How do you send in a superscored ACT to colleges?
I haven’t done it yet, but I’m guessing you just have to pay to send the score from every test date that you want compiled and superscored. So if you got a high school on four sections on four different dates, then you gotta send all four … colleges that superscore will take care of the rest.
You have ACT send all the tests (or at least all those you want to be part of the superscore). “Superscoring” is something that colleges do themselves. ACT/SAT don’t “superscore” your test.
ACT, unlike SAT, is not designed to be superscored. With only a handful of exceptions, colleges generally do NOT superscore ACT.
My D applied to many colleges that superscore the ACT and there are actually a lot that do. Check the particular colleges to make sure you don’t waste money sending extra reports.
ACT, unlike SAT, is not designed to be superscored. With only a handful of exceptions, colleges generally do NOT superscore ACT.
The above is not accurate. 9 of the 10 very competitive colleges my D is interested in applying to say that they will superscore the ACT.
Just an anecdotal observation: it does appear that colleges - more of them anyway - have jumped on the superscore bandwagon for the ACT in the past couple of years. The old SAT used to have wacky sections from one test to the other which justified retakes and, perhaps, superscoring as a quick way to deal with receipt of two or three administrations for a single applicant. Why colleges are superscoring the new SAT seems a mystery and it’s possible that the decision to superscore the ACT was made at the same time. Here’s a theory, and it’s not based on any “inside” information so take it for what it’s worth: in offering to superscore, colleges are getting access to all your tests, which is what they’ve always wanted anyway. A superscored 34 on the ACT isn’t quite the same thing as a single-score composite of 34. Colleges know that kids are retaking (sometimes multiple times) and this way they have more information about your true abilities. Now, that single-score 34 might be the result of multiple retakes as well, but probably not (because the superscore would be higher LOL) and anyway, it’s hard to hit a 34 on a single test. There is underlying ability revealed in that single score. Could be wrong here, but I’m a bit skeptical that colleges consider all 34’s to be the same. Someone is welcome to correct me.
Another reason for offering superscores: It allows colleges to reach out to under-represented groups or special circumstances and potentially lower scores there w/o sacrificing those uber-selective scores they post on their admissions website or report to College Navigator. Again, I’m a bit skeptical that a superscored 34 means the same thing across demographic or income groups (yes, admissions are “need blind” for the most part but adcoms can glean that information from other sources including your zip code, your essays, the school you attend . . .). A single score 34 from a first-gen’r w/o access to paid test prep is going to speak volumes compared to a 34 from three separate exams (all of them revealing a composite of 31 or 32) submitted by a kid who reads like he/she comes from an UI background.
Perhaps the “superscore” is the new “score choice” tool only this time it’s the colleges that manage and control the information, not College Board or ACT. Schools will likely never return to the mean ole’ days of requiring that all scores be submitted - offering to superscore just sounds so nice and supportive. Only thing is that they get pretty much the same info as they did in the mean ole’ days. Something to keep in mind.
Yes, there’re more colleges than I realized that superscore ACT, even though they’re not supposed to mathematically. My understanding is that each ACT test is normalized in such a way that’s not meant to be superscored.
Well thank god, yes, lots of colleges superscore the ACT - my daughter can only go up in the math section 
@Gatormama - a major advantage if she’s interested in STEM and applying to a program that is trying to attract more women.
9 of the 10 very competitive colleges <<<<<<
Can you list them?
Davidson (NC)
Holy Cross (MA)
Hamilton College (NY)
Bowdoin (ME)
Wash & Lee (VA)
Bates (ME)
Colby (ME)
Franklin Marshall (PA)
Colgate (NY)
Superscoring tests means that a college can claim that their incoming class has a higher score on average, which makes them look more competitive. I don’t see why a college wouldn’t do it unless they were in the HYPSM league and could feel comfortable that they would have their pick of single-sitting 1600/36 straight A students.
@JBStillFlying - hah! Nah, my D is buried in the “i signed my name so I get a point” level of math. STEM ain’t in her future.