PSAT Scores Back Meredith Ney Territory Manager Meredith.Ney@review.com

What We’ll Discuss Today Your PSAT Test Results The Changes Coming to the SAT College Admissions/Testing Timeline Your Testing Options How can The Princeton Review help you? Text VALCollege to 877-877 for more information! IF YOU ARE PRESENTING AFTER THE JANUARY 2016 SAT, PLEASE CHANGE THIS SLIDE TO… - The changes to the SAT

Dream School Exercise Write down your top 3 dream schools

Dream School Exercise Take out: All Ivy League Schools Stanford UCLA MIT UC Berkeley Notre Dame

Dream School Exercise Choose the right school for YOU! For all those schools we just talked about there were 29,522 Freshman slots in 2015. There are over 40,000 high schools in the United States. Translation: There are fewer Freshman slots at those schools than there are Valedictorians.

What is the PSAT? It’s a “pre-SAT” Doesn’t count towards your college admission. Practice for the real SAT. High PSAT scores can qualify you for a National Merit® scholarship (among others). If the SAT is MLB, the PSAT is Little League. Good practice and it gives you a sense of the game, but its not the big leagues.

Highest possible total is 1520. Your College Board PSAT Score Report… Highest possible total is 1520. ***COLLEGE BOARD PSAT SCORE REPORT SLIDES*** ONLY INCLUDE IF YOU ARE RUNNING A PSAT SCORES BACK FOR THE OFFICIAL TEST. DON’T FORGET TO DELETE THESE SLIDES IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO USE THEM. Each section is scored 160-760 and then they are added together to get the total score.

General Format and Scoring New SAT PSAT 10 - PSAT / NMSQT PSAT 8/9 1440 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1600 1400 320 The PSAT exam you just took will look very similar to the New SAT that’s being released, with the addition of an optional essay. This year marks the first time that there are separate tests for the different grade levels. Before, Sophomores would just sit alongside Juniors when the PSAT was administered. Now there is also a spring administration date just for the PSAT 10. When talking about the PSAT, make sure to mention the differences in the tests for PSAT 8/9, PSAT 10 and the PSAT. PSAT 8/9 – Establishes a starting point for 8th and 9th graders for college and career readiness, as well as giving insight into trouble areas a student would need to focus in to prepare for the PSAT 10 or PSAT. Scoring: Composite scores will range between 240—1440 and section scores for Math and Evidence-based Reading/Writing will be between 120-720. PSAT 10 – only offered in the spring for schools who choose that option. The version of this test is the same as the PSAT/NMSQ, just given on a different date. Tests all the same concepts in Math and Evidence-based Reading & Writing (as the SAT). Scoring: Composite scores will range between 320-1520 and section scores for Math and Evidence-based Reading/Writing will be between 160-760. 1520 240

Your College Board PSAT Score Report… The College and Career Readiness Benchmark shows how close the student is to mastering that content section on this test, based upon their grade level. ***COLLEGE BOARD PSAT SCORE REPORT SLIDES*** ONLY INCLUDE IF YOU ARE RUNNING A PSAT SCORES BACK FOR THE OFFICIAL TEST. DON’T FORGET TO DELETE THESE SLIDES IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO USE THEM.

Answer key, so you can continue to practice! Your College Board Score Report… Answer key, so you can continue to practice! ***COLLEGE BOARD PSAT SCORE REPORT SLIDES*** ONLY INCLUDE IF YOU ARE RUNNING A PSAT SCORES BACK FOR THE OFFICIAL TEST. DON’T FORGET TO DELETE THESE SLIDES IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO USE THEM.

Your College Board Score Report… Tips ***COLLEGE BOARD PSAT SCORE REPORT SLIDES*** ONLY INCLUDE IF YOU ARE RUNNING A PSAT SCORES BACK FOR THE OFFICIAL TEST. DON’T FORGET TO DELETE THESE SLIDES IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO USE THEM.

