Counseling

PSAT (Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test) – measures skills that are important for success in college-verbal reasoning, critical reading, math problem solving, and writing. This is the qualifying test for entry to National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) competitions for college scholarships. Usually taken in the junior year, students will enter NMSC competitions for recognition and awards. Further information can be found at www.nationalmerit.org or www.collegeboard.com. The PSAT is an optional test for juniors and sophomores.

The PSAT will be given at FHS usually in October. A fee is charged and students must pre-register in the Counseling Office. Test results are available in January.

ACT (American College Test) is an assessment that measures student abilities in English, Mathematics, Reading , Science and Writing.  The ACT takes about 3-4 hours to complete and is administered in September, October, December, February, April, June and July.  Most School Counselors agree that the best time to take the ACT is in April or June of the junior year of high school. Some seniors retake the ACT in October to try to increase their scores. The composite, which is the average of the English, Mathematics, Reading and Science sections, is the score used to determine admission to colleges. Additionally, colleges look at class rank and grade point average.

You may register to take the ACT online at www.act.org.  Keep in mind there are registration deadlines for each test date.  Late fees may apply when registering after the deadline. 
 
Results of the assessment are sent to the high school as well as to your home.  The code for Faribault High School is 240-805.  

Several colleges now require your test results be sent directly from ACT/SAT. Please check with the college that you are applying to for further instructions. 

* = Located at Faribault High School 

Faribault High School will be offering the ACT for all 11th grade students in the spring.  This assessment will be provided by the school district and will be at no cost for our students.  This is NOT a graduation requirement, but is available to all interested 11th graders.  The Counseling department will meet with all 11th graders to register them for this test date.

SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) – measures students’ reasoning ability in the areas of mathematics and reading. Some colleges require the SAT, but most will accept either the SAT or ACT. The subject tests (SATII) may be required as a follow up for selective college admission. You may apply online at www.collegeboard.org or pick up a paper application in the Counseling Office.

The code for Faribault High School is 240-805.  See Counseling Office for SAT Assessment Test Dates.  Note: There are also LATE registration postmark deadlines. A late fee applies.

NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association)  FOR ATHLETES ONLY. The NCAA purpose is to help student athletes succeed on the field and in the classroom. Student athletes should register with the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearinghouse after the completion of the junior year in high school. Students who are planning on participating in Division I or Division II athletics need to submit a transcript of their grades and their ACT/SAT scores. These scores should be sent directly to the clearinghouse by entering code “9999” as a reporting selection when they register for the exam. There is a registration fee. NCAA forms and information are available at the NCAA Web site at www.ncaa.org.  You may check our list of NCAA-approved core course at any time by linking to the clearinghouse page of the NCAA web site. Competing in College.

This year, AP exams will be offered in Calculus AB, Chemistry, English Literature and Composition, Microeconomics, Psychology, World History, and United States History. 

Below you will find information provided from the College Board regarding AP Exams during our time of Distance Learning. We will provide further information as we are able.

Students remain eager to take AP Exams and have a chance to earn credit and placement. We surveyed 18,000 AP students and 91% indicated they want to complete this important step, urging us not to cancel this opportunity.

The AP Program will invest heavily over the next month in the following ways:

1. For the 2019-20 exam administration only, students can take a 45-minute online exam at home. Educator-led development committees are currently selecting the exam questions that will be administered.

2. Some students may want to take the exam sooner rather than later, while the content is still fresh. Other students may want more time to practice. For each AP subject, there will be two different testing dates.

3. AP curricula are locally developed and we defer to local decisions on how best to help students complete coursework. To be fair to all students, some of whom have lost more instructional time than others, the exam will only include topics and skills most AP teachers and students have already covered in class by early March.

4. Colleges support this solution and are committed to ensuring that AP students receive the credit they've worked this year to earn. For decades, colleges have accepted a shortened AP Exam for college credit when groups of students have experienced emergencies.

5. Students will be able to take these streamlined exams on any device they have access to—computer, tablet, or smartphone. Taking a photo of handwritten work will also be an option.

6. We recognize that the digital divide could prevent some low-income and rural students from participating. Working with partners, we'll invest so these students have the tools and connectivity they need to review AP content online and take the exam. If your students need mobile tools or connectivity, you can reach us directly to let us know.

7. The exam questions are designed in ways that prevent cheating. We use a range of digital security tools and techniques, including plagiarism detection software, to protect the integrity of the exams. Scoring at-home work for an AP Exam isn't new to the AP Program. For years the AP Program has received and scored at-home student work as part of the exams for the AP Computer Science Principles and AP Capstone™ courses.

We'll continue to support students with free resources through exam day. And while we encourage students to wait until closer to the test date to decide, any student already registered for an exam can choose to cancel at no charge.

Information about the reduced scope of content that will be covered on each 2020 AP Exam is currently posted on AP Central®. The specific test dates and the free-response question types will all be posted by April 3. We'll also unlock any relevant free-response questions in AP Classroom for digital use so students can access all practice questions of the type that will appear on the exam.

The Pre-ACT is an exam offered to all FHS sophomores each fall. This exam serves as a practice ACT exam. The ACT is a college-entrance exam for 4-year colleges. All juniors at FHS have the opportunity to take the ACT at FHS at no cost in the spring of their junior year. The Pre-ACT has some great benefits for students including:

• An estimated ACT score
• A practice testing experience that mirrors the ACT exam
• Areas of strength and weakness identified within the subject tests of English, Math, Reading, and Science.
• A comprehensive score report with compatible career area information

This exam will occur on the following dates:

Tuesday, October 27th for Monday/Tuesday hybrid learners and distance learners with last names A-K
Friday, October 30th for Thursday/Friday hybrid learners and distance learners with last names L-Z.

Click this link to learn more about the Pre-ACT

Using Your Pre-ACT Results