At Utica High School juniors are preparing for the SAT by taking the PSAT in the 4th week of October in their math classes. The test was created by the college board in collaboration with the Educational Testing Service to Prepare students for the SAT.
“I think the PSAT is helpful for preparing me for the SAT as I don’t think I would be as prepared for the SAT if we didn’t do the PSAT,” junior Issac Hellebuyck said. “I don’t think the PSAT is stressful, actually I think it’s kind of relaxing to be taking it for some reason. I do think I am ready for the PSAT though because there’s only so much studying you can do.”
The PSAT for eleventh graders has 4 sections, two are for math and the other two are for English and reading comprehension.
“I think the PSAT prepares me for the SAT because the questions and format are similar,” junior Gustavo Martinez said. “I also don’t think the PSAT is stressful, because as long as you practice a little each day then you should be fine, and I think I am ready for the PSAT as I did study for it.”
The PSAT dates all the way back to 1938 and in 1959, the test was renamed the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT) to identify students eligible for scholarships (Source: www.nea.org)
“I think the PSAT does prepare me for the SAT by each version of the test with being efficient in my answers,” junior Robert Alvarez said. “I do think the PSAT is stressful as you’re kind of racing the clock, but I think I’m ready for the PSAT as I have been doing a lot of studying on college board.”
The test was also created for students to assess their readiness for college.
“I’d say that the PSAT prepares you for the SAT, but I don’t think the PSAT is stressful as it’s not the actual SAT,” junior Antonio Coronado said. “However, I don’t think I’m prepared for PSAT because I didn’t study for it.”
Juniors have mixed opinions on the PSAT but most of them do think the PSAT does prepare them for the SAT, whilst some are stressed out about it, and some aren’t prepared to take it.
