1. A CHS COUNSELING PRESENTATION
PSAT/NMSQT
A CHS COUNSELING PRESENTATION

2. WHAT IS THE PSAT? Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test
Measures academic skills needed for college
Co-sponsored by College Board (SAT) and the National Merit Scholarship Competition ($$$)
Preparatory test for the SAT

3. WHO WILL TAKE THE PSAT? Wheat & Smith 8th grade students (PSAT 8/9)
CHS 9th grade students (PSAT 8/9)
CHS10th & 11th grade students (PSAT/ NMSQT)
Wednesday, Oct. 11th

4. WHY SHOULD I DO WELL ON THE PSAT?
Scholarship opportunities
College admissions information
College connections (demographic info)

5. WHAT BENEFITS DOES TAKING THE PSAT OFFER?
Productive practice for the SAT
Build verbal & math skills
Khan Academy SAT Prep access
Scholarship info
Student Search Service
Increased access to AP classes

6. WHAT IS THE NMSQT?
NMSQT: National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Contest
An academic competition for recognition & scholarships
$$$ for college
Eligible 11th grade year
How to enter:
Take the PSAT
Say “YES” to Student Search Service (In the beginning of the test; demographic info.)

7. WHAT SKILLS WILL THE PSAT MEASURE?
Critical Reading
Sentence completion
Passage based reading
Writing
Improving sentences
Identifying sentence errors
Improving paragraph
Math
Numbers & operations
Algebra
Geometry
Statistics
Data Analysis
Probability

8. WHAT DOES THE NEW PSAT LOOK LIKE?
2 sections
Math
Evidence based Reading & Writing
Score:
2 section scores
Each section
2 hours, 45 minutes
No penalty for incorrect answers
PSAT 8/9
PSAT/NMSQT

9. WHAT DOES THE NEW PSAT LOOK LIKE?
PSAT BREAKDOWN
PSAT/NMSQT
PSAT/ NMSQT
Time Allotted
Number of Questions
MATH 60 38 70 48
READING 55 42 47
WRITING 30 40 35 44
TOTAL
145
120
165
139

10. HOW DO I DO WELL ON THE PSAT?
Read all of the directions
Read all answer choices
Do scratch work in the test book
Set a steady pace
Focus on easy & medium level questions
If you cannot narrow answer choices to two- come back later!
PSAT scores are calculated on the number of correct answer choices- not on the difficulty level of the question.

11. SHOULD I GUESS? There is no penalty for wrong answers
Before time runs out make sure all questions are answered!

12. WHAT HAPPENS NOW THAT I TOOK THE PSAT?
Set up a College Board account
Look at your results
Start KHAN Academy (
Free, specialized SAT practice for your areas of improvement

13. HOW CAN I USE KHAN ACADEMY?
Practice Tests
4 full-length tests
Study & Test taking tips
Short Quizzes
8 diagnostic quizzes
Pinpoint your areas for improvement
Interactive Practice
1000’s of practice questions
Video lessons
Hints
Instant Feedback
Provides on-going feedback
Know how much you’re improving

14. QUESTIONS? Call us: (817) 202-1240 E-Mail Us:
Glenna Pollock:
Tina Barnes:
Jennifer Cox:
Nita Fields: