Hey CC community! I am the oldest child in my family, and I am going to be a senior in high school in September; therefore, I am not too familiar with the college app process. Unfortunately, I am not the best standardized tester. I dislike how the SAT can decide whether you receive an acceptance or rejection letter. Can anyone please voice your knowledge regarding the importance of the SAT in the admissions process?
SAT/ACT most important next to GPA
@humanacidtrip In your opinion… is the SAT or ACT easier? I’m stuck at a 1740 on the SAT after 3 shots. Should I focus on the ACT?
The ACT takes longer to study for, but it is probably a bit easier to get a 30+ on the ACT than to get a 2000+ on the SAT. When studying the ACT, definitely focus on the CR and Math sections. The science section is relatively straightforward but can LOOK intimidating, so just get a feel for that section before test day.
Also, a good essay can provide an added support to your score’s strength. Increasing an essay from an 8 to a 12 can bump an SAT 50 points and an ACT 1 point.
@RandyButternubs Thanks for the awesome tips! That cleared it up for me. However, can you please explain how it can take longer to study for the ACT opposed to the SAT?
The importance of the SAT is inversely proportional to the number/quality of “hooks” you have.
I did much better on the SAT than the ACT. I think you should take an ACT practice test and see how you like it, because the moment I took my first ACT practice test was when I knew that was the test I was going to focus on. The ACT felt a lot better for me and I scored much better on it than the SAT 
The only thing that sucks about the ACT is the Science section which is just horrible for me and many others.
If you are more of a critical thinker or logical person, the SAT may be better for you. If you like straightforward things and are fast at doing problems, the ACT is better.
The ACT has four sections instead of three like the SAT. The math section goes more in-depth than the SAT…And there’s the science section. So there’s more material to study
Look at standardized tests as a way for colleges to sift through thousands of applications. You won’t be admitted or rejected solely based on test results but your application may get nudged towards the reject outright or strongly consider admitting pile based on your test scores. It may be unfair but colleges need some way to compare students from thousands of different high schools with wildly different opportunities. I think it is worth spending four hours/week for a few months in test prep. Standardized tests are not as important as students think but they are more important than colleges will admit
The science section of the ACT is not truly science but making inferences and understanding graphs. You could know nothing about science and do fine on that section.