The ACT is similar to the SAT in terms of its importance to college and university admissions. It is used to demonstrate a high school student's educational development and competency for college-level work. The ACT is considered to be a competitor to the SAT, and colleges and universities differ on which one they prefer.
When Should I Take The ACT? The ACT should generally be taken two times, once in the Spring of your junior year and again in the Fall of your senior year.
How Many Times Can I Take The Exam? You can take the exam multiple times. Most students who take it more than once do so because they are unhappy with their scores. If you choose to take the test again remember that you're not guaranteed to have your scores increase. About half of all students who took the ACT again had scores increase while the other half either stayed the same or decreased their total score. It's probably not a good idea to take the test more than twice, since your scores are probably not going to increase on a third attempt.
What Does The Exam Cover? The exam has four sections, each testing a different subject area. The subjects are English, Mathematics, Reading, and Science Reasoning. Taking challenging, educational courses in those areas is a good idea.
Below is a breakdown of the four sections of the ACT: English Section: You are presented passages to read and asked to change inappropriate words/phrases to correct ones or to answer multiple choice questions in the passage. In this section you have 45 minutes to answer 75 questions.
Math Section: The math section tests your knowledge in algebra and geometry through 60 multiple-choice questions. You have an hour to answer these questions.
Reading Section: In this section you will read passages and short stories, and answer 40 questions about them. This part of the test is mainly concerned with reading and remembering details in the reading. You have 35 minutes to complete this section.
Scientific Reasoning Section: This is not a test of your science knowledge, but of your ability to come up with an answer based on the scientific facts and information given to you for a particular question. You are asked to chose the logical/sensible answer to the question from among the choices provided. This section has 40 questions that need to be answered in 35 minutes.
Writing Section: Essays will be responses to a prompt or assigned topic. The topics usually cover social issue that affect high school students. While no specific essay style (persuasive, expository, etc) is required, essays should be grammatically correct, coherent, concise, and organized. The writing section, which is always taken at the end of the test, is 30 minutes long.
Preparing For The ACT Get sample tests. You can purchase test prep books with actual complete ACT exams. Get sample tests from the ACT booklet you receive when you sign up to take the test. Try the practice tests. This will help you familiarize yourself with the nature and structure of the test and brush up on the subjects.
Take challenging English, Math, Science, and Social Studies classes. Taking and succeeding in challenging courses in the subjects will help you better understand the material being tested, which will help you to do well on that subject on the exam.
Brush up on your weak areas. Like with any of the other exams, if certain subjects or aspects of a subject give you trouble but you're pretty good in other areas, prioritize the weak areas. Study them more to raise your scores in that area. Of course, don't neglect the areas you're good at either, but put more effort into the areas you're weak in.
How Is The Test Scored? ACT composite scores range from 1-36. The national average is approximately 20 and nearly half of the test takers receive a score between 17 and 23. Your score report will actually list 12 separate scores: your composite score, four subject scores, and seven "subscores". The most important is the composite score. The four subject scores and seven subscores are sometimes used for scholarships and often useful to help you and your college adviser select appropriate majors and first-year courses.