1. UNDERSTANDING YOUR PSAT/NMSQT RESULTS

2. 4 Major Parts of Your PSAT/NMSQT Results Your Scores Your Skills Your Answers Next Steps 3 Test Sections Critical Reading Mathematics Writing Skills

3. Score You can see your projected SAT score online in My College QuickStart (www.collegeboard.org/quickstart).www.collegeboard.org/quickstart Your Scores

4. Score Range Your Scores (cont.)

5. Percentile If you are a junior, your scores are compared to those of other juniors. If you are a sophomore or younger student, your scores are compared to those of sophomores. Your Scores (cont.)

6. National Merit Scholarship Corporation Information

7. National Merit Scholarship Corporation Information (cont.) The Selection Index is the sum of your critical reading, mathematics and writing skills scores. If it has an asterisk, you do not meet all of the eligibility requirements for the competition.

8. National Merit Scholarship Corporation Information (cont.) The Percentile compares your performance to that of other college-bound juniors.

9. National Merit Scholarship Corporation Information (cont.) The Entry Requirements section displays information you provided on your answer sheet.

10. Your Skills

11. Your Skills (cont.) See how you did on each skill. The same skills are tested on the SAT. You can try hundreds of practice questions, organized by skill, online in My College QuickStart (www.collegeboard.org/quickstart).www.collegeboard.org/quickstart

12. Your Answers

13. Your Answers (cont.) You will get your test book back with your PSAT/NMSQT results, so that you can review the questions. You can also review each test question in My College QuickStart.

14. Your Answers (cont.) You will get your test book back with your PSAT/NMSQT results, so that you can review the questions. You can also review each test question in My College QuickStart.

15. Your Answers (cont.) You will get your test book back with your PSAT/NMSQT results, so that you can review the questions. You can also review each test question in My College QuickStart.

16. Your Answers (cont.) You will get your test book back with your PSAT/NMSQT results, so that you can review the questions. You can also review each test question in My College QuickStart.

17. Your Answers: Student-Produced Responses

18. Your Answers: Student-Produced Responses (cont.) Some of the math problems required you to grid in answers instead of selecting an option. For these questions, you will see the correct answer(s) written out.

19. Next Steps

20. Next Steps (cont.) What’s next? Use the access code on your report to log in to My College QuickStart, a personalized college and career planning kit. There you can: Search for colleges Get a personalized SAT study plan Take a personality test to find majors and careers that fit you See your AP Potential www.collegeboard.org/quickstart

21. My College QuickStart

22. My Online Score Report Projected SAT® score ranges

23. My College QuickStart My Online Score Report State percentiles

24. My College QuickStart My Online Score Report You can filter questions

25. My College QuickStart My Online Score Report Questions and answer explanations

26. My College QuickStart My SAT Study Plan™ Personalized skills to improve

27. My College QuickStart My SAT Study Plan™ SAT practice questions

28. My College QuickStart My SAT Study Plan™ An official SAT practice test

29. My College QuickStart My Personality Personality test Description of your type Tips for success Majors and careers that might be a good fit for you

30. My College QuickStart

31. My College Matches Starter list of colleges Criteria to customize search Ability to save searches

32. My College QuickStart My College Matches Starter list of colleges Criteria to customize search Ability to save searches

33. My College QuickStart My Majors & Career Matches Major you chose Related majors Related careers

34. My College QuickStart

35. My AP Potential Courses you’re likely to succeed in Courses that match majors you’re interested in Courses that were offered at your school last year

36. My College QuickStart The shading of the steps icons illustrates your potential

37. My College QuickStart Choosing a major puts a checkmark in the Matches Major column next to appropriate courses

38. My College QuickStart This column tells you if this course is likely offered at your school

39. My College QuickStart Look for courses where you have “potential”, it matches your major, and it’s offered at your school

40. My College QuickStart Log in to your personalized account at www.collegeboard.org/quickstart

41. Specific Graduation Requirements for Future Ready Core (FRC) Math- Common Core I, II, and III along with a 4 th math English I, II, III, and IV Social Studies- World History, American I, American II, Civics and Economics Science-Earth Science, Biology, Physical Science 10 additional elective credits 26 credits total *Foreign Language

