMSQT altogether. Several have decided to go for the SAT straight out of the gate.
“I took the actual SAT on Saturday, October 5th,” said Katie Oates. “I spent all summer preparing for it.”
For others who will not participate tomorrow morning, it was a case of simple oversight.
“I’m not taking the PSAT,” Mia Dudek said. “I didn’t turn in the form on time.”
