Interpreting Your PSAT Score
What We’re Going to Discuss
• The PSAT’s primary purposes.
• How to decipher your PSAT score report.
• The differences between the PSAT and SAT.
• The types of questions featured on both the PSAT and
SAT.
• Criteria for the National Merit Scholarship Competition.
• Tips and strategies for improving your score.
The PSAT’s Primary Purposes
• To familiarize students with the content and question
types that will be featured on the SAT.
• To give students an accurate barometer of how they’re
likely to score on the SAT without prep.
• To qualify eligible students for the prestigious National
Merit Scholarship Competition.
PSAT Format
The PSAT is essentially an abridged version of the SAT
without the optional essay.
College Board offers three versions of the PSAT:
PSAT 8/9
PSAT 10 & PSAT / NMSQT
Understanding your PSAT Results
Understanding your PSAT Results
Your Section & Composite Scores
Are you on track?
National Percentile & Overall
benchmarks.
More Detailed Performance
Measurements
Subscores and Cross-Test Scores.
Understanding your PSAT Results
National Merit Info
Areas For Improvement
Understanding your PSAT Results
Your answers and the difficulty level
of each question:
Info on the National Merit Scholarship Competition
• The competition is fierce. Out of 1.5 million entrants, only 50,000
qualify for recognition. Approximately 9,700 students ultimately
receive distinction.
• The qualifying “Selection Index” is different for each state and is
based on the average student score within that state.
• Only Juniors can enter the competition. Ninth and tenth graders do
not qualify, even if they earn a perfect score.
• Qualified students can become a “commended student,”
“semifinalist,” “finalist,” or “scholar.” Most students who become
semifinalists go on to become scholars.
Selected State Estimates for National Merit
State
Class of 2018
CA
221
MD
221
MA
222
NJ
222
PA
218
TX
220
VA
221
AL
208
NM
209
WY
208
PSAT Reading
As with the SAT, there are five types of reading passages
on the PSAT:
• Literary Excerpt
• Social Science
• Natural Science
• Great Global Conversation
• Paired Passages
Reading: Question Types
• Command of Evidence
• Students must find evidence that:
• Best supports the answer to a question or serves as the basis for a
reasonable conclusion.
• Identify how authors use evidence to support claims.
• Determine the relationship between a chart, table, or graph and a
portion of a reading passage.
• Words in Context
• Students must use context clues to:
• Figure out the meaning or connotation of a word or phrase within a
passage.
• Decide how the author’s use of language shapes the passage’s
meaning, style, and tone.
Example of an SAT Reading
“Words in Context” Question
Writing & Language: Question Types
• Words in Context
• Asks students to select words that convey the appropriate
connotation in sentences.
• Expressions of Ideas
• Asks students to improve the organization and flow of a passage or
paragraph.
• Standard English Conventions
• Asks students to correct usage errors (verb tense, subject-verb
agreement, parallel structure, etc.), syntax, and punctuation.
Example of an SAT Writing and Language
“Expression of Ideas” Question
Example of an SAT Writing and Language
“Standard English Conventions” Question
Math: Question Types
• Heart of Algebra
• Geometry and foundational & intermediate algebra
• Problem Solving & Data Analysis
• Ratios, percentages, statistics, multistep problems involving unit
measurement, graphs, and scatterplots.
• Passport to Advanced Math
• Topics in advanced algebra and foundational trigonometry.
Example of an SAT Math
“Heart of Algebra” Question
Now that I understand my score, what’s next?
Step #1: Visit CollegeBoard.org or Naviance and compare
your PSAT score with the average SAT score for students
admitted to colleges you’re targeting. How far are you from
being a competitive candidate?
Now that I understand my score, what’s next?
Step #2: Speak with more than one expert to evaluate why
you may not have scored as well as you’d hoped. Did you
previously prep with a tutor for the SAT or ACT? Was the test
more challenging than you had expected? Was there a
disparity between your math and verbal scores? Do you feel
that you could have answered all of the questions if you had
been allotted more time?
Now that I understand my score, what’s next?
Step #3: Make a game plan! Most students take the SAT or
ACT two or three times to reach an optimal score, which we
define as a score that will make you a viable candidate for the
colleges you’re targeting. Catalyst’s Program Advisor’s can
help you interpret your test scores, highlight the areas where
you need improvement, choose between the SAT and ACT (or
both), and create a customized game plan that fits your
needs, schedule, and aspirations.
Our Approach to the SAT & Its Arch-Nemesis, the ACT
 Take the actual SAT and ACT every time the tests are offered to:
 Make sure our curriculum accurately reflects the most up-to-date versions of
these exams.
 Develop go-to strategies for quite literally every type of question students
will encounter.
 Deepen our collective expertise so that we can pass along our insider
knowledge of the SAT and ACT to our students.
 Feel really, really old.
 Develop a personalized game plan for each student, based on that student’s
greatest areas for improvement, schedule, learning style, and college aspirations.
Our Most Popular In-Home Prep Programs
Individual SAT or ACT Prep
Prep With A Friend
 One-on-one, with an expert tutor
 Two or three academically-compatible
 12 to 18 ninety-minute in-home or online
students pair up for in-home or online
SAT or ACT lessons
 12 to 18 ninety-minute in-home or online
lessons
lessons
SAT & ACT Combo
 Ideal for students planning to take both
the SAT & ACT
 24 ninety-minute in-home or online
lessons
Upcoming SAT Bootcamp at West Milford
SAT Bootcamp
Two, 4-hour days cover the full breadth of the SAT
9am – 1pm on Saturday, April 29th
9am – 1pm on Sunday, April 30th
Call Us – We’re Here to Help!
800.235.0056 / [email protected]