<p>I'm a senior, I have never taken the ACTs before and I plan on taking the February 9th test. </p>
<p>What hope do I have to get at least a 33? </p>
<p>If any, what should I do, any particular strategies, study methods etc?</p>
<p>Btw, I did take the SATs, expecting 700's in Critical reading, 600's in Math and Writing... I only take the ACTs because I am sure I could have reached low 700's in math and writing (given one more week of study before dec test...), so I'm looking for the equivalent in ACTs.</p>
<p>The great thing about the ACT test is that studying, however minimal, can greatly improve one's score (believe me, I know). If I were you, I would start by taking a few practice tests in order to get a feel for the test, and specifically the time restraints. After this, start studying for the test which you scored the lowest on. Dedicate about a week for each specific test, setting aside a strict amount of time each night to study. And most important of all, DO NOT get lazy.</p>
<p>Exactly how much time each night do you recommend? Any particular books (probably good for math since that might be my lowest)? How do you utilize these nightly sessions exactly?</p>
<p>I would recommend studying for as long as you can without driving yourself mad! (No pain no gain!) As far as books go, I'm afraid I can't offer too much insight. To prepare for the test, I raided my local library, checking out every ACT related book that I could get my hands on. Unfortunately, I never paid attention to the titles of the books - just took the tests and read what they had to say.</p>
<p>If only I had one more week to prepare I know I could have gotten to 700's in Math and writing. Well, I hope to make up for this with the ACTs. Any other tips?</p>
<p>I've only taken the ACTs once and I got a 32 and did two weeks worth of studying...maybe about 3 hours each week? so I mean it's definitely possible to get a 33+. Just study. Actually, studying for the SATs helped me study for the ACTs. The barrons how to score the perfect 2400 helped me personally with the ACT somehow. The writing helps with English, math is a bit different but the ACT math is easier so yeah. Reading strategies are the same. Just practice TIMING. The timing killed me for the science, which brought my composite score down.</p>
<p>Timing is a killer. I know some really smart kids who only scored in the mid-20's because of the stern time limit. </p>
<p>The first time I took the ACT, I went in completely unprepared and didn't do as well as I thought I would because I didn't have enough time to complete the reading section. Taking practice tests in order to get timing down was imperative for my success the second time I took the tests, and most people would agree. </p>
<p>But also keep in mind that the timing of the tests are somewhat of a subjective factor - i.e., correct timing is never guaranteed (I was once jipped seven minutes on the English test!).</p>