PSAT freshman year

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have a child at a school that gives the PSAT freshman year? My son was accepted to a single sex Catholic HS and on the calendar is the PSATs for freshman. Just curious if this is common or not.

[Anonymous]

i don't think it's common but kids take practice PSATs all the time. absolutely nothing to lose other than 3 hours or so testing time

[Anonymous]

Yes, it's common, MCPS does it -- it's the PSAT 8-9, slightly easier than PSAT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, it's common, MCPS does it -- it's the PSAT 8-9, slightly easier than PSAT.

l


Thanks. Do the results just get sent to the parents? Is it the same grading scale as the actual SATs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, it's common, MCPS does it -- it's the PSAT 8-9, slightly easier than PSAT.

So that’s like pre-pre-SAT?

[Anonymous]

MCPS does it. I think it was self graded so not even sent to the College Board.

[Anonymous]

FCPS does PSAT 8/9 for all freshmen. Grading scale is slightly different. Material is different. It doesn’t count for anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, it's common, MCPS does it -- it's the PSAT 8-9, slightly easier than PSAT.

l


Thanks. Do the results just get sent to the parents? Is it the same grading scale as the actual SATs?

It’s the same grading scale as the actual PSATs. Not the same as SATs. I took the PSATs in the 1970s, this test is not new. You can google scoring and score conversions and NMSF standards.

[Anonymous]

It is out of a lower number...720? It does not contain any math above algebra.

[Anonymous]

Yes, my DS at a private Catholic HS took PSATs his freshman year. I was surprised too, I thought it was a 10th grade thing, but learned our county public schools also administer it to freshman.

[Anonymous]

It is common. Don't worry about it, don't prep for it, and don't read too much into the results.
https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/pdf/psat-8-9-understanding-scores-fall.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is common. Don't worry about it, don't prep for it, and don't read too much into the results.
https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/pdf/psat-8-9-understanding-scores-fall.pdf

Thanks PP!

[Anonymous]

The only PSAT that counts for National Merit is the Junior year PSAT. The rest are simply practice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, it's common, MCPS does it -- it's the PSAT 8-9, slightly easier than PSAT.

l


Thanks. Do the results just get sent to the parents? Is it the same grading scale as the actual SATs?

You can probably make it so that the scores aren't shared. I think my kid checked a box saying scores could be shared and that has generated a lot of mail/flyers from colleges. No point to them, though. She should have just waited for the real PSAT in 11th grade to get these kinds of flyers.

I think your grading scale question has been answered elsewhere -- it's different, I think the max is 1520. And as I said, the PSAT 8/9 is different than the real PSAT -- it has slightly fewer topics. The PSAT 10 is the exact test as the real PSAT taken in 11th, but only the 11th grade one is considered for qualifying for National Merit stuff.

[Anonymous]

College Board set up the grading scale to show growth in the absolute score number from test to test.

Supposedly, the score will show what the student would have scored on the SAT had they taken it the same day. However, as noted, the different tests have different ceilings. PSAT 8/9 has a lower ceiling (1440) than the PSAT (1520), and the PSAT has a lower ceiling than the SAT (1600).