J. Standardized Testing

Branson students take a limited amount of standardized testing during their time at the school.

PSAT

To give students practice with standardized tests, the school orders and proctors the PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) for all sophomores and juniors each October.

AP (Advanced Placement) Examination

Advanced Placement (AP) is a program created by the College Board and offers college-level curricula and examinations to high school students. Branson offers a variety of Advancement Placement courses. All Advanced Placement courses culminate with students taking a national examination in May that is developed and scored by the College Board.

All students enrolled in Advanced Placement courses will automatically be signed up to take the AP examination in May, and, apart from some specific exemptions, they must take that AP examination in order to maintain the AP designation for that course on their Branson transcript. Exceptions to this requirement are granted on a case by case basis, and typically involve students who go on a medical leave or do a study away program in a location where they are unable to take the AP exam.

Students also have the option of taking AP examinations even though they are not taking an AP course or the course they are taking at Branson is not designated as an AP course (common examples are AP Computer Science A and AP US History). Students who would like to take an AP examination on their own should inform their teacher and the College Counseling office.

A student taking an AP exam may excuse themself from classes the day of the exam. The student is still responsible for the assigned work and must make arrangements in advance with the teachers of classes they will miss. The student must also notify the Administrative Assistant and Attendance Coordinator in the lobby of Richardson Hall that they will miss their classes before 8 am on the day of the exam.

Students should be aware that colleges and universities establish their own policies on whether they award college credit for AP test results and/or whether they use the results to place students in advanced courses. AP examination scores are reported to students in July. Questions about the AP should be directed to College Counseling.

SAT / ACT

Except in rare circumstances, Branson does not order or administer the SAT or ACT for Branson students, nor does Branson guarantee spaces at authorized test sites. Registration for these tests is the responsibility of students and their families. Questions should be directed to College Counseling.

Branson’s code number for registration and reporting purposes is 052695.