PSAT Tutoring and Test Prep

The PSAT is widely taken in October by Houston-area high school juniors, and even many sophomores. Essentially a slightly shorter SAT, the PSAT has two primary purposes:

get students to start preparing for the SAT and
serve as the qualifying test from which the National Merit Scholarship is awarded.

To earn the coveted designation of “National Merit Semifinalists,” juniors must score in the top 1% of all 11th graders in Texas. Historically, the “selection index” cutoff score has been between 220 and 221 out of 228, which is roughly equivalent to a 1480 out of 1600 on an SAT.

To prepare for the PSAT, we offer both private one-to-one tutoring and group test prep classes for the SAT. Private tutoring can occur in your home or at our Rice Village Study Lounge.

Our Proven Approach to PSAT Prep

Practice Tests

Students start with a full-length diagnostic/practice test to evaluate their current strengths and weaknesses. The test should be as realistic as possible, including timed conditions. The test can be either a previously released PSAT or SAT.

Strategies

Upon scoring the test, our tutors and managers will evaluate the student’s position and outline a roadmap for improvement. The tutor will discuss test-taking strategies and general tips.

Concept Review

Concept review comprises the bulk of PSAT test prep. To do well, students must have a firm grasp of the tested math and reading concepts. The PSAT test the exact same concepts in the exact same way as the SAT. No amount of tips and tricks will compensate for not knowing fractions or how to identify a main idea.

Practice Questions

As students strengthen their fundamental math and reading skills, they must still be able to apply that knowledge to the new and novel ways tested on the PSAT reasoning sections. The best way to ensure this capability is to work many test-like practice questions.

Repeat

The process of PSAT test prep is continual, and the duration and intensity of preparation will depend on the disparity between the student’s starting place and desired outcome. Most of our students will take a minimum of 3 full-length practice tests before their one chance to do well on the PSAT.

PSAT test prep is different from SAT prep in that usually the goal is to score in the top 1% and that students can only take the test one time. As such most students prepare to a higher level of preparedness.