NMSQ… Our state qualifying score is: TBD ***COLLEGE BOARD PSAT SCORE REPORT SLIDES*** ONLY INCLUDE IF YOU ARE RUNNING A PSAT SCORES BACK FOR THE OFFICIAL TEST. DON’T FORGET TO DELETE THESE SLIDES IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO USE THEM. Our state qualifying score is: TBD Qualifying Score = (reading + writing/language + math)*2

Parents of Juniors NMS Selection Index > 180? May be selected for next stage Letter of Commendation (Sept 2016) Semifinalist (Sept 2016) If Semifinalist, may be Finalist (Feb 2017) If Finalist, may be Scholarship Winner (April 2017)

34,00 Commended 16,000 Semifinalists 7,400 Merit Scholarship Winners NMSQT 1,500,000 Entrants 50,000 Recognized 34,00 Commended 16,000 Semifinalists 15,000 Finalists 1,200 Special Scholarship Recipients 7,400 Merit Scholarship Winners ***COLLEGE BOARD PSAT SCORE REPORT SLIDES*** ONLY INCLUDE IF YOU ARE RUNNING A PSAT SCORES BACK FOR THE OFFICIAL TEST. DON’T FORGET TO DELETE THESE SLIDES IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO USE THEM.

The ACT/SAT are important, but… A good ACT/SAT score by itself will not get you into your dream school. But a poor test score will keep you out! PSAT/PLAN are practice tests for SAT and ACT respectively. They don’t count toward admissions, but get Sophomores and Juniors thinking about taking the real test. We’re going to focus on SAT and ACT, though if you’re thinking about Subject Tests and AP Tests we’ll have time for questions at the end.

Where will your scores take you? (Encourage your local office to make a list specific to YOUR area—Northern California did this a few years back, and it was a very welcome addition to Strategy Sessions, and a handy piece of collateral to share with school counselors.)

Did you know that the SAT is Changing? Let’s walk through the differences between the current SAT and the New SAT. IF YOU ARE PRESENTING AFTER THE JANUARY 2016 SAT, PLEASE CHANGE THIS SLIDE TO… “Did you know the SAT has changed? Let’s walk through the differences between the old SAT and the new SAT.”

General Format and Scoring Change Current SAT New SAT SECTIONS 3 subjects Math Critical Reading Writing Skills (essay included) 2 Areas Evidence-Based Reading and Writing *Optional essay not included in other scores SCORING Total score out of 2400 200 – 800 for each subject Composite score out of 1600 200 – 800 for each of the 2 Areas IF YOU ARE PRESENTING AFTER THE JANUARY 2016 SAT, PLEASE CHANGE THIS SLIDE TO… Old SAT and New SAT The PSAT exam you just took will look very similar to the New SAT that’s being released, with the addition of an optional essay.

Other Changes Change Current SAT New SAT GRAPHICS None other than graphs in math problems. Charts and graphical elements throughout the exam. HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS AND SPEECHES Not featured. Will appear throughout the exam. CALCULATORS Permitted throughout the math sections. Permitted on only one of the two math sections. FORMAT Paper and pencil only Paper and pencil IF YOU ARE PRESENTING AFTER THE JANUARY 2016 SAT, PLEASE CHANGE THIS SLIDE TO… Old SAT and New SAT

Answers Change Current SAT New SAT ANSWER CHOICES 5 answer choices per question 4 answer choices per question INCORRECT ANSWER PENALTY 1/4 point off for each incorrect answer on multiple choice questions No penalty for incorrect answers IF YOU ARE PRESENTING AFTER THE JANUARY 2016 SAT, PLEASE CHANGE THIS SLIDE TO… Old SAT and New SAT

SAT vs ACT for Parents & Students Gold standard: Practice tests! Take both practice SAT and ACT Can use PSAT as Practice SAT Note: No Writing score Still should take practice ACT to determine which test to take

SAT vs ACT for Parents & Students PSAT greater than 1200 Strongly consider taking the SAT PSAT scores close to SAT scores Already strong on the test Especially if sophomore – should easily improve over the next year

