<p>Why is ACT so unpopular? Does it have any drawbacks?</p>
<p>Ok BIG myth/misconception: ACT is NOT easier than the SAT. It just works better for some people, especially for people who can work quickly. </p>
<p>Personally, I did about the same on the SAT as I did on the ACT. I think that the feeling of difficulty is just psychological.</p>
<p>It isn’t unpopular everywhere. In certain parts of the country far more people take the ACT than the SAT.</p>
<p>Only real drawback is that less people know what an ACT score means. Doesn’t really affect admissions.</p>
<p>Who says the ACT is unpopular? </p>
<p>[All</a> four-year U.S. colleges now accept ACT test - USATODAY.com](<a href=“http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-03-18-life-cover-acts_N.htm]All”>http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-03-18-life-cover-acts_N.htm)</p>
<p>The belief that the ACT is unpopular represents a coast-centric point of view. Here in the midwest, the ACT rules.</p>
<p>^agreed.Very few people take the SAT where I live.</p>
<p>Nationally about 1.5 million people take the SAT annually. About 1.2 million take the ACT. Unpopular? Hardly. Here in Minnesota about 2/3 of HS grads have taken the ACT, while only about 10% take the SAT. Some find the ACT easier, some find it harder than the SAT.</p>
<p>I took both the ACT and SAT in high school (me and the dinosaurs). DH - who grew up in Penn - only took the SAT.</p>
<p>Several college adcom people I talked to from the science/engr schools said they take both but prefer the ACT.</p>
<p>The ACT is not easier - just different.</p>
<p>I did way better on the ACT than the SAT.</p>
<p>The ACT is required for graduation in some states, but the SAT isn’t.</p>
<p>The Princeton Review say they prefer the ACT over the SAT.</p>
<p>Everyone here in Minnesota takes the ACT. SAT is unheard of for students lower on the food chain. Personally I scored a 30 on my PLAN (Like PSAT), but got a 24 on my practice ACT. It really depends on how you are doing.</p>
<p>I know this question has probably been asked a hundred times, but are selective colleges genuniely impartial? I honestly believe that they are from statistics I’ve seen, but I still second-guess myself sometimes, not to mention that my mom has even deeper reservations.</p>
<p>Could someone point me in the direction of a conclusive article that demonstrates that colleges are completely apathetic in terms of preference for one or the other?</p>
<p>I liked the ACT much better than the SAT
but a very smart girl i know did very poorly on the ACT because she doesn’t work quickly</p>
<p>it all depends</p>
<p>I think the reason it is unpopular is because, until recently, it wasn’t accepted by every college. It’s just not as widespread as the SAT.</p>
<p>As far as being partial to one test or the other, that’s a blanket statement and likely varies from school to school.</p>
<p>Ya if you look at the breakdown, there are many states (the middle states) where more students take the ACT than the SAT.</p>
<p>I’m in one of the SAT-dominated regions (New England). People don’t take it because no one has any idea what it is- we’re constantly reminded by our guidance counselors to take the SAT, but never the ACT. Most kids’ parents only took the SAT, so less motivated students don’t have a parent on their back telling them to take the ACT and even some motivated students don’t realize they have options besides the SAT. My school offers SAT but not ACT prep courses. Many local colleges won’t even accept the ACT. But mostly, many students don’t even realize it exists.</p>
<p>The ACT has 1.2 million people taking it while the SAT has 1.5 million…that’s hardly “unpopular”. But most people from the Northeast have that warped self-centered state of mind.</p>
<p>In midwestern states the ACT is MUCH more popular and the SAT is almost unheard of. The average SAT score of my school is unrecorded because so few people take it.</p>
<p>This is because the ACT is scored in Iowa and the SAT is scored in New Jersey.
Its just geographical preference.</p>
<p>Sigh. Dshinka, the number of students taking the ACT is similar to the number of students taking the SAT. The only reason you think it’s “unpopular” is because you can’t think outside your own region of the country.</p>
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<p>Most (enlightened) counselors that I know recommend taking both tests, particularly if aiming at highly selective colleges. That way you can send the best score.</p>