Compare ACT vs SAT

Test Preparation
1

<p>Hello everyone,</p>

<p>I am currently a rising senior, and have already taken the SAT twice. I have done well on the test, and do not think that I can do any better. However, I am considering to take the ACT, as I have heard it is a better test. I have also heard that many students do better on the ACT than SAT. My goal is to take the September administration for the test, and I do not plan on taking the ACT twice.</p>

<p>So, my question is: For those of you who have taken the SAT and ACT, do you mind posting both of your scores and adding some advice for me? I will be starting to study for the ACT in the next couple of days, and have the 2005 edition of the REAL ACT book as well as the 2010 edicition of Princeton's Cracking the ACT. </p>

<p>All help would be appreciated!</p>

2

<p>I took the SAT and ACT this month so I will be getting my scorse within the next week and a half! I’d say that the ACT is much easier than the SAT. The ACT is straightforward and there are no tricks; either you know the information or not. The ACT Reading is the worst subject in my opinion, you have 35 minutes to read 4 very long passages and answer 40 questions. The Science all depends on the individual, in my opinion it was easy, but to others it was hard. It is, I think 7 sections? Each section has about 5-6 questions. I don’t remember that much of it, though, just that it was easy. The Math goes up to Basic Trig and the English is all basic grammar. If you take the ACT, try the Writing PLUS because if you do well on it, you will not have to take SAT II’s. I hope I did well :), yet again, my opinion is that ACT is much easier.</p>

3

<p>I found ACT reading and english alot harder than SAT reading and english, but SAT math is harder than ACT math.</p>

4

<p>I honestly found the ACT math much more challenging. The ACT has concepts of trig on there while the SAT does not.
Personally, I’m focusing on the SAT, but it’s up to you. :)</p>

5

<p>I love the ACT sooooo much more but my predicament is weird. So I got a 1790 on the SAT the first time, and a 1800 the second. On both of those my maths were each 640, and the writing and CR were what was left, they were about equal as can be. BUT I took the ACT one time without a tutor and somehow got a 34. It just worked out better for me I guess so it can’t hurt to try it</p>

6

<p>^ Did you study at all, or did you take it cold?</p>

7

<p>I am an undergraduate and I just finished my first year at college. I do not remember which test was harder, but I do know my scores.
ACT - Composite 28, Science 26, Math 27, English 34, Reading 26
SAT - Math 650, English 610 </p>

<p>I’ve heard a lot of people say that the SAT is easier, but I liked the ACT. It was not overly hard to me. I only took each test once, and I never studied. Definately try both, that was my strategy, try both since the school uses the scores that are better. </p>

<p>Studying for the ACT/SAT should never really be an issue, it’s a big test over everything you’ve taken in high school. The best “studying” you could do for those tests is tutor younger kids in your high school. Offer help for freshman classes that you need to practice on for the ACT/SAT. You get to study, you make a little money, and you help a stuggling freshman through a rough class. Also, read as much as possible, a lot of both tests is vocabulary and that is one of the toughest parts. Spend your time this summer working a part-time job and save your money so you can pay for your books and what financial aid doesn’t cover, and make many many trips to your public library. Read anything at all, well obviously anything on your level or a little difficult for you, so that there are new words you might have to use the dictionary to look up. If you aren’t 100% sure of the definition look it up. Those are the best study tips for those tests I can give you. </p>

<p>As for other ways to get money for college, which may not be concerning you yet, but come next May/June when you graduate believe me it will (My bill for next year is nearly $19,000 which is $2,000 more than it was this year), you should really check out Fastweb.com. They have a lot of scholarships, including one that requires an essay on the book Atlas Shrugged(which is why I started mentioning this, More Reading!). It is 1200pgs, but the scholarship, if you win the grand prize, is worth $15,000, which would pay for almost all of one year of school.</p>

<p>Best of luck to you in your college search and test taking!</p>

8

<p>

This may be the first time I’ve ever heard this. Usually people say the ACT reading goes by a lot more quickly but that the questions are a lot easier to answer. I guess it depends on your test-taking type.</p>

9

<p>SAT I had a tutor and i studied, ACT no tutor and I just looked through a book quickly to see how its laid out</p>

10

<p>ACT time is an issue. It’s much easier to run out of time on the ACT than on the SAT. The questions on the ACT are easier than that on that SAT, however, for the most part. I find the math especially easy. On an actual practice test, I answered like 58 of the 60 questions with 10 minutes remaining. I missed the last question (my only miss on the math section) only because I misread the question. The English section is more annoying than the Grammar sections of the SAT, but the questions are generally easier. Same with the Reading section, but 35 minutes to answer 40 questions is a huge issue. Science section is not comparable, but the timing issue applies here as well.</p>