<p>Ok I have posted on here before, but the last time I had not taken the ACT. I have a 3.5 GPA, scored a 19 on the ACT and I am taking it again in April. Do I need to score higher? I am really involved and in a leadership class where the principal chooses the students. So how am I looking?</p>
<p>Yes, you do need to take the ACT again. A 19 is in the 40th percentile. </p>
<p>Also sign up for the SAT. (Get some practice books, too.)</p>
<p>BTW…what was the breakdown of your ACT. If the Science Reasoning section brought your score down, the taking the SAT will be beneficial for you since the SAT doesn’t have SR.</p>
<p>Good luck!!! </p>
<p>When can you take the SAT?</p>
<p>The science wasn’t a problem for me. That’s the unit I scored the highest in. I did really bad on the reading and the math. The reading part was a fluke I kind of panicked due to time. I should do a lot better the next time I take the test. And I am unaware of about the SAT. It isn’t common where I come from. Everyone takes the ACT.</p>
<p>Eh…you’ll probably still get in with that, but if you do better next time you will for sure.</p>
<p>What’s campus life like? Can anyone compare U- Tennessee and Bama?</p>
<p>I would recommend studying for both exams and taking each at least 2 times. When taking the tests, it is important to remember that the SAT has a guessing (wrong answer) penalty while the ACT does not. Colleges accept scores from either test.</p>
<p>Bama has a beautiful campus. They probably both have good campus spirit.</p>
<p>It’s not likely that you’ll be accepted with an ACT 19. That score might get you accepted if you are a recruited athlete, but not as a general student.</p>
<p>An ACT 19 is well below the bottom 25% of students. That’s what I meant that those students are likely recruited athletes. I’m not saying that you’d be rejected 100%, but it is a good possibility, because it would be a high reach for you. Anytime a student’s score is in the bottom quartile, the school becomes a high reach. </p>
<p>This year, Bama will have to reject about 55% of its applicants; I doubt next year will be any better. They have rec’d more than 21,000 applications this year (so far); they can only accept about 12,000.</p>
<p>It can be hard to bring up the reading, but it’s easier to bring up the math and writing. GET A PRACTICE book…I recommend The REAL ACT Prep Guide. Read the front sections AND do the practice tests. Pay close attention to the front sections that have to do with the Writing section.</p>
<p>Even if you can only bring up your overall ACT to a 21, you’ll be in better shape…if you apply EARLY. Bama is more forgiving with students who apply as soon as they start taking applications in the late summer (around August). </p>
<p>An ACT 21 puts you in the 55 percentile…still not great, but if you apply early enough, with your GPA, it will likely get you accepted. Also…if you apply early, and they defer you, you’ll have time to test again to ensure admittance. :)</p>
<p>UTk and Bama are pretty similar, in my opinion (which is why I’m going to UTC instead of UTK now). Both are pretty large football schools, and both are probably top of the line in academics among publics in their respective states although Auburn might have a case against that. Bama has a nice campus, but some of the buildings are really run down (Gordon Palmer, Rowan Johnson, ten Hoor, and so on). People always say that UTK is one ugly campus, but I actually kind of like the style better. That’s all a matter of preference.</p>
<p>Both are big party schools though. UTK is on the top party schools list in the Princeton Review and Bama probably should be too. Greek life is bigger down in Bama than in UTK (at least percentage-wise). </p>
<p>If you’re looking at both, and you’re cool with big SEC schools, it’s really a matter of preference, IMO.</p>
<p>Nebjohn, </p>
<p>I want to share my story to give you some encouragement. In 1992, I took the GRE, and scored a 1220 out of 1600, which is pretty good, but not great. Recently, I decided to consider going back to grad school, and had to take the exam again. I took it in late October, and bombed! My math score was around 340 out of 800, though my Verbal score was a quite respectable 630. Overall, this was a very poor score due to the very low math score. In mid December, I took it again, and did much better, scoring 1300 out of 1600. In early January, I took it for the last time, and earned a 1430 out of 1600. My Verbal was 690 (96 percentile) and my Quantitative or Math score was 740 (80 percentile). I was able to improve my scores so much by regular study and practice. You can too! The key for me was detaching and just committing to do my best and no more. Once I let go of the killer anxiety, I actually excelled. I hope this helps. </p>
<p>Also, when I applied to UA back in the late 80s, I improved my score from 25 to 27. The ACT equivalent for my latest GRE score is over 32, so the moral is that you really can greatly improve your score. If you want it bad enough, you can do it. But you do have to put in the practice time, and try to have fun by seeing it as a game. </p>
<p>Actually, I wish UA would raise their admissions standards even higher, cause I think too many high school students in Alabama really don’t apply themselves enough to get the higher score. If the bar is set too low, what incentive does the average student have to try to raise their scores? Of course, many truly smart kids are disadvantaged by having little exposure to rich vocabulary and role models, but again, I believe it is more dangerous to set the bar too low. I wonder why UA and other Alabama schools don’t actively help their potential future students raise their ACT or SAT scores. Would be a wise investment by helping to raise the overall average scores, which would improve the prestige of Alabama schools.</p>
<p>Thank you guys for the help by the way. And also how is the greek life at U of A? What are some of the things they do? And from what I’ve heard a lot of students are in the greek system. Does it dominate the social scene? And I’m sure it is a great way to meet a lot of people. Thoughts?</p>
<p>Comparatively speaking, Alabama does have a pretty large Greek system. Over 25% of undergrads are a part of them. I’m definitely not the expert on what they do, but they usually have social activities, swaps with other frats/sororities, have parties, and maybe do some charitable events. I wouldn’t say it absolutely dominates UA social life, but it is definitely a big part, and it’s probably the fastest way to meet new people.</p>
<p>I plan on joining a fraternity where ever I end up going. I am just not sure where yet. I can either stay in-state or go out of state.</p>
<p>Have you visited any schools, yet?</p>
<p>No not yet. Might visit UNL this coming spring.</p>
<p>University of Nebraska?</p>
<p>What is your home state?</p>
<p>What is your annual budget for your education?</p>
<p>Yes. And I live in Nebraska. Not to sure yet on the whole financial issue.</p>
<p>When would be the best time to visit the University of Alabama?</p>
<p>I would try to visit when classes are in session. Note that few classes are in session on Friday, but it would give you a better idea of campus life than visiting on the weekend. Of course, school schedules might mean that you can’t visit during the week, and that is okay too. As for what time of year to visit, late fall or January/February seem to be popular times. Football weekends are also a fun time to visit, but note that hotel rates will be high and campus will be crowded on gameday.</p>
<p>Spring is also a good time to visit.</p>