S20 initially took a full-length practice SAT and ACT with no prep last summer and scored at about the 50 percentile on both. He felt more comfortable with the ACT so decided to focus on that test. He did a bit of test prep over the summer and has been taking a test prep class this spring. But his score from the April ACT test was very discouraging as he really didn’t see much of an improvement (although he scored much better on the last practice test he took, his score on the actual test wasn’t much improved from his initial practice test score). He is planning to take the June ACT, so hoping that score will go up just by virtual of his being more comfortable with taking it in the real test environment.
What I am wondering is whether it would be worthwhile for him to try to take a real SAT test without doing any specific SAT prep. Would the ACT prep he is doing translate over to the SAT? Or are they really pretty different with different strategies that you would apply?
I don’t think it’s worthwhile for him to spend too much more effort on testing. I think he is just one of those kids that doesn’t test that well. His grades are pretty decent (he goes to a very rigorous public high school, currently has a 3.7, and is on track to get all A’s this semester - hooray!). If needed, there are a ton of test optional schools exactly for kids like him, so that is always a strategy that he can pursue. However, I am hoping to get input from people who are familiar with both tests on whether it would be worthwhile to try to take the SAT without doing any SAT-specific prep. Thanks!
Were his ACT scores lopsided or pretty even? Is his main problem with ACT running out of time, or not being strategic enough in approaching the problems? Math counts for more with the SAT (50% vs 25% of the ACT score), so if math is his best score, and especially if the Reading & Science scores are pulling him down, then he may do better on the SAT. The math on the SAT is a little trickier, but there is more time per question, so that can work to the advantage of mathy kids who can quickly see simple solutions while other kids may spend a lot of time working each problem the long way.
We had a child start with the SAT and move to the ACT after the first “real” taking of the SAT, and I think the test was more suited to her style ( ie the time and depth issues raised by @Corraleno ).
Since he has already decided that he’s more comfortable with the ACT, it sounds like he might do better with a bit of study/practice for the ACT. If the scores are roughly equivalent, I would focus on one and work to improve it. If he decides to take the SAT again, some structured practice/study might be a useful way to prepare for the new format.
A caveat about test-optional schools: they will tell you that the students who ultimately get in without test scores are almost always at or above the test score range of the students who submitted them with their application. If you look at the published range and feel that you are “in the range” of the statistics less the test scores, keep in mind that those ranges reflect athletes and students with other hooks. The students I know who applied to TO schools without scores invariably were rejected, while students with HS performance and test scores in the range have gotten in.
The tests aren’t perfect, but they do serve as a somewhat reliable proxy for academic ability and performance.
Yes, I’d at least give the SAT one sitting. My D majorly ran out of time on every section in the ACT and did poorly. SAT was better (still not great, but better) and she did not run out of time.
I would also investigate the TO schools for your S. Unlike poster above, I believe that the student is evaluated fairly at these schools without the test scores. Maybe they are referring to top schools, I don’t know. Anyway, I’ve directed my D to move on from testing and focus on presenting the best possible application and essay, Its caused an undue amount of negativity for all of us.
I disagree with sitting for a test with no prep. If your student wants to try the SAT, prep. It’s not the same test, nor same strategy for time management.
What has his track record been for other standardized tests? Is the ACT result in line with those, or was it a huge surprise? If he’s never been good at this kind of test, then switching to the SAT probably isn’t going to result in a significant improvement in the relative test score. Is he happy with the list of places that are likely admits with the current GPA and scores? Does he have a nice solid true safety on his list? Then he can quit testing, and get on with his life.
I tutor both tests. The SAT, IMO, is much more difficult in reading and I don’t recommend taking it without at least trying a few reading sections. In addition, though SAT math might be a little less advanced than ACT math, the wording of the SAT math questions is less straightforward and there is an entire section of non-calculator math. Your child needs to remember how to do good old pencil-based mathematics. Yes, it’s amazing how many kids have forgotten how to multiply without a calculator.
The upside of the SAT is that it is much more generous with time. While neither test is “easy”, it’s true that the ACT is more straightforward and time-crunched, and the SAT is more convoluted and time-generous. Your son should probably at least give the SAT a try.
If he does take both tests, he shouldn’t take either one “cold” – without any practice. My son, who got stellar SAT scores including the advanced tests, was surprised by his “low” (34) score on the ACT. I’m sure that if he had done any review or practice at all, he’d have had a higher score. In the end it didn’t matter to his college admissions options, since his overall scores were very high. But familiarity and a practice test can be quite important at the margin. Added: he never practiced or reviewed for the SAT tests, but he’d taken them since middle school for the Midwest Talent Search. Experience matters. I recall when he took the SAT 2 math. As we were driving home from the test, I asked him how it went. “Oh, I got 800.” I asked him how he could know that, since he’d just finished taking the test. “Oh. I answered all the questions, and I had time to check my work.”
Thank you for all the feedback! Given that math is weighted more heavily on the SAT and that you all think SAT-specific prep should be done before taking the SAT, I think we will just continue to have him focus on the ACT.
He hasn’t really done much other standardized testing in the past but did have an IEP and 504 plan in grade school due to visual processing issues. However, the school said that he no longer needed special services when he was moving to middle school and we did not question it. And he has done fine grade-wise since then so they were probably right but I do think it might take him a bit longer to read through and process everything.
Given this, we did expect his scores to be on the lower end but were hoping for high mid-20’s. So he is one of those kids that would really have benefited from the extra time but we didn’t know any better to push back with the school back then.
I have tutored for both tests for many years. In general, I’ve seen more people get better scores (32+) on ACT after doing “above average, but not scholarship level” on the SAT. Not so many with higher SAT/lower ACT, but there are a few–who tended to be more mathy kids who got more stressed by the clock on the ACT. I used to say that ACT is more “school skills,” SAT more “smarts/cleverness.” But after the last changes (2016), the SAT became more like the ACT, with more reading/story problems and science questions in the math section.
ACT is more time-pressured. ACT is more “reading dependent” --lots of reading in the science and math sections, too, which can be exhausting.
The science section on the ACT is difficult for some. It takes practice to weed out the --usually very simple --question and find the answer on a graph/table. The main skill required is “ignoring unnecessary information.” Some get bogged down in unfamiliar scientific vocabulary and think they have to know physics (for example) to answer a physics-related question. Sometimes the “one right answer” seems clearer/more obvious on ACT.
Prepping for either test can help somewhat with the other, but using the official materials for each test separately is the best strategy. I would not advise taking either test without prepping. Why pay $$ for official tests and have mediocre scores on your record? Take multiple inexpensive practice tests at home and official tests only when ready.