It’s more common for homeschoolers to miss the PSAT exam than it is for traditionally schooled kids but it can and does happen (kid gets sick OR your school doesn’t offer it at all!)

Why do I push the PSAT? Because there’s huge money at stake!! 15,000 finalists, 8000 scholars. 
there are colleges that offer 1/2 tuition all the way through a full ride  this is one you don’t want to miss as your kid is only competing with his own state. (Also, both of my homeschooled kids won $$$$ from this scholarship.)

So what to do next?

It must be in junior year.

There are alternate PSAT test dates this month. One is tomorrow. The other in a couple of weeks. You register your child through the school that is offering it. You’ll call the school and ask for the counselor about the PSAT exam. So they would (a) have to say yes your kid can come and test with us and (b) have an extra test to offer. (The cost is about $30).

You would have to go to the college...

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT:

In the Junior year, the PSAT exam counts as a qualifying exam for the National Merit Scholarship. You are only competing against other juniors in YOUR state. 8000 first-place winners are chosen as National Merit Scholars and the scholarship for that can be anywhere from $2500 to $100,000 depending on the college you choose to attend. 

For Freshmen and Sophomores taking the PSAT for practice has been shown to increase the junior year scores by 15 points. So this is important.

If the parents work for any of the corporate sponsors there may be a scholarship available through the parent's employer for taking the exam and doing well. Generally, if this is the case, the corporation has an application that must be submitted MONTHS in advance of taking the exam, sometimes as early as winter of the sophomore year. Check the list:

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PSAT Scores are released December 9-11, 2019 but what does it mean for your teen? And what's the next step? 

Find out here!

TRANSCRIPT:

The PSAT scores are in! What’s a good score?. If your teen took the PSAT exam in October this year, congratulations you should be getting their scores either today or in the next two days. Scores are released based on the state you live in.

If you have a high school Freshmen or sophomore who took the test, don’t be at all concerned with their score Good or Bad for this year. It literally means nothing. If they did great this year, they could totally bomb next year, If they bombed it this year, they have time to work on next year. For freshmen and sophomores, the point of taking the exam is to get used to the test and the tasing environment. Now if they took the PSAT 8/9 or the PSAT 10, totally and completely blow off those scores because those tests are specifically designed for 8th, 9th and 10th graders and are easier than...

Transcript:

Mmmmm. I’m sitting in a hotel room drinking a hot mocha.

But don’t get excited, this is a poor man’s mocha. It’s just hotel coffee blended with hot cocoa mix. It’ll do in a pinch.

But today I want to talk about the PSAT exam which is coming up in just a couple days for most High School juniors.

If you have a junior, listen up. If you have an 8th, 9th or 10th grader, this is for you too.

I believe there is more Misinformation, and assumptions on this topic by well-meaning individuals AND well-meaning professionals, than anything else related to the high school to college process.

Here are a few of the often-repeated MYTHS surrounding the PSAT exam.

(1) It’s just a practice SAT test. So my kid doesn’t have to take it seriously, or my kid is only taking the ACT so there’s no reason to take the PSAT since its only to practice for the SAT.

WRONG: The PSAT is NOT a practice test. It has been used as a practice SAT, and the...

PSAT/NMSQT: If you are in 8th or 9th grade in the Spring, talk to your High School NOW about taking the PSAT/NMSQT in mid October. Some schools order the exams in the spring and you want to be certain they have an exam for you, although schools are allowed to adjust their numbers as late as September. (Homeschooled families may have to contact several schools-public and private-to find a school that will allow you take the exam with their students. You will have to pay a small fee~$25)

8th and 9th graders should take the PSAT/NMSQT exam in October this coming Fall for practice, in their 9th and 10th grade year. Do NOT let high school counselors or anyone tell you 9th or 10th graders take the ‘PSAT-10’ or ‘PSAT-8/9’ and not the real PSAT/NMSQT. That’s BS! There is no rule against it! Make sure they order for you the real one. Why spend the money and time otherwise? Take the real test with real high school Juniors. Freshman and sophomores may not...