SAT vs ACT Poor performance on hard PSAT reading questions Consider taking the ACT Reading questions are more straightforward on ACT Caveat – Timing is more constrained on ACT Strong performance on hard PSAT reading questions Consider the SAT Strangely worded questions are found across the SAT Student can use time to get harder questions right

SAT vs ACT Math “No-Calculator” section worse than “Calculator” section Consider the ACT Calculator always permitted on ACT Math Weakness may also be due to algebra skills ACT is only 1/3 Algebra vs. 2/3 on SAT

SAT vs ACT Weak Heart of Algebra and Passport to Advanced Math Consider the ACT ACT includes more Geometry and Arithmetic ACT is Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry SAT is Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, Statistics

What do the PSAT and SAT measure? What do the SAT, ACT and new SAT measure? Admission tests.. True False … measure intelligence? … can be used to award aid? … reflect your GPA in high school? … predict your college GPA? … can be prepared for? … should be prepared for? … test what you’ve learned in HS? 

Pretty Predictable Questions on the SAT expect you to respond in a pretty predictable way. What do they want you to answer on this question? If a store raises the price of an item by 20%, then decreases the new price by 15%, what was the percent change in the price of the item? pretend the cost is $100 - a 20% increase makes it $120 - take 15% off $120 ($18).  New total is $102.  Percent increase is 2%

Introduction – Basic Strategy POE: What It Is and Why It Rocks Because the SAT & ACT are multiple choice exams, the correct answer will always be right in front of you. By using Process of Elimination (POE), you increase your chances of gaining points. Any time you can tell that an answer choice is wrong, cross it off! The wrong answers are there for one reason: to distract you and keep you from picking the right answer! POE applies to both tests.

Process of Elimination What is the capital of Malawi? London Tokyo Paris Madrid Lilongwe Teacher Note: Don’t have to solve problem all the way through; simply need to convey how JB and POE can help eliminate answer choices.

Ballparking For some questions, you can ballpark the correct answer without even solving the problem! You can eliminate 36 because some of the seats are broken, so the roller coaster isn't full. Also, way more seats are fine than are broken, so it's going to be more than 4.

Pacing and POOD DO the questions that you have time for and aim for accuracy. DON’T waste time with questions that are too hard or too long. ACCURACY REIGNS SUPREME. Personal order of difficulty. It doesn’t matter how MANY you finish – it only matters how many you answer CORRECTLY. On the SAT, which has a fairly explicit order of difficulty, that means students show focus more on earlier questions than on later questions. The next slide details a different thought process for ACT.

Breaking down college admissions year-by-year Visit schools Work on your college essays Grades Activities Prep for SAT/ACT Freshman Sophomore Summer Junior Summer Senior Grades Activities A practice PSAT Grades Activities SAT/ACT Grades Activities SAT/ACT (if needed)

Freshman & Sophomore years Homework Help = Better Grades More than 40 subjects including AP classes. Get help with homework, go over a concept you missed in class or prepare for a big exam. Work with an expert tutor 96% of students report they improved their grades. Grades Activities Practice PSAT Better Grades Guaranteed. Try a free 30 minute session at PrincetonReview.com/academic-tutoring

Junior year Comprehensive Test Prep Better Grades Guaranteed. Your Choice: Classroom Courses Semi-Private Instruction Private Tutoring Online Prep EXCLUSIVE! Student Portal with access to videos, paced practice questions, quizzes and more. EXCLUSIVE! Chat with a Teacher on the student portal connects you to our expert instructors 1:1 online through test day. Test Prep SAT/ACT Grades Better Score Guaranteed. Activities How do you want to prep? We have options to fit any schedule and learning style. Better Grades Guaranteed.

College Admissions Counseling Senior year College Admissions Counseling Work with a former Ivy League admissions expert. Find the right school, write a perfect college essay. Application strategies to access more scholarships. Take the stress out of the application process. Test prep Visit schools SAT/ACT Activities Grades Optional College essays The Princeton Review is #1 at getting students into top colleges. Better Grades Guaranteed.

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Meredith Ney Territory Manager Meredith.Ney@review.com TEXT: VALCollege to 877-877