<p>@theanaconda I don’t know, I think skills like CR are really important. Being able to read something and quickly analyze and digest it by thinking critically is a skill important to everyone in almost every profession. Maybe there is a trick to it that certain people pick up on, but IMHO, a lot more of it has to do with your experience as a reader. Me and all of my friends who were avid readers when we were younger all did well on the CR part of the test, and my friends who don’t read as much typically didn’t score as well. Correlation does not equal causation, and my sample would not be considered exactly scientific, but I would be very interested to see if in a real study a correlation does exist. </p>
<p>OP,check to see if the schools you are applying to require the ACT, or the ACT with writing.</p>
<p>@butterfreesnd Maybe many of the questions. but a few (enough to keep students below 750) really seem to be based on how you personally read something, regardless of how much analysis you do, and really that’s based on your personality. to take the test, I stopped considering what choice I thought was correct for these questions and instead decided to think like how the collegeboard would think (based on the answers they give before), so again; sacrificing my individuality and personal thinking. I think it paid off though (upwards of 750 on all recent practices before 6/7 when I took it, 800 on at least half), but it made me feel annoyed to take a CR section every time because I stopped thinking the way I normally do (and like to do). </p>
<p>@theanaconda I think I agree with you on that, when I would take practice tests sometimes I would run into a a question or two where I would disagree with the answer, or at least think there was some leeway (usually on tone questions). Those last 50 points though are designed to be incredibly difficult to get, the idea (I think, this is conjecture) is that in order to get above a 750 you have to really be in-tune with the passage and reading very closely for things like the author’s word choice and sentence structure. And perhaps more importantly, those last 50 points are not significant to anyone but maybe the top 1-2% of test takers who are targeting schools that are looking for 750+ in CR, the rest of the pack is losing the majority of the points on things that are more based on analysis and critical thinking. </p>
<p>@butterfreesnd I feel like the last 170ish points require a different type of analysis, perhaps this is not conformity lol. I took it in 7th and 8th grade (part of CTY) and got 630 and 670. I don’t think it was my lack of analysis or comprehension then, I didn’t approach it the right way. You really have to read closely and take only what the question asks, ugh it’s difficult to describe, but you really break down the few lines before/after to answer many of the questions. Confusing and annoying even if I mostly figured it out.</p>
<p>@butterfreesnd I feel like the last 170ish points require a different type of analysis, perhaps this is not conformity lol. I took it in 7th and 8th grade (part of CTY) and got 630 and 670. I don’t think it was my lack of analysis or comprehension then, I didn’t approach it the right way. You really have to read closely and take only what the question asks, ugh it’s difficult to describe, but you really break down the few lines before/after to answer many of the questions. Confusing and annoying even if I mostly figured it out.</p>
<p>@theanaconda I can’t really speak to exactly where the “change-over” is so to speak, as I fortunately never experienced much difficulty with the CR section (math is a different story…); but I do think you probably developed quite a bit as a reader and writer between 7th/8th grade and 11th grade. It is very common for students to see a substantial score increase between even 10th and 11th grade. Just having read more texts and more higher-level texts probably led to an overall increase in your score.<br>
I know what you are referring to wrt the test, and I agree that it is different from any other test, I personally just consider things like considering the context of the excerpt (and the question also), and trying not to extrapolate the questions as a combination of test-taking strategies and, to some degree, analysis. It seems we may just have different ideas of what constitutes analysis. I could be off-base though, and I haven’t taken an SAT since March so I might not remember the questions too well :P</p>
<p>@butterfreesnd I feel like it’s a specific type of analysis that you need practice and perhaps the maturity I gained between middle school and now (but I always considered myself precocious (hey an SAT vocab word I still remember!) and that my intellect hasn’t developed much since middle school even if my maturity has increased) to do. I guess you can call it not subjective, but we are in agreement that the last 50-100 points is subjective?
For math, I’m highly skilled (800 in 7th grade, 790 in 8th grade) so I don’t have much to say about it. I guess we’re opposites lol.</p>
<p>@theanaconda omg i cant believe u scored that high in math when u were that young! I only scored a 450 in math and a 520 in reading on the SATS this past May and im a junior 
I feel like I would do a lot better for the ACT when i study over the summer and retake in the fall</p>
<p>Haha, yeah, I suppose we would be opposites, reading is definitely my strong suit (80 on both PSATs and an 800 for my CR score, but math scores of 59, 67 and 690. Teach me your ways!) I do agree with you though that there is some degree of variation on the last 50-80 points. </p>
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<p>I think I could make an argument, though, that this is actually an important differentiating indicator. The fact that you show the ability to consider other perspectives, to be adaptable to approaches you had not previously considered could be correlated to success in a college classroom. After all, in a college that is doing its job, at least, you should be challenged to put your own predilections aside and consider that other ways of looking at things might be better, or at least worth integrating into your world view. Hence a difference between a very good student/thinker and an excellent one.</p>
<p>I believe that colleges equally consider both the SAT and ACT scores of students petitioning the admissions board. There are differences between the two exams, which is why some students perform better on one or the other. However, both equally gauge a student’s readiness for college, which is why both are asked for and considered in applications. </p>
<p>In some areas of the U.S. one exam is favored or emphasized over another. Where I live, schools prepare students specifically for the SAT, not the ACT. On the other hand, my cousins live in a different area where the ACT is the subject of student nightmares. The bottom line is that it is a good idea to take both exams in order to arm one’s application with the best standardized test scores possible.</p>
<p>For a while the SAT was considered East Coast/ West Coast, while the ACT was considered Midwest/South, in terms of where each was more popular. Has that eroded some, or is that still largely the case? It seems to me it is still fairly true, but more kids take both than ever before.</p>
