If you do well on act except for one section will colleges overlook the composite?

Applying to College
1

I just got my act scores and scored a 29 composite.
33 math
32 reading
28 english
24 science

(29.25)

Will colleges overlook the science and see I did well on the other sections or will they only care about the composite?
Thanks in advance?

2

bump

3

Will colleges ignore the parts of a test where you did badly? There’s no reason for them to do so.

If you have a 29 composite, that’s what colleges will look at. Engineering schools tend to look at the math subscore, but as a general rule your subscores don’t matter.

4

Some schools WILL look at Math and Reading specifically, in addition to composite. It depends. Most fall into the category described by NotVerySmart.

5

ok thanks @2muchquan

6

I’d study hard for the science section and retake the ACT. Most colleges do care about the composite because that is what gets reported.

7

@happy1 I wil probably get it re-scored and take it in April. I will ask the coaches exactly what score I need

8

@zxcvbnm1216 As has been said, most just look at the composite, a few then look at the reading and math. The math and science sections are supposed to be the easiest to bring up with study and the learning of test-taking skills. So spend some time figuring out how to take the science section.

My son took the ACT in February and did quite well, but when he came home he said the science section was the hardest he had ever had (it’s the third time since high school that he’s taken the ACT).

9

Also @EarlVanDorn if you look at Stanford’s incoming freshmen report. They list the composite range and also the math and reading sections on the act not science and english. This might show that they put a little more importance on these sections