<p>I got a 25 on it and I'm planning to retake it and I am worried that I won't get at least a 30 on it. I get almost straight As in school and am in the top 1% in class rank. I am taking all AP courses next year because my consoler said academic rigor is the way to go. </p>
<p>I want to go to Northwestern University (engineering) but I don't know if I can get in since of by low scores. What do you think the chances of me getting in are?</p>
<p>On another note, should I take the SAT? I'm not sure but I think that the SAT is harder than the ACT.</p>
<p>Definitely try the SAT too. Some people do much better on one than the other. Sorry for not saying more, but I do not know enough to tell you how it will affect your college admissions. Best of luck though!</p>
<p>It's a common misperception that that you need the best scores to make it into a good college. If they can clearly see that you are working hard and you are doing everything your absolute best, you'll get in.</p>
<p>You'll need a good GPA, plenty of volunteer hours, and excellent references from notable people. I know a few years ago a girl living in the poorer areas of town worked as hard as she could to make a better future. She got accepted into Harvard but couldn't afford the tuition. Harvard gave her a scholarship and the community gave her enough money for four years.</p>
<p>Liist is incorrect. Just because a college sees that you are working hard and doing your best does not mean that you will be admitted. Admit rates for Harvard and Yale this year were about 8% and 7% respectively. Plenty of hard working students with 2300+ and 34+ ACT scores were rejected. A 25 is low for most top ranked schools and will not help you. If you go to most schools' websites, you can probably see the distribution of their SAT/ACT scores. Also, Harvard and all the ivy league schools do not give "scholarships." All money at ivies is based on demonstrated financial need only. You should definitely try the SAT- some people do better on one test or another. If you haven't done any test prep courses or study on your own, you should definitely start.</p>
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[quote]
Also, Harvard and all the ivy league schools do not give "scholarships."
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</p>
<p>Somewhat more accurately, the term "scholarship" as used by any Ivy League college means "award of need-based financial aid." That's the only kind of scholarship offered at any of the eight Ivy League colleges. (I mention Ivy League colleges </p>
<p>university) and it has different policies for scholarships. </p>
<p>All of the colleges mentioned in this thread are hard to get into, and more so every year. I recommended to the OP that he read more, because it takes good reading ability to keep up with the college-level work at Northwestern or at any Ivy League college. Being able to read well, because of lots of practice in reading, should help a high school student's scores on any kind of standardized admission test. A score of 25 on the ACT is very unlikely to be competitive at Northwestern or an Ivy League college unless the student is amazing in some other way.</p>
<p>A lot of top colleges will overlook low test scores if you have straight As in a difficult courseload and show leadership ablilities. Look at fairtest.org for a list of colleges - some excellent - that make SAT/ACT submission optional.</p>
<p>My D did WAY better on the SAT. Did relatively better on SAT than subject tests as well, and I like to believe this reflect so-so academics at her school (where she will graduate with a gpa of better then 4.0. but only 2 AP classes).My D want going ivy though.</p>
<p>Well I haven't done any prep for the SAT yet since I never really thought of taking it. I did buy some ACT prep books (Princeton, Kaplan, Official ACT Prep book) and my score only went up 2 points. I don't know what to do next in terms of getting a better score. I have until June for my next ACT test. I will try to read more though. </p>
<p>As for SAT, which one should I take? There are many categories and I don't know which to pick.. I'm planning to go into engineering so which one would be the best for me? </p>
<p>On another note, applying early will give you a better chance of getting into the college you want to right? And can you apply early to more than 1 college?</p>
<p>Promemorex, are you confusing the SAT with the SAT subject tests? Is that what you mean by "which one should I take?" I think most people are recommending that you take the SAT (the one that has the critical reading, math, and writing sections). The subject tests are on individual subjects. Which one you take depends a lot on schools you're applying to and intended major. For engineering you would probably take math IIc and a science such as chemistry or physics. Many schools do not require SAT subject tests, especially if you have taken the ACT. SAT subject tests are not a substitute for the SAT or the ACT.</p>
<p>more would help a lot! I just got a 26 on my state ACT =( I got a 19 on reading, 26 on science, 32 on math, and 25 on English. What can I do to improve within the next week?</p>
<p>You said you bought some prep books, but how much did you actually study?
If you study hard and your scores aren't where you want them, you would do well to look at SAT-optional schools. The most prestigious one of them is arguably Bowdoin College. They probably don't have engineering on campus, but maybe they have an exchange program with an engineering school?</p>