42. College/Career Planning-- In the 10 th Grade! College Admission Offices pay careful attention to the following: Grade Point Average (GPA) Difficulty of course load SAT/ACT scores Class rank High school and community activities Recommendations Essays

43. Tips: Get Organized! + Create a College List Include “realistic” schools, “reach” schools, and at least one “safety” school -see list of NC Colleges’ average GPAs, SAT and ACT scores to help + Create a Master Calendar + Visit CollegeBoard.org and CFNC.org to research colleges

44. College Planning Resources + Collegeboard.org: - 2 Main purposes:  1) PSAT, SAT, AP testing information/practice  2) search for colleges & majors + ACT.org - Main purposes:  ACT, PLAN testing information/practice

45. CFNC.org + Must create an account on this site to send transcripts to schools within NC. + Site can also be used to apply to many schools in NC. + Search for colleges by region or major. + Search for careers & take interest inventories.

46. SAT vs ACT SATvs.ACT reasoning test Type of Test content-based test Critical Reading: 2, 25-min sections and 1, 20-min section; Math: 2, 25-min sections and 1, 20-min section; Writing: 1, 25-min essay, 1, 25-min section, and 1, 10-min section Test Format English: 1, 45-min section; Math: 1, 60-min section; Reading: 1, 35- min section; Science: 1, 35-min section; Writing: 1, 30-min essay (optional) reading, vocabulary, grammar & usage, writing, and math Content Covered grammar & usage, math, reading, science reasoning, and writing (optional)

47. tricky, questions can be phrased in ways that make them difficult to decipher Test Style straightforward, questions may be long but are usually less difficult to decipher Math, Critical Reading, and Writing scores will each range between a 200- 800; total SAT score ranges between 600-2400 Scoring English, Math, Reading, and Science scores will each range between 1- 36. Composite ACT score is the average of your scores on the four sections; ranges between 1-36 * New in March 2016 there is no more penalty Penalty for Wrong Answers? no – you do not lose points for incorrect answers yes – you can choose which set(s) of SAT scores to submit to colleges Score Choice? yes – you can choose which set(s) of ACT scores to submit to colleges

48. questions increase in difficulty level as you move through that question type in a section (except reading passage questions, which progress chronologically through the passage) Difficulty Levels difficulty level of the questions is random arithmetic, data analysis, algebra I and II, functions, geometry; formulas are provided in the test booklet Math Levels arithmetic, algebra I and II, functions, geometry, trigonometry; no formulas are provided with private schools and schools on the east and west coasts; however, every four-year college in the US accepts SAT scores Tends to be more popular? with public schools and schools in the Midwest and south; however, every four- year college in the US accepts ACT scores

49. seven times per year: January, March or April, May, June, October, November, December Offered when? six times per year: February, April, June, September, October, December (note that some states offer the ACT as part of their state testing requirements; these tests are not administered on the national test dates) typically about four weeks before the test date Registration deadline? typically about five to six weeks before the test date www.collegeboard.com More Information www.act.org

50. Types of Student Financial Aid + Grants + Scholarships + Loans + Employment

51. + Merit-based -academics -talent -athletic -others + Need-based -financial considerations Student Financial Aid

52. College Costs + Direct + Indirect + Vary widely from college to college

53. Institutional and Outside Aid Institutional Aid Grants & Scholarships Loan Programs Student Employment Outside Agencies Local organizations Churches Civic Groups Parents’ employers Veterans Administration Vocational Rehabilitation Services

54. Additional Information + College Foundation of North Carolina -www.cfnc.orgwww.cfnc.org + StudentAid.gov -http://studentaid.gov/http://studentaid.gov/ + Student Financial Aid for North Carolinians -www.cfnc.org/fabookwww.cfnc.org/fabook + The SmartStudent Guide to Financial Aid -www.finaid.orgwww.finaid.org + Publications in local libraries

55. Contact information: Robert McAuliffe 10 th Grade Counselor rmcauliffe@wcpss.net 919-554-6632