<p>I just got an email from my son, who just managed to check his ACT scores. He is disappointed, to say the least. He was hoping for a 30 composite (at least) and he got a 29. Science really killed his composite--it was a 24. English was highest, at 34.</p>
<p>I just don't know what to tell him (other than he is a fabulous, well-loved child). On one hand, a 29 is a respectable score. But he has his sights set on some fairly selective colleges (Middlebury, especially, for languages, but the comparable ones too). I do not want to reassure him that he can still get admitted to these selective places with a 29 if he cannot. (I do not know if he will want to take the test again. He did study a good amount for this test, and he has never been a good test-taker, so if he did take it again i thinkt he most we could hope for is a slight imptovement.) His high school record is very good--almost all A's in the toughest classes the school offers (a B+ in one math class and in advanced physics). He is taking three AP classes now and will take three more enxt year. His teachers adore him. He is involved in several leadership positions and does a lot of volunteer work (that he cares about, not to impress colleges, and I think this will come through in his applications).</p>
<p>So how much should the 29 influence his college chances, at the selective LACs? (I do know we need safeties, nothing is guaranteed, etc., but there is a difference between a reasonable chance and a complete long-shot.) Or in other words, how peppy should the pep talk be?</p>
<p>Well, you can focus on three different things - and over time, I expect you will. There are ways for SOME people to raise their test scores (Xiggi here is the resident expert, so I'll defer to him.) Didn't work for my d. at all, but does for many, many kids. Secondly, you can help him focus on what makes him stand out from the crowd, and help him work on strategies to make that clearer to college admissions folks. Finally, he can expand the range of schools he is looking at. There are hundreds and hundreds of wonderful, extraordinary schools out there once one takes the blinders off. For the record, when I was in high school, the college counselor used to threaten us with, "You better buckle down, or you'll end up at Middlebury", and it sent shivers down our spines (very few of us knew what or where Middlebury was, but it was considered academic Siberia.)</p>
<p>My d. got into six of the seven schools to which she applied, with ACTs FAR lower than you son (and GPA lower, and few AP classes), and in the bottom quintile at most of them.</p>
<p>Kids think science is about science. It's not. It's science reading. Everything needed to answer the question is right there. You don't have to know a thing about clouds or dewpoints. You just have to know that if you read the graph the answer's there. Take timed practice tets. Review all answers, right and wrong for why they are right or wrong. Look for patterns. D missed one graph. Now she missed every question about that graph :eek: but still. It was a big clue. Read xiggi's posts about the difference in SAT and ACT strategy. "To guess or not." Read xig's xiggi method. Translate it to ACT. Good luck. He'll be fine. </p>
<p>A 29 is a fine score, and your son may be able to raise it to a 30 or higher with some focused study techniques. </p>
<p>Last year's profile for Middlebury (Class</a> Profile)
shows that the middle 50% of the kids admitted had ACT scores from 29-32. So a 29 isn't out of the question, although obviously, Middlebury, like most selective schools rejects far more students than they admit.</p>
<p>Like your son, my child studied, took the ACT and got a 29. Took it again with no additional studying, got a 30. Put together an outstanding admissions package, worked hard on essays, applied to a wide variety of schools. Ended up with admissions offers at several top LACs and an Ivy.</p>
<p>My kid had several high school friends with similar scores who received offers from top notch schools such as WashU, Northwestern, Weslyan and Tufts. At least two of these friends had 29 to start with and took the test again to bring their scores up to 30 or 31. The kids I am referring to here were very strong candidates from a GPA/extracurricular/leadership perspective. </p>
<p>Given the somewhat fickle nature of college admissions, my advice to your son would be (1) do some additional studying, (2) take the test again, (3) concentrate on picking a good slate of safety, match and reach schools based upon whatever his best scores turn out to be, and (4) spend some significant time on his applications and essays, making sure to highlight his strengths such as leadership roles and his passion for his volunteer activities.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice about how he might improve his science score. I suspect that after he gets past the initial disappointment, he probably will want to take it again. I am afraid if I suggest strategies for improvement too soon, he will interpret that as code for, you didn't do well enough this time. For now (and I know this is going to sound mean) I just hope that most of his school buddies did not do much better. His email sounded sad enough, and I know that if all of the other kids talk about their 33s and 34s, it will make his score just that much harder for him to get past.</p>
<p>I'm not suggesting that your son abandon standardized tests, but since you specifically mention Middlebury as one his favorites, I'll just note that Middlebury is an SAT/ACT optional school -- although not purely test-optional: It lets students substitute three SAT II Subject exams for the SAT or ACT. Requirements</a>, Fees & Deadlines SAT IIs test students' knowledge of curriculum more purely than do ACTs or SAT Is.</p>
<p>In general, applicants who do not submit ACT/SAT results are assumed to have weaker scores. So if a student is not going to submit scores, he/she should have a strong high school transcript. Sounds like your son has that. </p>
<p>Also, applicants who are looking for merit-based aid must still submit ACT/SAT results to most test-optional schools.</p>
