The PSAT Writing section consists of a total of 39 multiple-choice questions to be answered in 30 minutes. There are three types of PSAT Writing questions: Improving Sentences questions, Identifying Sentence Errors questions, and Improving Paragraphs questions. Below you can find more detailed information about the specific skills these questions test…

The PSAT includes two 25-minute Critical Reading sections. In total, there are 48 questions on the PSAT Critical Reading sections. These sections consist of two types of questions: Sentence Completion and Reading Passage questions. The PSAT Critical Reading sections contain a total of 13 Sentence Completion questions. There are two types of Sentence Completion questions: vocabulary-in-context questions and logic-based questions. These questions come in two forms: one-blank or two-blank questions…

The PSAT has two 25-minute Math sections. These sections include a total of 38 questions: 28 multiple-choice questions and 10 student-produced response (or “grid-in”) questions. The multiple-choice questions provide five possible answers; students must determine which of the five choices is the correct solution to the question. The grid-in questions require students to calculate and grid…

The PSAT/NMSQT (National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) is a standardized test that most high schools in the United States administer to their 11th grade students. Considered to be a “preliminary SAT,” the PSAT test gives students a sense of the format, question types, content, and time limits that they will encounter on the SAT.

PSAT results are available in early December, approximately six weeks after a student takes the PSAT. PSAT Score Reports are sent to high schools, then the high schools distribute the Score Reports to students.
Beginning with the 2009 PSAT, students can also access their PSAT results online via My College QuickStart. In order to view scores online, students must…

Wondering how PSAT scores are calculated? PSAT scores are calculated in much the same way as SAT scores. Students earn 1 point for each question answered correctly. Students lose 1/4 point for each question answered incorrectly (EXCEPT on the grid-in math questions; no points are lost for questions answered incorrectly). Students neither lose nor gain points for questions that are omitted. A student’s raw score for each of the five test sections (two Critical Reading sections, two Math sections, and one Writing section) is calculated by subtracting the number of points lost from the number of points earned.

The PSAT registration fee for the 2010-2011 school year is $13. However, some high schools may charge an additional fee to help cover the cost of administering the test at the high school. If you are concerned about paying the PSAT registration fee, speak to your child’s guidance or college counselor. Your child may be eligible for a PSAT registration fee waiver. Note that fee waivers are available only to students in 11th grade.

The PLAN test is a “pre-ACT” test typically administered to high school students in the fall of their sophomore year. In addition to predicting a student’s performance on the ACT, the PLAN test measures academic achievement in English, math, reading, and science. Read on for more specific details about the PLAN test.
PLAN Test Sections &…

The PSAT is offered in October of each year. Because high schools rather than individual test centers administer the PSAT, they decide the date on which to offer the test to their students. Schools can offer the PSAT either on a Wednesday during the school day or on a Saturday. The two possible PSAT test dates for 2010 are: Wednesday, October 13, 2010, or Saturday, October 16, 2010.

Unlike the SAT, PSAT registration is not facilitated through the College Board. Instead, students register for the PSAT through their high schools. Your child’s high school guidance or college counseling office will inform you of how and when to register your child for the PSAT. If you haven’t received the relevant PSAT registration information from your child’s school by the fall of your child’s junior year, you should call your child’s guidance or college counselor.