<p>Glad to insert some humor into all the stress. Many kids may take the SAT just as a matter of course, but where we live, lots of kids take the PSAT but do not go on to take SAT. ACT is the more common test here. This could really happen, that someone is in danger of not making NMF because of missing deadline to submit SAT score to NMSC </p>
<p>The scheduling of tests is impossible. Don’t get me started. D took hers end of junior year in June after all the various music stuff was over. Didn’t want to lose a Saturday orchestra practice. With S it’s sports. Why can’t they start offering these tests in summer? Now the school district started giving ACT during junior year on a school day. If they’d only add the SAT, it would be perfect, though too late for us. But they won’t.</p>
<p>@mmfrymire, the 201 score was the national cutoff for Commended students, not for those qualifying for NMSF. The State specific score will not be released until September. So if your kid has a score of 201 or greater, then at least they will be commended.</p>
<p>@celesteroberts, My D has not yet been able to take a SAT test because everyone except for the October 2013 test conflicted with an out of area/state event, and I didn’t think taking the SAT a week before the PSAT was a smart idea. Like your D, mine will be taking the tests at the end of her Junior year. She’s hoping for one-and-done. She’ll be taking the SAT for the first time in two weeks and the subject tests in June. I wish there was at least one test date in the summer when there is less of a conflict with school studies.</p>
<p>Thanks @mtrosemom. My son’s score was over the 201, but on the very edge of the SF score for TN (214 vs a cutoff of 212 last year). If they go up 2 points he is fine, up 3 and he misses it by 1. Based on the mean in TN going up 2 points from last year, it seems like the SF score could go up 2 points but who knows. I guess we will just have to wait and see!</p>
<p>I was able to confirm with the HS that my son’s name is on the NMSC letter. I knew his name should be there, but it is still a relief to confirm that he didn’t accidentally check the box for sophomore or not a US citizen or whatever. I got the info by emailing a teacher who is always up to speed on PSAT issues, and she forwarded my email to someone in the know. She also said the school will eventually notify the students listed on the letter. </p>
<p>mmyfrymire, the predictions here have been that 212 will be the number for TN. However, the person predicting said that TN had a lot of “scatter” in the data. </p>
<p>“I didn’t think taking the SAT a week before the PSAT was a smart idea.” </p>
<p>Actually, if your goal is nailing the PSAT, I’ve heard this is a good idea! My son took both that month. His SAT scores were so-so, and didn’t suggest he’d be a contender for NMSF. However, we were pleasantly surprised by the PSAT results. I think the SAT was just his warm up. (His SAT did clear the 1960, but wouldn’t have made PA’s cut for PSAT).</p>
<p>D totally nailed the PSAT, so not mixing the PSAT and SAT worked for her. Now she has a high bar for the SAT, but I think that 1960 or higher (much higher if her PSAT is a guide) is reasonable. I just didn’t realize how much her schedule was going to conflict with the future SAT dates. I am going to be more attentive when it’s S17s turn (poor guy).</p>
<p>Oh I hear you there @mtrosemom!!! It’s crazy busy. I’ve been trying to schedule two kids for SATs/etc, and taking them together has proven impossible. Even getting them each there on separate dates has been quite the challenge. Was it here that I saw a school that offered the ACT during the school week? I didn’t even realize that was possible, and I’m insanely jealous!</p>
<p>Colorado is a state that uses the ACT instead of a state sponsored test (for the No Child Left Behind Law) and pays for all Juniors to take the test during the school time in April. All public school Juniors, not all juniors.</p>
<p>Michigan also has a state-mandated sitting for the ACT for all juniors as part of the Michigan Merit Exam (MME) program. Students take various tests throughout HS, but the ACT is mandatory in junior year and is no cost to the student. Ours was done on a Tuesday in the first week of March this year and did not coincide with any national testing dates.</p>
<p>PA has the High Quality Keystone exams! (Sarcasm alert) My son took the algebra 1 exam last year a week after he scored a 5 on the BC calculus test. </p>
<p>@mtrosemom and PAMom21, actually my daughter took both SAT and PSAT in October and got 99th percentile in both. Taking both the tests at the same time was the best idea for her so as to leave the standardized testing behind. She actually did slightly better in SAT compared to PSAT, where she will barely make it. The simple reason, if you want to do well in PSAT and make the NMS cut, you have to do well in SAT as well. PSAT is not a lot different from SAT. If a student prepares well during the summer break, you can ace both with the same preparation. This is just my viewpoint.</p>
<p>My daughter took the SAT in December, a little over a month after PSAT. She got (equivalent to) 100 higher in SAT. She may not meet the NMS in Maryland with its high cutoff score. But we are happy with the SAT result. Same with @snowberry42, she just wanted to get these all over with. </p>
<p>@Barfly, could you please provide any “tips” regarding how to phrase an email to the school to determine whether or not your student is on the official Commended list? I asked DS’s GC about the April letter from NMSC when DS & I met with her for DS’s Jr Meeting. She totally blew me off and said she didn’t know about such a letter but she was “sure it would be fine.” Now, if there’s a chance that <em>any</em> kid in the USA checked the “sophomore” box when he should have checked the “junior” box, it would be my DS. I’m not even sure who I would email at the HS, now that the GC has blown me off, but I really want to make sure there’s no issue or error concerning his records. Believe me, if you knew our luck, you’d understand! Suggestions welcomed. ^:)^ </p>
<p>I thought there was a way to tell from looking at the PSAT score report if you accidentally checked a ‘bad’ box. Doesn’t it have to do with if there are, or are not, asterisks by the student name? Don’t know which way it goes, but I remember seeing this as discussion topic in some thread.</p>
<p>@GAD - have you checked your S’s PSAT score report? You know that over-sized paper with scores and such? Your son’s grade is shown on that report. It should say “Year: 2013 Grade:11” on the top. </p>
<p>@Gad In the horizontal bluish-gray box that has the “Selection Index” score at the left, there is a column on the right labelled “Eligibility Information”. If your son checked all the right boxes, it will say “If your Selection Index places you among the 55,000 high scorers who qualify for program recognition, you will be notified next September.” Otherwise there will be a note that an asterisk by the score means you do not meet entry requirements for NMSC’s 2015 programs.</p>
<p>On the original score sheet, or online? @GoAskDad- your school’s. Naviance will tell you if his score is filed under the right year in their office.</p>
<p>It is really strange that people here worry about if a student’s score is filed under the correct year. this scares me. Did I mark I was in year 2011? did I say I refuse to be recognized? OMG I hope I didn’t. </p>