How Important are PSAT Scores?
The Preliminary SAT (PSAT) is considered very important by almost all the students who are considering taking the SAT. PSAT is primarily administered to select students on a merit basis in order to provide them with scholarships for their further education post their high school. We, in here, discuss everything about how PSAT is evaluated and what your scores mean.How Important are PSAT Scores?Twice a year, PSAT is administered; mostly in the month of October and the result would be out by early or mid-December. After the release of your result, by the February of the following year, the list of candidates who made to the final round of the scholarship program will be mailed. You should note that only the one with good scores would survive the stiff competition that persists among the test takers.Although PSAT is administered in order to provide scholarships to the students on merit basis, many perceive this test to be a warm-up for the actual SAT. The sections are nearly the same, the scoring pattern is analogous and the question patterns are the same too. Owing to this fact, PSAT scores would help you a lot in understanding your performance and competence levels.More importantly, the results are not only mentioned in cumulative figures but also in percentiles thereby making it convenient for you to compare your performance with those of your grade students. This way, you can change your preparation strategy for SAT. However, if you are seriously looking for a scholarship, then it is quite obvious that you stay really focused to obtain very high scores.How is PSAT Scored and Reported?Scoring for PSAT seems very similar to SAT scores. SAT scores range on a score scale of 600 and 2400. Analogous to this, the PSAT scores range on a score scale of 60 and 240. In fact, this is the total score range of the PSAT.
- Individually, each section of the PSAT is scored on a scale ranging from 20 to 80.
- The scores of the individual section are totaled and this figure is called as the Selection Index, which is the most important factor behind your success in the scholarship competition.
- It is quite important that you know how the selection indices vary and how they could be used to help you mould your preparation strategy.
- There are different kinds of PSAT score reports made available to the test takers by the NMSC, the official administrators of PSAT. Student Score Report, Summary of Answer and Skills report, State Summary Reports, Optional Reports in order to help the students have a keen understanding of their performance in the test.
- In fact, many students take the test deliberately to have an assessment of their performance levels.
Good, Average and Bad PSAT ScoresIt is quite important that you be aware of the score ranges for any competitive examination to make sure that your preparation strategy is good enough to make you reach your goal. In the year 2011, the averagePSAT scores in the individual subjects of Critical Reading, Math and Writing Skills were 48, 49 and 46 respectively. These figures, as reported by the College Board were of eleventh grade students. The average score figures of the sophomores were 43, 43 and 41 in the same order as above for the year 2011. Apparently, one can calculate the Selection Indices, which were 143 and 127 respectively.Typically, a good PSAT score means that you have go through the testing competition to enter the further round of scholarship competition. Keeping this in mind, we can say that the scores ranging between 210 and 225 would help you enter the further round of scholarship competition. Now, talking about bad scores, if your score falls below the average scores mentioned above, then you should consider yourself to be in a bad score range. Although scores as low as 60 and 70 would exist, they are extremely low and bad scores.