The Critical Reading section requires balancing reading comprehension with strategic pacing—you typically have about 70 minutes to work through passages and around 50 questions. Many students struggle with spending too much time on difficult passages or getting stuck on individual questions. Expert tutors can teach you proven techniques like previewing questions before reading, identifying key information efficiently, and knowing when to skip a tough question and return to it later. Practice tests are essential for building this timing muscle memory, and a tutor can help you analyze your pacing patterns to find where you're losing the most time.

Phoenix students often struggle with three main areas: understanding nuanced vocabulary in context (not just knowing definitions), identifying the author's tone and purpose across longer passages, and distinguishing between answer choices that sound similar but differ in important ways. Many test-takers also rush through passages to save time, only to miss crucial details that support the correct answers. Additionally, some students struggle with paired passages or dual-focused questions that require comparing information across multiple texts. Personalized tutoring can address your specific challenge area through targeted practice and strategy instruction.

A solid practice schedule typically involves taking a full-length practice test every 2-3 weeks once you've built foundational skills, with additional focused practice on individual question types between full tests. Early in your preparation, working through single passages and question sets helps you develop accuracy before tackling timed full-section practice. Tutors recommend reviewing each practice test thoroughly—analyzing not just what you got wrong, but why you missed it and what strategy could have helped. This deliberate practice approach is far more valuable than rushing through multiple tests without reflection.

Test anxiety often stems from feeling unprepared or uncertain about your approach to questions. Building genuine confidence through consistent practice and strategy mastery is the most effective long-term solution. Tutors can help you develop a reliable process for each question type, so you're not second-guessing yourself under pressure. Additionally, practicing deep breathing techniques, maintaining a positive internal dialogue, and arriving early to settle your mind can all help. Many students find that taking full-length timed practice tests repeatedly desensitizes them to the testing environment, making the actual PSAT feel more familiar and manageable.

While having a strong vocabulary certainly helps, the PSAT Critical Reading section actually tests your ability to understand words in context more than raw vocabulary knowledge. Many challenging words can be figured out by examining surrounding sentences and paragraph clues. That said, learning words strategically—focusing on common academic vocabulary and roots that appear frequently in standardized tests—can give you confidence and save time. A tutor can teach you context clue strategies to tackle unfamiliar words and help you build vocabulary in the most efficient way, rather than memorizing isolated lists that may never appear on your test.

Absolutely. The PSAT is specifically designed as a practice test for the SAT, so the skills and strategies you develop for PSAT Critical Reading transfer directly to the SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section. Many tutors work with students on both tests, helping you build a foundation during PSAT preparation that gives you a significant head start when you tackle the SAT. The main difference is that the SAT includes additional grammar and writing mechanics questions alongside reading comprehension, so you may need to develop those skills separately. Starting with PSAT tutoring means you're investing in skills that will serve you well on multiple standardized tests.