Failed PSAT/NMSQT? Here's Your Recovery Plan

Pro tip: Sophomores who take the PSAT/NMSQT and plan four years in grades 9 through 12 do not enter that year's National Merit competition and must take it again as juniors, which is the sitting that counts. If illness or an emergency stops you testing altogether, request an alternate route of entry from NMSC by 1 April 2027 for the 2028 competition, at [email protected]. If you sat the test but do not want your Selection Index used, you must ask NMSC to withdraw it within five days of the administration. Students who cannot test on their school's chosen day may be able to test later in the same window or as an Away Student at a nearby school on a different date.

• Taking the test as a sophomore and assuming it counts for National Merit
  It does not, if you plan four years in grades 9 through 12. National Merit entry requires taking the PSAT/NMSQT in your third year of high school. A sophomore who sits the 2026 test must sit it again in 2027 as a junior to enter the 2029 competition. Sophomore scores are practice and diagnostic only.
• Splitting revision evenly between Reading and Writing and Math when chasing National Merit
  The Selection Index formula is (2 times Reading and Writing, plus Math) divided by 10. A 10-point gain in Reading and Writing moves the Selection Index twice as far as a 10-point gain in Math. For total-score goals the two sections are equal, but for National Merit they are not.
• Treating module one as a warm-up
  Both sections use multistage adaptive testing. Performance in the first module determines whether the second module is more difficult or less difficult, and the harder second module is what makes the top of the scale reachable. Coasting through module one caps your score before you reach module two.
• Leaving questions blank
  College Board states in its own Understanding Scores document that for most students it is better to guess than to leave a question blank, especially after eliminating one or two wrong answers. There is no deduction for a wrong answer. A blank guarantees zero on that item.
• Assuming spare time in one module carries into the next
  Each module is separately timed: 32 minutes, 32 minutes, 35 minutes, 35 minutes. Finishing a module in 25 minutes banks nothing. Use the spare minutes inside that module to revisit items you marked for review, because once the module closes you cannot go back.
• Answering the National Merit entry questions carelessly during exam setup
  Three questions in the readiness check decide programme entry: whether you are enrolled in high school, when you will complete high school and enrol full time in college, and how many total years you will spend in grades 9 through 12. Students testing outside the United States get a fourth about citizenship. A wrong answer can mark your score guidance-only for National Merit purposes.
• Bringing the wrong device
  Personal Chromebooks cannot be used for testing. If you bring a personal device it must have Bluebook installed and exam setup complete, connect to new Wi-Fi networks, and hold charge for roughly three hours. Testing staff might not have spare batteries or calculators. Detachable privacy screens are not allowed.
• Closing the laptop lid or covering the tablet screen
  College Board warns that closing your lid or covering your device may result in losing your responses. Keep the device open and on from check-in until testing staff confirm your answers have been submitted and formally dismiss you. Leaving the site before dismissal puts your scores at risk of cancellation.
• Practising only on paper or on non-adaptive third-party tests
  The real test routes you between modules based on your own performance, uses an embedded Desmos calculator you can toggle between scientific and graphing modes, and provides a reference sheet and a highlights and notes tool. None of that is reproduced by a static paper test. Take at least two full Bluebook practice tests before test day.
• Deciding after the test that you want your Selection Index withdrawn
  If you believe your performance was affected and you do not want your Selection Index used for National Merit, you must contact National Merit Scholarship Corporation no later than five days after the test administration. Requests received after five days are not considered.

• Digital format matching new SAT
• Taken in 10th/11th grade
• Top 1% qualify for National Merit
• Great SAT practice without pressure
• Same question types as SAT
• Selection Index determines scholarship eligibility