When to Take the PSAT/NMSQT
Home-Schooled Students
If you are a home-schooled student, contact a principal or counselor at a local public or independent high school to make arrangements to take the PSAT/NMSQT at their school. Be sure to do so well in advance of the mid-October test dates, preferably during the previous June.
If you have been approved for College Board accommodations, or are planning to apply for accommodations in time for the PSAT/NMSQT, please notify the school where you will be testing to allow for timely ordering of any appropriate materials.
If you're a home-schooled student, your PSAT/NMSQT score report is sent directly to your home address. On the test day, when completing the basic information on the answer sheet, be sure to enter your state's home school code in the "school code" section. The test supervisor will provide this for you.
- Students who plan to participate in a post-secondary enrollment options program(through which they enroll simultaneously in both high school and college) must take the PSAT/NMSQT in their third year of high school (grade 11, junior year) to enter NMSC's competitions. The determination of whether the student is participating in a post-secondary enrollment options program is made by the high school, which certifies the student's status.