Montezuma-Cortez High School students in grades 10 and 11 may still sign up for the Preliminary SAT, scheduled for Oct. 14 at 9 a.m. in the school library.
Registration is in the guidance office, and cost is $17. According to M-CHS, the test process takes up to four hours. Students will be excused from class, and given a 50-minute lunch break after the test.
Students who do well on the PSAT may qualify for several types of scholarships
Doing poorly on the exam won’t hurt students’ college admissions chances, but high scores could mean more money for college.
The PSAT is the qualifying test for juniors hoping to become National Merit finalists. Students among the 15,000 finalists become eligible for part of the $43 million in scholarships awarded each year.
The PSAT is given once a year. Though students usually take the PSAT as juniors, some sophomores take the test to prepare them for the PSAT as a junior.
The scholarship process begins with the selection of National Merit Scholarship semifinalists and commended scholars. Semifinalists typically score in the top 1 percent of students in their state; and commended scholars, in the top 1-4 percent. Most of the approximately 16,000 semifinalists become finalists, and half of those receive National Merit Scholarships.
Why take the PSAT?
Some of the most common reasons for taking the PSAT/NMSQT are:
Receive feedback on your strengths and weaknesses on skills necessary for college study. You can then focus your preparation on those areas that could most benefit from additional study or practice.
See how your performance on an admissions test might compare with that of other applicants.
Enter the competition for scholarships in grade 11.
Prepare for the SAT. You can become familiar with the kinds of questions and the directions you’ll see on the SAT.
Receive information from colleges when you check “yes” to Student Search Service.
Make your mark
The Class of 2015 continued a six-year streak in which average scores fell or held steady.
To beat the average, students need to score above 495 in critical reading, 511 in math, and 484 in writing – a combined 1490 on a 2400-point scale.
More information: Contact the M-CHS guidance office.