For the first time ever at SCHS, the PSAT (Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test) is being offered to sophomores for free, and all 500 test spots have been taken.

Rather than paying the $18 fee to take the test, the school administration has decided to allow sophomores to participate in the test without payment.

“We wanted students to get a sense of college and career readiness, and to give students a starting point for their college preparation early in their time at high school,” Vice Principal of Curriculum Tony Lam said.

Another reason the PSAT was made more available had to do with timing. According to school counselor David Fernandez, who has been coordinating and overseeing the PSAT for eight years, this is also the first year that the test will be on a school day.

“We figured that since it was on a Wednesday instead of a Saturday, we would get more students to take it. It was good of the administration to cover the test costs for sophomores,” Fernandez said.

This Wednesday, the test will be administered at school, occupying the entire morning. After lunch, students will resume their 5th and 7th periods. The following Thursday will also have a modified schedule with all remaining periods, to make up the instructional time lost.

SCHS ordered a total of 500 copies of the test, rather than the normal 300, to cover the increased demand. All 500 spots weretaken, two days before the registration deadline of Friday Oct. 9.
“I think it’s great that we’re not being pressured into paying for the test, since the score doesn’t really count towards college,” sophomore Braden Buchanan said.