The math section comes in two parts, called modules. Everyone gets a similar first module. How you do on that first module decides whether your second module is easier or harder. That is called adaptive testing, and it means the first module matters more than most students realize. A careless slip early on can steer you into the easier second module, and the easier module has a lower ceiling on your score.
You have the Desmos graphing calculator for the whole section, a reference sheet of formulas, a tool for crossing out answer choices, and scratch paper. You do not need to bring your own calculator, although you are allowed to.
Every question belongs to one of four areas. The approximate number of questions in each:
| Content area | Questions | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Algebra | 13 to 15 | Linear equations, inequalities, systems of equations and linear functions |
| Advanced Math | 12 to 14 | Quadratics, exponential functions, polynomials and equivalent expressions |
| Problem-Solving and Data Analysis | 7 to 9 | Ratios, rates, percentages, units, and reading data from tables and graphs |
| Geometry and Trigonometry | 4 to 6 | Area, volume, angles, triangles, circles and right-triangle trigonometry |
Algebra and Advanced Math together make up well over half of the section. That is where most of the points are, and it is where most students should spend most of their time.
Behind every PSAT question sits a set of earlier skills, many of them from 7th, 8th and 9th grade. A student who loses points on a quadratic question is often not missing anything about quadratics. They are missing something underneath it, such as distributing a negative sign or working with fractions. That is why simply doing more practice questions often does not move a score. Finding the specific skill underneath does.
Learn the format before test day so nothing on the screen surprises you. Practice with Desmos so it is a habit, not an experiment. And when you miss a question, ask whether you did not know how to do it, or knew how and made a slip, because the fix is different for each.
Last but not least, how a student moves through the early years of math matters enormously. The PSAT math section is the result of years of skills stacked on top of each other like Lego blocks. If a piece is missing, the whole structure can come tumbling down. I have written more about this in two articles: Does math knowledge build like Lego blocks? and why starting algebra too early backfires.
The 30 Day PSAT Plan finds the specific skills costing you points, then works on only those, one day at a time.
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