Most Common MISCONCEPTIONS About PSAT

The Preliminary SAT (PSAT) is a standardized test administered by the College Board and is co-sponsored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation in the United States. In simpler words, PSAT is like a ‘mini-SAT’ which is taken by Indian students as a practice test for the SAT exam. The PSAT helps students get familiarized with the concept of standardized testing and offers excellent practice at an early stage- quite unlike the exams they typically experience in school.

However, PSAT does have a few misconceptions attached to it.

Let’s debunk the most common PSAT misconceptions, so you can make the right decisions for you.

Taking the PSAT is not useful.

This perception is not completely flawed; however, why would the College Board conduct an exam if it is not useful? Though we agree that taking the PSAT does not provide scholarship opportunities for Indian applicants, taking the PSAT does pave the path for assured success. Students should be encouraged to take the test so that they gain a good understanding of their skills and identify areas they need to work on.

The student can be stress-free during the test and get a sense of their natural abilities. Moreover, taking the PSAT helps the student get familiarised with the concept of standardized testing and offers excellent practice for the same. It can even aid in deciding whether to take the SAT or the ACT at a later stage.

The PSAT is a good indicator of your SAT performance

This is absolutely untrue. Taking the PSAT is the first step. It prepares you for the SAT. As a matter of fact, students fare well on the SAT than they do on the PSAT. This is simply because the PSAT makes you better prepared for the SAT.

PSAT provides scholarship opportunities for Indian applicants

Well! There is little or no truth in this. It is true that PSAT is co-sponsored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation in the United States, but unfortunately, it does not provide scholarship opportunities to international students.

PSAT scores affect college admission

A super low score on the PSAT would have absolutely no effect on college applications. It should be regarded as a practice test which makes you better prepared for the SAT/ACT.

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