Hi everybody,
So i did my first time act in the April test date and, frankly, it didn’t go well. I panicked during the science part (wich actually is the easiest :/) and only got a 29 composite (with very little prep): 31E 32M 29R 25S. However, I am positive that I can score a 34+ on the june test date. The only problem is that I did select Harvard as score report choice and now I got a E-Mail saying that my scores have been reported. That means Harvard has my god-awful 29 composite score right now. Will this hurt me later in my applications process? (Even if I geht a 34 in June)? Or does Harvard only consider my best composite score?
I hope this question hasn’t been posted before and if so I apologize.
Thanks in advance
You’re fine. They know you can vastly improve. Go for it and good luck
Won’t hurt you if your score improves. Get prepping! 
Good luck.
I agree with the two posters above. Prep and try again. If all else fails, you can lean on you essays, personal statement, and recs!
Although Harvard superscores the SAT, they do NOT superscore the ACT. So, yes, Harvard only considers your best composite score. But, Harvard allows for score choice, so you can take the ACT again, score better, and never have to submit the ACT score you don’t want them to see!
@gibby That, sadly, won’t be possible as my score has already been submitted.
In reality, the science section – which is not really science but more chart reading and analytics – is the section that trips student’s up the most.
Achieving a great score on the ACT is all about time. The ACT test creators specifically give you more questions than you can comfortably complete in the allotted time. If you conquer the time issue, you will do better on the test.
My son practiced the ACT at home and scored a 36. Here’s what he did: He purchased a few ACT practice test books through Amazon. Eight weeks before the test – for two days a week, on Saturdays and Sundays – he did two sections back-to-back with an egg timer set to 5 minutes LESS than the time allowed for each section. Then, he would go over the answers and identify where he went wrong.
At first his scores were awful, but by the 3 or 4th week, his brain began to work through the problems faster and was able to complete each section with five minutes less the allotted time and was scoring a 32/33/34/35/36 on each section.
Math was the easiest section for him, so he didn’t really work on that section all that much. Nor did he practice the essay, but he knew the data about the SAT writing section, which he applied to the ACT – the longer the essay, the higher the score: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/ConsumerNews/teen-student-finds-longer-sat-essay-equals-score/story?id=12061494
Instead he concentrated on whatever two sections were giving him the most problems. He only took a full ACT practice test twice during the weekend before the actual test (again with an egg timer set to 5 minutes less than each section allowed.)
Going into the test, he was averaging a 34 composite, but when he took the actual test because he had been practicing with 5 minutes less on each section, he felt he had an endless amount of time and was able to check over his answers. He was very pleasantly surprised when he found out his score.
Please give his method a try and see if it works for you. If you can raise your composite score to a 34, 35 or 36 Harvard will use that score instead of your previous one. Best of luck to you!