why are some people not seeing scores???
@payn4ward It’s very common for someone who scores in the 98th percentile in both verbal and math on a standardized test to have a composite in the 99th percentile. That’s because most people will have a gap of two or three percentage points, with one significantly better than the other. In other words, most people who have a 99th percentile in verbal or math have below a 97th percentile in the other subject.
I just looked at your scores, and you did exactly that!
@mathyone Your method would be great, but we just don’t have the data. I agree that what we are trying isn’t perfect, but I think it is way better than the old subtract 12 rules we were working on before yesterday.
So in April, assuming the commended cutoff is released, we will have a better idea of what NMSF cutoffs will be correct? Being right on the edge is torture! I’m hoping the commended score is lower so that the chances of Pennsylvania’s cutting going down a point or two is more likely
Hi
I am new to the whole PSAT thing. My son got 1460 and SI as 218. We live in Virginia. I have couple of questions.
a) is 218 in VA good?
b) what is the max SI for this year. Is it 228?
c) it says he got 99 percentile and not sure what it means for Commendation or Semi-Finalist. Any ideas?
Thanks
How does the NMSC selection index work? I got 1500/1520 and I only got a 224.
From the 4 published SAT practice tests I worked through (that I would guess are at least similar to the PSAT), you really need to know your algebra, and what it all means. This is valuable for all maths beyond algebra (maybe not geometry so much), but it’s stuff taught in algebra. My oldest was quite weak in some of those areas, due to graphing calculator dependence. For what it’s worth, she got a 5 for AP calc, so she’s a bright kid. But the new tests really stress graphing understanding withOUT the calculator, which is a weak point for many local students today. This includes actual graphing, translations, what your intercepts mean, etc. I tutor many students who can punch through equations, without really understanding what they are doing. Disclaimer: I went through those tests last summer, and am a little hazy in specifics at this point, but that was the take home I remember.
@3scoutsmom S doesn’t have his 2015 scores or code yet either. I contacted his GC who said she was on hold with the CB trying to get the codes. I haven’t tried to call the CB since earlier today when all I got was a busy signal. I guess, like you, we will just wait… I am not holding my breath for a high enough score to qualify based on his 2014 PSAT, but I am really curious to see if this test was easier for him than the old test. I think it might have been easier.
@randomletter I wasn’t aware of the 215 number. If that is generally correct, I agree. That may be as close as we can reasonably get for now. Trying to us the concordance graph seems misleading. I’m not sure how precise it is meant to be versus a general range from correlating two tests. Using just that seem to lead you to the conclusion that tougher states have more of a drop than weaker states.
For now I think take last year’s cutoff and subtract -5 is what I would use. It’s very imprecise, so don’t pin all your hopes to it. States themselves fluctuate year to year, so clearly this won’t be exact. It does seem to indicate that scores are likely to drop, not increase which was the early initial panic.
I just got off a call with a very helpful rep at the CB. My D created an account for her 2014 PSAT, but it was not an “on-line” accessible account. She then created an online account with an new email address for AP and 2015 PSAT. The problem is the CB does not know which account to associate the 2015 PSAT so we need to use the access code to load the PSAT scores to online account. ( Why did they not match the email she supplied on the PSAT and email on the online account? ) The CB rep confirmed that emails are coming out in waves between now and Saturday.
And yes, Customer Service will be closed Saturday.
So the Representative Sample I am assuming actually pulls a statistically “representative” set of students from across the nation and creates a curve from the chosen sample? Then the User Percentile is where you actually fell among students who actually took the test?
@PAMom21 If you are right and the 99% number drifts from 251-211, that add some more uncertaintly. Do you know what it was last year? I would still suspect that would be a reasonable first guess.
Is a 218 in Georgia good?? I know nothing about the NMS…
@drshoema, I think they deliberately obscure this data because if they make it easy to obtain, people will be upset. Inevitably some states will be short-changed.
when do u know if u got commended?
@ab2020 around April
Thank you @ PAMom21, I will ask her when she gets home today 
@SweetTea, she had 22 math questions wrong. I don’t think she’s ever had math results so poor on ANY test.
You can see your selection index on the printed report.
Download the printed full report (4 pages) and you will find your SI on the 3rd page.
If you are still seeing last years results and not this years results, they were not able to match your scores to your current account. If you get the access code from your school counselor, you can type it in to “add a score report” and it will link your results to your account so you can view them. Without the access code, you will have to call college board and hope that they will manually link the scores to your account.
Also, what’s the minimum selection index score required to be commended?? Does it vary from state to state?