PSAT vs sat scores

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Keep in mind what really matters is your sat score, not psat. A high sat score without nmsf would not hurt your application. A high sat score in combination with nmsf shows consistency. But the value add by nmsf is minimal except for merit scholarship consideration.

THIS. The PSAT mean very little, and all the NMSF designation means is that you scored very well on it alone. It's the SAT that matters.

[Anonymous]

^than

[Anonymous]

*Unless you actually win a scholarship

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:*Unless you actually win a scholarship

Full merit ride for my NMF!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a NMF, got 1500 on both. A 1500 on PSAT is a better score then a 1500 SAT but his SAT was strong enough to qualify him for NMF.

I thought you could only use the PSAT to qualify, not the SAT?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Using SAT Scores to Understand Scores on Other Assessments

The SAT Suite—from the PSAT 8/9 through the SAT—uses a common score scale for the total and section scores. The
ranges reported for each assessment reflect grade-level appropriateness within the common score scale.

This common score scale means that a student who took the SAT and received a Math section score of 500 would be expected to also get a 500 on the PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or PSAT 8/9 if they had taken any of those tests on that same day; a score of 500 represents the same level of academic achievement on all 4 assessments.

This also means that student growth across the SAT Suite is easy to determine. If a student took the PSAT/NMSQT or PSAT 10 last year and received a 500 Math section score, then took the SAT this year and earned a 550 Math section score, that student has shown a growth of 50 points, which likely resulted from hard work both in and out of school."

https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/sat-understanding-scores.pdf

But how does that make sense when the two tests have different max? A kid who gets a perfect PSAT score is equivalent to what SAT score?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Using SAT Scores to Understand Scores on Other Assessments

The SAT Suite—from the PSAT 8/9 through the SAT—uses a common score scale for the total and section scores. The
ranges reported for each assessment reflect grade-level appropriateness within the common score scale.

This common score scale means that a student who took the SAT and received a Math section score of 500 would be expected to also get a 500 on the PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or PSAT 8/9 if they had taken any of those tests on that same day; a score of 500 represents the same level of academic achievement on all 4 assessments.

This also means that student growth across the SAT Suite is easy to determine. If a student took the PSAT/NMSQT or PSAT 10 last year and received a 500 Math section score, then took the SAT this year and earned a 550 Math section score, that student has shown a growth of 50 points, which likely resulted from hard work both in and out of school."

https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/media/pdf/sat-understanding-scores.pdf

But how does that make sense when the two tests have different max? A kid who gets a perfect PSAT score is equivalent to what SAT score?

Usually there is a correlation between the two, namely NMSF winners most likely also have a high SAT score. But not always. SAT is more difficult than psat.
In many private schools, they don't prep for psat but use psat as a part of setting the baseline for SAT prep. They typically go in unprepped to take the psat. There are far less NMSFs from private schools, which doesn't mean their SAT scores will be correspondingly low.
Personally I think there is very little value to prep for psat, unless you are after USC merit scholarship.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a NMF, got 1500 on both. A 1500 on PSAT is a better score then a 1500 SAT but his SAT was strong enough to qualify him for NMF.

I thought you could only use the PSAT to qualify, not the SAT?

The PSAT is be named a semi-finalist. To become a finalist you need a “confirming” SAT score which demonstrates you PSAT was not a fluke/cheating/otherwise. This PP is noting the SAT score was good enough to confirm and move on to finalist.

[Anonymous]

DC took SAT during summer before junior year and got 1520. Got the same score on PSAT in the fall.

[Anonymous]

You need to nearly ace the verbal section of the psat to get NM. That’s the critical component.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:SAT should be higher than PSAT.

OP here. Do you have any reasoning about that? I know that's the case if you take the PSAT first, but that's clearly due to practice and increased learning. But what about taking the PsAT after or a one to one comparison. That's what I'm trying to figure out.

NP. The tests are designed by College Board to approximate each other, in theory, even though PSAT has a lower ceiling. Due to the lower ceiling, the approximation doesn't work out very neatly at the high end of the scoring range.