<p>A 31/32 would be a big help to his admission chances, particularly with humanities majors. He definitely should take the test again given his strong academic record -- I'm guessing that his 29 (SAT equivalent 1300/1950) is below the scores of his academic peers. </p>
<p>Science is (nearly) all about speed -- it does require a little reasoning, kinda like doing a DBQ, but only reading graphs and charts. Just like getting to Carnegie Hall, it just takes practice, practice and more practice, under timed conditions to better estimate speed. Unfortunately, the Real ACT guidebook only provides three full length tests, and the third is rather easy. The ACT online test is really easy, according to posters on the ACT thread, so don't pay for it.</p>
<p>Remember those 25-75% ranges are the middle, 1/4 of the students will have scores below that range. It would be worthwhile for your son to take the above study advice and retake the ACT, but his score is not out of line for many schools, especially if he chooses the humanities over the sciences. I especially liked the comment about the science reading- so true.</p>
<p>curmudgeon, you are so right about science being reading comprehension. I thought it was so funny when science was my high score on the ACT, many years ago.</p>
<p>I have been involved in administering this test at my cc for the last 8 years. I am never exposed to the content of the exam as the students receive their test booklets sealed and by the time I say you are dismissed they couldn't pay me to stick around a minute longer to look at the test questions! That said, I'm well acquainted with the format. The science is the last test and, like the reading, is 35 minutes long.<br>
After a long, long morning of getting themselves to the testing center, standing in line for the registration process and taking the tests, by the time the last test rolls around, students are exhausted and/or antsy to get the heck out of dodge. If your son takes the ACT again, encourage him to eat a quick and appropriate snack during the short break after the math test to get his energy up (not sugar, maybe peanut butter crackers or something like that).<br>
Also, encourage him to block out the others who complete the test early and who put their heads down for naps, etc. When S & D were in high school, they could not be in my testing room, but I had many of their friends and they would often come home and mention particular friends' scores. Sometimes the particular friend had been in my room and had been working right up to my signal to stop on both the reading and science tests. Finishing early is NOT generally a sign of intelligence on these tests.</p>
<p>Thanks for all of the advice. Right now I'm just bracing for the storm when he gets home. I hope he is not too despondent. Despite all of his grades (and praise from teachers, and even some school awards) his inability to ace standardized tests has always made him doubt his intelligence. </p>
<p>I have made several notes to myself of the helpful strategies here. The next test administration is not until June, with registration due on May 9. So he has a little time to decide about aking it again.</p>
<p>If his reading score is good, he can easily improve the science one. Get him a book with "real ACT" practice tests, and let him practice. Science section is all about comprehension, it just takes a bit of practice to get used to the format.</p>
<p>Already, DS2 was also disappointed in his ACT score this go-round. He will re-take the test in June, after some dedicated ACT Strategy/studying. We talked about it: 29 is a VERY good score and, in fact, is the score DS1 received--and then got into his competitive LA college early decision last year. </p>
<p>When your son pulls up his score online, go look at the chart that shows you what percentile his scores fall in. I'm confident, with the exception of the science score, you'll see that he is above the 90th percentile in all areas. That's a great score! </p>
<p>That being said, the SAT and ACT scores are only one part of a picture: they don't define who your son is on a daily basis, or his prospects. On a recent east coast college visit, one of the Ivy admission officers told our large group that they recognize that, (taking a holistic approach to admissions), and admissions personnel recognize that your score on one test on one morning of your life doesn't define you. That advice really resonated with our family.</p>
<p>The science portion of the ACT is notorious for sinking otherwise great composite scores. It is just different from anything on the SAT...one person described it as chart reading on the fly. </p>
<p>Now that he is more used to the test, I would have him do more prep problems on the science part and then retake the ACT.</p>
<p>It would not surprise me if he did a ton better the second time around on the science part.</p>
<p>Wouldn't surprise me, but it isn't a slam-dunk either. My d. (who would have drooled for a 29 composite, or for a 24 in science, or whatever it is), studied and used Xiggi's techniques, did umpty-ump practice tests, signed up for an on-line prep, etc., and her scores never budged by more than a point.</p>
<p>Didn't seem to matter in terms of success in the admissions game, though.</p>
<p>Just FYI, I believe Middlebury is now sort of test-optional. I think you can choose what to send. You do have to send quite a lot of other stuff to support your application, such as graded essays, and I think you can choose to send SAT IIs. Check out their admissions site to be sure about what they want. I know it's varied.</p>
<p>My daughter's best ACT composite was 28 and she was accepted at 4 colleges where the ACT median was 29+. This was 3 years ago, but we were also told by a very reputable college counselor that Middlebury was a "match" for her (whereas the college she now attends was "won't even look at her, don't waste your time."). (D. did NOT apply to Middlebury because it was NOT a fit -- she wanted an urban campus). </p>
<p>Anyway: don't get too angst ridden over a test score. Of course your son should retake the test one time to see if he can improve his score; in the meantime, he should keep Middlebury on his list but also look for some safeties. If he's got a balanced list there is no reason not to apply to wherever he wants to go.</p>