ACT Individual Sections Starting September?

Test Preparation
1

I’ve heard that the ACT will be offering tests starting from September on the individual sections. Won’t that make the ACT scores inflate and decrease the reliability of the ACT? Also, wouldn’t this make previous attempts before this coming September less prominent as anyone can superscore now?

2

Yes, the ACT is offering testing options for specific sections. I’m assuming they’ll add those scores to the average of that section, not the overall ACT. Also, there’s no telling how colleges will accept/not accept these scores. I’m not sure what you mean by “anyone can superscore now”, since everybody could superscore before.

3

Thanks for explaining! I meant “anyone can superscore” as in it will become the new norm. Currently, only certain colleges accept superscores (as far as I know), but after this September, it will become quite prevalent, so I was afraid about the negative impacts that could bring.

4

Does anyone think “most” colleges will superscore-or change to superscore than are currently doing it. I have seen several colleges that say they do not superscore and all scores must be from the same sitting. Is it most likely that colleges that currently super score will continue to do so and now allow for the one section to also enter into the super score and those that do not super score will continue to just allow for scores from one sitting?

5

Before the pandemic, the new ACT section re-takes were big news, and colleges were to meet this summer to discuss the re-takes and their policies. They will still do that of course, but it’s much lower priority now.

Some colleges that don’t superscore, will likely move that way. But, many schools, even if they haven’t calculated a superscored composite score, have always considered the highest section scores…which is what one puts in the common app.

Remember that students must take one full ACT test before they can sit for the section re-takes. And the section re-takes are only available in an online option, not paper…so that will limit the number of test sites.

ACT will provide schools with a superscored composite, in addition to at least one full composite score. The highly ironic thing is that for years ACT maintained that colleges should not superscore. But it is common that we have seen these about faces with both ACT and CollegeBoard.

https://www.act.org/content/act/en/act-september-2020/superscoring.html

https://www.act.org/content/act/en/act-september-2020/section-retesting.html