MCHS PSAT
PROGRAM
Information for Parents and
Students
PSAT/NMSQT
• What is it? (What’s the difference in
the PSAT and the SAT?)
• Who takes PSAT? When?
• What’s NMSQT?
• Who’s your competition?
• How does the process work?
PSAT
• What is it? (What’s the difference in
the PSAT and the SAT?)
– PSAT
• Practice for “Real Deal” college admissions
test
• 5 sections (2 hrs., 10 min.)
– SAT
• “Real Deal” college admissions test
• 10 sections (3 hrs., 45 min.)
PSAT/NMSQT
• Who takes PSAT? When?
– 9th and 10th graders for practice
– 11th graders for scholarship competition
PSAT/NMSQT
• What’s NMSQT?
– National Merit Scholarship Qualifying
Test
– When high school juniors take the
PSAT, their scores are used for
scholarship competition
• National Merit
• National Achievement (African Americans
only)
PSAT/NMSQT
• How does the process work?
• National Merit Scholarship
Competition (Oct. Junior Year)
-Dec. (Jr.): scores arrive
-Apr. (Jr.): letter
-Sept. (Sr.):
• 34,000 Letters of Commendation (stop)
• 16,000 semifinalists (go!)
Oct. (Sr.): MCHS reception/field
SEMIS complete packet & take SAT
– Feb. (Sr.): semifinalists who meet academic and
other requirements advance to Finalist standing
(approx. 90%).
– March (Sr.), winners of special scholarships
notified.
NMSQT
• Who’s your competition for
semifinalist?
– Juniors in the state
If MS has 3% of the nation’s incoming college
freshman, we get 3% of the nation’s
semifinalists. Student scores are listed from
the top down and CUT OFF when that
percentage is filled. The CUT OFF score may
change each year depending on % of incoming
college freshmen and performance of high
school juniors.
Qualifying Scores for the Class of 2012
National Merit Semifinalists:
Alabama 221
Alaska 212
Arizona 213
Arkansas 205
California 221
Colorado 215
Connecticut 220
Delaware 217
D.of C. 223
Florida 214
Georgia 218
Hawaii 216
Idaho 211
Illinois 216
Indiana 214
Iowa 210
Kansas 214
Kentucky 212
Louisiana 209
Maine 212
Maryland 221
Massachusetts 223
Michigan 210
Minnesota 215
Mississippi 205
Missouri 213
Montana 209
Nebraska 209
Nevada 209
New Hampshire 216
New Jersey 223
New Mexico 210
New York 219
North Carolina 217
North Dakota 204
Ohio 214
Oklahoma 209
Oregon 216
Pennsylvania 215
Rhode Island 213
South Carolina 211
South Dakota 206
Tennessee 214
Texas 219
Utah 208
Vermont 217
Virginia 220
Washington 220
West Virginia 204
Wisconsin 209
Wyoming 204
THINK ABOUT IT!
• At SCHOOL, 70 = barely passing!
• But on PSAT
Critical Reading 70
Math
70
Writing
+ 70
(Below cutoff in over 1/3 states)
210
National Merit GLORY BOUND in MS!
NMSQT
• Who’s your competition for college
admissions?
If you want to attend college out-of-state, it’s
not good enough to be an in-state semifinalist.
Your score will need to be competitive
nationally.
LAST YEAR’S
CUT OFF:
YOUR TARGET
SCORE (for
Merit $$$:
205
206
BASED ON:
• Realistic assessment of strengths &
weaknesses
• Performance analysis to ID areas
where you stand to pick up most pts.
• Commitment!
• Targeted PRACTICE! PRACTICE! And
more PRACTICE!* (3O hrs. min.)
Your current
score:
A realistic
personal goal:
?
?
MCHS PSAT PROGRAM
 DEBORAH
REED
BEVERLY
DANIEL
WRITING
MATH
SUSAN
SHIVERS
CRITICAL
READING
Education, Certification, &
Experience:
 Masters degrees in
◦ English
◦ Mathematics
◦ Social Science
 National Board Certification
 Advanced Placement Certification
 100+ years of experience combined
3
S
Approach
SKILLS:
◦ 10th Grade Class
 STRATEGIES:
◦ Summer Workshop
 SPEED:
◦ 11th Grade Class
PRACTICE IS KEY!
• Educational research shows that 30
hours of deliberate (dedicated and
focused) practice nets 12-15 pts.
• Most students simply lack the
discipline to do that in addition to
other classwork, so…
• We program 20 hours of drill into
each of our components.
DATA-DRIVEN
 SCHEDULING:
◦ 10th Grade Skills Class
◦ 11th Grade Speed Class
 LESSON PLANNING:
◦ Class Structure
◦ Class Content
 3 SATURDAYS: Real Practice Tests!
See our National Merit and National Achievement
Galleries @ http://mcjags.com/Page/7952