However, scoring for the digital test seems more inconsistent than for the paper one. My kid took the digital got a 1560 on the August junior year SAT and then a 1430 on the October PSAT. My other kid took the paper test and got a 1550 on the August junior year SAT and a 1480 on the October PSAT.

Others may find they do better on the PSAT than the SAT even taken around the same time.

You are doing the right thing by prepping for a fall SAT now. The prep will also work for the PSAT.

Among the official digital practice tests, the lower numbered tests are easier than the higher numbered ones. Tests 4-6 are the closest approximation of the real digital test. Caveat, I can't speak to the difficulty or scoring of the more recently-released digital tests.

OP here. Thank you! That is extremely helpful to moderate the expectations for national merit. She took test 4 and 5 so far, so I'm glad to hear those are fairly representative.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Keep in mind what really matters is your sat score, not psat. A high sat score without nmsf would not hurt your application. A high sat score in combination with nmsf shows consistency. But the value add by nmsf is minimal except for merit scholarship consideration.

THIS. The PSAT mean very little, and all the NMSF designation means is that you scored very well on it alone. It's the SAT that matters.

OP again. Her school requires PSAT in fall of junior year. Honestly, we were mainly curious if she was close to the qualifying level. Not like it's going to change anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is a rising junior and is using time this summer to prep for the SAT. I've been pleasantly surprised with how she's done on the official practice tests. To the point where I wonder if she might be NMSQT competitive. But I'm also a little hung up on the difference in scoring. Would you expect a PSAT score to be higher (the test is easier?) or lower (the ceiling is lower)? She's hitting close to 1500 on her first few practice tests, so she's right at the cusp where this is relevant.

SAT will be higher. My NMF had 1510 PSAT and 1590 SAT and is on a full COA scholarship. Verbal is worth more to qualify for NMF if your kid would take advantage of the schools that offer the big money scholarships. Worth checking into. Not everyone has tons of money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:SAT should be higher than PSAT.

OP here. Do you have any reasoning about that? I know that's the case if you take the PSAT first, but that's clearly due to practice and increased learning. But what about taking the PsAT after or a one to one comparison. That's what I'm trying to figure out.

NP. The tests are designed by College Board to approximate each other, in theory, even though PSAT has a lower ceiling. Due to the lower ceiling, the approximation doesn't work out very neatly at the high end of the scoring range.

However, scoring for the digital test seems more inconsistent than for the paper one. My kid took the digital got a 1560 on the August junior year SAT and then a 1430 on the October PSAT. My other kid took the paper test and got a 1550 on the August junior year SAT and a 1480 on the October PSAT.

Others may find they do better on the PSAT than the SAT even taken around the same time.

You are doing the right thing by prepping for a fall SAT now. The prep will also work for the PSAT.

Among the official digital practice tests, the lower numbered tests are easier than the higher numbered ones. Tests 4-6 are the closest approximation of the real digital test. Caveat, I can't speak to the difficulty or scoring of the more recently-released digital tests.

NP. +1. My child had exact same score breakdown as this second poster’s child. If your kid will max out one of the sections on the SAT, the psat will have to be lower since the ceiling is 1520. Hopefully if that is the case, your child is getting a perfect verbal score if you are aiming for NMSQ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is a rising junior and is using time this summer to prep for the SAT. I've been pleasantly surprised with how she's done on the official practice tests. To the point where I wonder if she might be NMSQT competitive. But I'm also a little hung up on the difference in scoring. Would you expect a PSAT score to be higher (the test is easier?) or lower (the ceiling is lower)? She's hitting close to 1500 on her first few practice tests, so she's right at the cusp where this is relevant.

SAT will be higher. My NMF had 1510 PSAT and 1590 SAT and is on a full COA scholarship. Verbal is worth more to qualify for NMF if your kid would take advantage of the schools that offer the big money scholarships. Worth checking into. Not everyone has tons of money.

Congrats to your NMF! I’m very thankful for my NMF and his full ride. I could have paid the $30k/year for other schools but it would have been very tough. I’ve had a couple of tough years caring for a sick parent who recently passed.