<p>There are some nice graphics on here to show which states have flipped. <a href=“ACT (test) - Wikipedia”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ACT_(test)</a> ACT is still mostly center of the country.</p>
<p>@MusicalAsian7 @butterfreesnd
I do consider myself (as I stated before) precocious, so I think my intellect was pretty well developed by then, at least in regards to academics (my maturity developed more regularly and had some ways to go then (possibly now still some more maturing to do)). I participate(d) in a lot of math completions (mathcounts, Amc, math team, NSYML/arml etc), so the “creativity” you need to have to do sat math (I’ve heard that in comparison to act or school math sat is less straightforward, more application based) was not that much for me in comparison to these math competitions, I call this “flexibility of mind”.</p>
<p>@fallenchemist, it is interesting to see the trend toward taking both. </p>
<p>This is perhaps a really cynical thought, but could sending in both scores help admission if one is in the, e.g., upper quartile for both? Say 2 applicants are otherwise equal but one has only taken the ACT. Could the Adcoms say “let’s take the kid that took both tests because he helps our stats on both”. I wonder if that is part of the strategic thinking for applicants that submit both ACT and SAT. </p>
<p>From MY experience, (I live in North Carolina), liberal arts colleges will weight the SAT score more heavily, whereas science/math schools weight the ACT more heavily.</p>
<p>I found the ACT super super easy, so don’t stress out about it! The grammar was a joke. For the math, you’ll need to review your geometry and algebra. The best thing to do is to PRACTICE. Again, it sucks, but it will be so beneficial. Print out old ACT tests and go through the math sections; they sometimes have answer sheets and explanations online. You should also consider a tutor, or spend some time on youtube for free ACT tutoring!</p>
<p>The SAT is definitely more difficult. If you aren’t good at essays, make sure to get a tutor. </p>
<p>My tips for the SAT:
–Think of the answer before looking at the answer choices–they WILL try to throw you off
–I cannot stress process of elimination enough
–For the essay: they want THREE examples- one from literature, one from personal experience, and one from history are usually the best choices. Look at past essay topics and practice. I know it sucks but it will help you so much. Also, you can totally make up anything you want for the personal example- they have no way of checking!(; So be imaginative to have your essay really stick out. You’re just being creative, right?
–Relax, skip through questions you don’t know. Don’t take too long on a question either, or you’ll end up with an entire blank story, like me.</p>
<p>@mobius911 - Interesting thought, and based on a completely different discussion regarding some particular schools, I think it is safe to say that this really varies by school. So for example, it seems likely that some schools choose only one (the best one obviously, and when they are equal they likely put in the test they prefer overall, usually the SAT at most colleges) to put into their computer for their final “decision sheet”. This then becomes the only one they use for reporting purposes, including the number of students that took the SAT and the number that took the ACT. At these schools that adds up to 100%, even though clearly many took both. At other schools they record and report everything and so these percentages add up to, say, 140%. I don’t think most schools do it so much to gain any advantage as much as it just reflects how they review applications and how they set up their computer software to handle it all.</p>
<p>Besides, if a student took both but one was much better than the other, it might not help their overall stats. Now to get to your point I know you said upper quartile for both, but that would assume they cherry pick out the ones that don’t meet that criteria. Possible? Sure, as anyone familiar with some of the dodgy behavior at a few schools regarding these kinds of things will tell you. But that is extra work on a couple of levels for the admissions people, so I tend to think it is probably not so common when combined with the fact that most do things ethically, I think. Naive? Maybe, but all these schools use student interns to input data in their offices, and given the idealism of most college students, not to mention just the sheer number of people involved in these offices, it is hard to believe it wouldn’t come out more often if these kinds of things were the case. After all, most of these dodgy schools we are talking about got discovered when an employee blew the whistle, often after a single offender who thought they were “helping” left and the new person found the anomalous results the next year ("Holy ^$#(^$# !! How could scores drop that much??) So not impossible, but I suspect rare.</p>
<p>@shudak I’m curious where you got this info?
All the schools I’ve observed weight them equally. What information can you cite that will help educate me?</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.binghamton.edu/admissions/class-profile.html”>http://www.binghamton.edu/admissions/class-profile.html</a></p>
<p>where 1220 is the lowest of the mid-range percentile (1220 - 1390 is midrange). The OP notes 970 as their last SAT CR + M. ACT midrange is 26 - 31. A 26 on the ACT is 83rd percentile. </p>
<p>970 on SAT CR + M is under 50th percentile according to the College Board.</p>
<p>If you were my young relative asking for advice, I’d recommend a few things:
- Decide if you really want to go to college - freshman year is pretty much standardized testing to be honest (I teach college, we are pretty much forced to do so)) - would you actually like that? Or would you mind having to go for six years or more, common where I teach
- If your heart is set on U Binghamton, you need to take a prep course for the ACT and/or SAT and I’d suggest retaking the SAT and take the ACT. If you can’t pay for it on your own, Boys & Girls Clubs or YMCAs often have info on how to access free prep programs.
- Or, consider getting a job in Binghamton and taking a single course while you work. If you ace it, you’ll show that you are ready for college (I did this with graduate school).
- Or, consider that if your GPA is good enough for U Binghamton (3.3+) or even if not, maybe you have a learning disability like dyslexia or dysgraphia. A lot of students will say “I’m not good at math” or “I’m not good at reading” but really they have a learning disability and will do VERY WELL in life if they get some help. Since you are still in HS, you can ask to be referred for testing for a learning disability, and the school district must consider it.</p>
<p>When I see posts about “big difference between SAT scores and ACT scores”, people are usually talking about less than 10 percentile points. You would need to improve by 30 percentile points to meet the low range of U Binghamton according to their class profile. </p>
<p>I understand you want to know SAT vs. ACT, but it seems that SAT isn’t even a choice for you based on what you said.</p>