The very first step for the quest of the best college starts with PSAT/NMSQT. Your scores at PSAT/NMSQT make you eligible for the best colleges as well as universities. In addition to that, the tests help you refine your skills at taking tests for the next year as well because the kind of questions is same. The finest educational institutes are looking for students who have secured the best scores at PSAT/NMSQT. You can get to know more such tricks and strategies on http://huntingtonhelps.com/program/psat/ but in the meantime, here are 10 strategies for cracking the tests. Mark the calendar: You must mark the calendar for specific dates for the test which typically takes place in October each year. There is still no registration available online yet for PSAT/NMSQT. That is why you should discuss with the school counselor for signing up for the test. Get acquainted with the format: One of the best ways to get prepared for any test is to get acquainted with the format of the same. You should know what kind of material is covered and the question format. Sections for critical reading: The sections for critical reading of PSAT/NMSQT include comprehension questions on paragraph-length and full-length passages. The sections also include certain exercises which allow you to make a number of sentences complete Writing section: The writing section for PSAT/NMSQT includes questions with multiple choices for answers, which cover the basics of usage, grammar, organization and word choice. Math section: This section of PSAT/NMSQT includes grid-in questions (calculation). Topics in this section include operations and numbers, functions and algebra, measurement and geometry, probability, data analysis and statistics. Fill in blanks: Reasoning and vocabulary skills are tested in the exercise of Sentence Completion. After scanning every sentence, you should try and predict the exact word that would fill the blank most appropriately. If you are not able to predict the proper work for every blank, please do not panic. You can use the reasoning skills to do the same. Think broader: Try grasping the major themes and ideas of the exercises for reading comprehension. You do not have to recall each detail. You should do a scanning of the text for getting the bigger picture. The answer is right before you: When you are dealing with multiple choices, you must understand that the correct answer is right before you. You just have to find it. Generally, the simplest one is the best one. The awkward one or the overly complicated one is likely to be incorrect. Educated guesswork: If you build up a habit of taking educated guessed, it is always going to better than throwing stones in the dark. You should try and eliminate the wrong ones with reasons. You will then be left with the correct one. Do not ignore math:  You must also not forget that you won’t be penalized for wrong answers in the mathematics grid-ins. That is why your scores are likely to be much higher if you solve math questions. Every correct ones will add up to the score. Source: Education News