<p>Well, this is the summer of my sophomore year and pretty soon I'll be a junior. We recently received our practice ACT scores by mail and I received a 22.75. Did your practice ACT resemble your actual score pretty defintively? I can honestly say that I blew off the reading section because I didn't read it (I'm usually soooo not like that) and I know I could have at least received a 23 or 24 if I had. How did you prep for the ACT? and how bad is my practice score?</p>
<p>I'm am a horrible test taker despite receiving A's in very competitive and challenging honors and AP classes, but no matter if I am better than someone in a subject, I always test worse than them.. why so? </p>
<p>Sorry for all the questions, lol. As you can see, I am very stressed about my upcoming year in hs. </p>
<p>I really want to get into a good college (NYU, UofC, Berkeley, Northwestern, etc) but I fear my test scores will be my downfall no matter how much I prepare. I find it funny that even if I am better than my friend in almost all subjects, she gets a high 27 on her practice test no problem, and with a little prep, she'll probably receive a 30+.. where as I feel I try so hard and am still handed the rotten end of the scores. bleh.</p>
<p>It sounds like time is a problem for you. That's the key to acing the ACT. You might also be a little distracted when you're taking the test. It never hurts to focus on what you're doing. And don't think "Oh, I'm taking the ACT!!!" Go for "Oh, I have to answer this question correctly." When you think of the grand spectrum, you get distracted quickly.</p>
<p>I hope everyone followed that...</p>
<p>Time is not really an issue for me, it's more nerves. I would appreciate some more feedback on this, but thank you!</p>
<p>I have a (somewhat) big problem with timing as well. Here's the best thing you can do: set time for each passage/block of each section.
For example:</p>
<p>In the English portion, there are 5 passages of 15 questions each. Spend 9 minutes per passage. </p>
<p>In the Reading portion, there are 4 passages of 10 questions each. Spend 9 minutes per passage.</p>
<p>In the Science portion, there are 7 passages of 5-6 questions each. Spend 5 minutes per passage.</p>
<p>This really, really helps. I've gotten a lot better with time management and I'm able to complete each section on time :)</p>
<p>Nerves were an issue for me as well. What helped me the most was taking the test multiple times (at the same test center). After the first time, it was no longer a big deal to me because I had gone through it before and knew what I was in for. Also, practice as much as you can. After taking a few practice tests from McGraw Hill's 10 ACT's, my score increased six points, and my essay increased two. </p>
<p>Your practice score is not that bad. Remember that you have plenty of time to prepare for the real thing.</p>
<p>Good luck! :)</p>