<p>Hi. I am a strong student and have gotten great scores in a very academically challenging courseload. I also do lots of volunteering and am very involved in my school. However, my SAT scores do not really fit in with the rest of my stats. I know that a 2070 is a bit low for Rice standard, and I was wondering how this will affect me. If I have an otherwise strong app, could I be accepted.
P.S. It would really help if some of you who were accepted with low SAT scores would let me know what you got. Thanks.</p>
<p>You are within the range to be accepted to Rice, so while higher scores are indeed better to have, your score alone will not count you out. I would try to bring it up if possible but don’t stress out over it. I know a handful of people accepted to Rice this year with similar or lesser scores.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>How about ACT? I have seen numbers from some people who are academically very good to have scored 34 while scoring 2000 in SAT. Rice waives subject tests if you take ACT with writing.</p>
<p>[Rice</a> University | Undergraduate Admission: Future Owls](<a href=“http://www.futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/Freshman.asp?SnID=1776375937]Rice”>http://www.futureowls.rice.edu/futureowls/Freshman.asp?SnID=1776375937)</p>
<p>Well I’ve actually never even tried an ACT. I guess I’ll check it out. Thanks, Texaspg. If I did do the ACT, what would be a good score for Rice?</p>
<p>Rice’s middle 50% for the ACT is a 30-34, I believe.</p>
<p>Yep, the ACT definitely sounds like the right choice for you. A great student at my school took the SAT twice and scored less than 2100 both times. He was unhappy with the scores so he decided to take the ACT; he earned a 34.
It can’t hurt to try! :)</p>
<p>Agreed. I have a 2150 on the SAT, but my CR+M is equivalent to a 32 ACT; I have a 34 on the ACT, which is a pretty significant difference.</p>
<p>Some people test better with one of the two tests than they do with the others, so it is definitely worth it to try both.</p>
<p>Alright. Thanks for all your input. Just out of curiosity, how does the ACT compare to the SAT question-wise? Are the math, reading, and writing parts pretty similar?</p>
<p>Remember that the SAT is just part of your application. While 2070 is slightly low, it is still a good score. If your application is otherwise strong, you stand a good chance to get in.</p>
<p>It will help to improve it, but this score will not automatically disqualify you.</p>
<p>On English/Writing:</p>
<p>The ACT and the SAT felt pretty similar here, although I felt more confident when “going with my gut” on the ACT than on the SAT.</p>
<p>On Math:</p>
<p>The ACT, to me anyways, seemed more focused on material you learn in freshman/sophomore level classes in high school. The SAT seemed to be more geared towards reasoning and logic skills.</p>
<p>On Critical Reading/Reading:</p>
<p>The SAT has a large emphasis on vocabulary, while the ACT is almost entirely based on understanding passages that cover different subjects (natural sciences, social sciences, etc). The ACT is kind of like a more elementary version of AP Lang or AP Lit.</p>
<p>On Science:</p>
<p>The ACT has a science section, the SAT does not. The science section does not require much (if any) knowledge of science though. It is more about reading graphs and understanding experiments and the scientific method, etc.</p>
<p>Overall:</p>
<p>The ACT does not penalize for guessing, the SAT does. The SAT always has a writing section, the ACT’s is optional (but recommended). I can cover the differences there if you’d like. The ACT also gains difficulty by giving tighter time constraints. It is much more difficult to finish an ACT section on time than it is to finish an SAT section on time - particularly the ACT science section since it is the last one and requires careful analysis of graphs, etc.</p>
<p>If you still want more information on the differences between tests, you can search the forums for the two tests on this site. There is a wealth of information on strategies/approaches to each test, and so on.</p>
<p>Alright. Thanks a ton, FallenAngel. This was definitely a huge help. I will look into studying for the ACT.</p>
<p>ACT writing is required for RICE. However, they are waiving subject tests if you take ACT with writing.</p>
<p>Yes I forgot to mention that. The ACT writing is optional in general; the reason it’s recommended is because many schools (like Rice) require it if you submit the ACT.</p>
<p>I’m sorry for not being clear there.</p>
<p>Ok, so I need to take it with writing. Is that part pretty similar to the SAT. I know its 30 vs. 25 minutes, so you have longer. Is it a point of view essay like the SAT one?</p>
<p>They are point of view prompts as well. Check this out for an example
[ACT</a> SparkNotes Test Prep: A Sample ACT Essay?Up Close](<a href=“SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides”>SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides)</p>
<p>Will do. Thanks, you guys have been really helpful. Hopefully my ACT scores will come out a little better than my SATs.</p>
<p>I had an SAT score of 1940, atleast 200 points lower than the average rice student’s, and a really crappy essay score of 8, and I still got in with merit scholarship.
That said, I also got a 33 on the ACT. So Rice obviously looks at the higher of the two.</p>
<p>I would definitely suggest taking the ACT. The material is much easier, it just moves more quickly on the multiple choice, so be prepared for that. The first time I took it, I didn’t finish a single section. The second time around, I was prepared for the time constraints so I finished every section with atleast five minutes to spare.</p>
<p>Good luck, and remember, scores are not everything!</p>