Hello.I took the ACT for the first time in the summer of 2014 and made a 21. I took it a second time this past summer and made a 20.
I really need to bump my score up to at least 9-10 points because the college that I have been accepted to has a scholarship that gives you full tuition, books, and room and board but you have to have a 29.
I have been researching strategies to use for going about the ACT. For example: practicing reading fast to tackle the reading portion and reviewing elementary math skills for the math portion.
I am using the Princeton Review Tackling the ACT book along with the Princeton Review Elite 36 book for practice. Any suggestions for bumping up my score to at least a 30?
I have a good 4 months to prepare and I really want to go to school on a free ride but I’m getting some freaking bad anxiety about the thought of not hitting a 30!
As a note, I recall being extremely nervous the first time I took the ACT and I probably felt the same way the second go round.
Here is the absurdity of how schools use these tests—essentially paying students to increase their scores after being accepted just to raise the school’s ratings. You naturally should try to increase yours scores but from an academic standpoint, your true scholarship, as in academic achievement, you’r be better off devoting your time to just about anything else. It is absurd for a school to employ contingencies such as these.
Ay man, whatever floats your boat. But, uh, I need some money so you know… But I “truly” appreciate your “helpful” advice… ;))
Are you a senior? If so , most merit deadlines have already passed. If you’re not a senior, how have you been accepted to a school already?
Yes I am a senior. I don’t think there is a deadline for these scholarships other than they are only awarded during the fall semester of the freshman year. I might as well link the scholarship page to you: http://www.tuskegee.edu/scholarships/freshman_scholarships.aspx
First, tell your parents they can’t count on you getting a 30. Get their expectations in the right place so you have less pressure.
I’ve heard of people on CC who have raised their score 4-6 points, but 9 points is beyond anything I’ve ever seen, barring extenuating circumstances that caused you to underperform on test day. It sounds like you are doing quite a bit of studying already. Make sure you stay motivated- for example, set a goal to prep for 8 hours each week for the next 3 months.
Also, learning content well will cause quite a bit of score improvement. Take a practice test, then make a list of all the topics you are unfamiliar with and look up Khan Academy videos or re-read old textbooks to solidify those. Better test-taking strategies won’t improve your score as much as reviewing all the hard concepts will.
However, you can certainly increase your score significantly if you work hard and truly put in effort to study. Good luck!
Do you have a 3.7 GPA which is also necessary for that level of scholarship? You may want to the financial aid office to see it there is a deadline regarding scores. That being said, it is extremely difficult to bump an ACT score 9-10
Points in one sitting. The most I’ve ever heard of someone increasing their score is 4 -5 points. Continue to take practice tests . Look back at your individual scores to determine your weakest areas and focus on them. Lastly , do not leave any question unanswered . You are not penalized for wrong answers and a complete guess will give you a 25% chance of getting it right .
I had a friend go from a 19-27. She crammed for grammar and science, reading and math were tossed aside because they took too long to learn. Get your speed up, and try to ace the science, the answers are almost all in the text.
Personally, I went from a 31-35, almost all in the grammar section (25-34), easiest to improve IMO.
Get a tutor.
I knew I shouldn’t have asked for help here. No I can’t afford a tutor. No I’m not trying to score high for my parents: it’s for ME. I know I can score high enough because I have faith in myself. Whatever.
Because you are a new poster, I’d like to explain how things work. When you post and ask for advice, people volunteer their time and try to give you information that will help you. You’ve been given some recommendations to help you study . You can pick and choose the information you were given to see what works for you. It’s not necessary to be rude when it’s offered. Good luck to you.
If you’re looking for a full scholarship with room and board, which is probably worth easily $30k-$50k a year ($120-$200k!), I strongly suggest you get a part time job and pay for a tutor.
If you’re stuck around C20-21 in Senior year with only 4 months to prepare, you’re going to need a lot of outside help. Apparently whatever you’ve been doing these last 3-4 years in school has not been enough to get you close to C30.
Yes, you’re gambling on a tutor, but what is that going to cost you? A few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars? But it could give you a $200k+ scholarship.
Get a job:-)
Have you tried the SAT and will your target college accept it as a substitute to the ACT? Students sometimes do better on one versus the other. Given that you took the test twice in successive years and scored about the same, it’s unlikely that you’ll achieve a huge bump in scores this time around. Good luck whatever you decide.
You’re just below the national average of 21.1, you’re hoping to go to being in the top 5%, in four months at that. I don’t think that’s a reasonable goal. It could happen, sure, but raising it to a 25 or something is more likely. It’s a bell curve, so going from a 20 to a 25 is far, far, easier than a 25 to a 30. I don’t really believe people can change their scores all that drastically though, so I’d look at colleges more within your spectrum, such as ASU or Texas A&M.
I took it once after being out of school for a few years, having never taken a standardized test besides the ASVAB, and got a 32 after studying for an hour and a half the night before, so who knows, anything’s possible.
Godspeed.
@MalBalboa Obviously, I don’t know your financial situation, but wouldn’t the University Merit scholarships be a better goal? The SAT goal of 1180 is not nearly as difficult as a 29 (93rd percentile) ACT score. Assuming you can get 590 in M+CR each those are only the 78th/73rd %.
Is that doable financially?