Adrenaline starts to rise as the clock ticks and time goes by, students feeling pressured because it’s what determines if students can get into a specific college.

Akin’s sophomores and juniors took the PSAT on Oct.17.  The PSAT is a test that prepares students for the real thing, theSAT.

The PSAT consists of 11th grade math and high lexile level reading articles. Students get 25 minutes to finish each of the sections, with an exception of one that allowed 30 minutes to complete.

“I read the text on the critical reading sections and most of the words in it I didn’t even know existed,” sophomore Susana Rocha said. “It didn’t help me out at all, it just made me feel dumb.”

Colleges look at junior PSAT scores and offer scholarships if students score high. Though colleges do not look at PSAT scores when students apply for college unless the score qualifies for a National Merit Scholarship, other than that colleges only look at SAT’s scores.

“In my opinion, making us take the PSAT is idiotic,” sophomore Juan Neave said. ” The fact that they’re going to rank us on things we still haven’t learned is absolutely absurd.”

Junior Andrea Barajas has another opinion on the PSAT, though.

“ I think the PSAT wasn’t pointless, sophomores didn’t know many things on it, but they shouldn’t be complaining.” Barajas said. “ It’s free and I think its good practice for everyone, it help prepare us for the SAT.”

The SAT’s can be taken junior or senior year. It is recommended to take it junior year if students are planning to apply to to any top colleges to compare them to the school’s score ranges. Doing so, students will know if they should retake it or not.

“By the looks of it the SAT is going to be way more difficult and I am not looking forward to taking it,” Rocha said.