<p>I have a question for the parents on this forum about the ACT test w/out the writing/essay portion of the test. My daughter took the ACT on April 14th (w/writing) and scored a 30 composite. She really blew the science section though (only got a 25). Anyway, she took the ACT test through her high school as part of standardized testing on April 24th and she thinks she did even better on that test than she did on the April 14th one. My question is, does the ACT test w/out the writing have any value for her whatsoever when applying to colleges? Let's say she scores better than a 30 on the one she took through her high school, will she be able to send it into colleges that do require the essay, as long as she sends a score in that does include the essay? Most of the colleges that she is looking at do require the ACT w/the writing, so I am trying to figure out how much value, if any, the April 24th ACT will have for her. I was glad to see that our state flagship (UIUC) does not require the writing portion of the test any longer, probably because our state will no longer pay for their students to take it. But, she is looking at a lot of other Big 10 schools in the Midwest, and I am pretty sure that most of them require the ACT w/the writing. Any comments or advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!</p>
<p>Check websites of all Big 10, I am sure that infor will be more accurate than any here. It is very few schools to check. Better yet, you can contact each of them. We were doing a lot of this at UG level and Med. School level. Adcoms are very helpful, you will get your answers very quickly and they will be the most accurate ones.<br>
On the other hand, why you D. would take the writing at the same time as other sections? It is much easier to be done with it that having that looming question.</p>
<p>Some schools want the writing section, very few actually. We had the kids take the writing section just in case but most schools only look at the other parts of the test. I wouldn’t worry about it at all. If our kids retake the ACT, they won’t take the writing part again.</p>
<p>Our kids hit their target scores for admissions, if they retake it would be for more opportunities for higher merit awards. Most schools don’t superscore the ACT for admissions but a couple of the schools our D is looking at will superscore for merit scholarships.</p>
<p>As for sending the school test to colleges, that will depend on the college and how the test was administered at your school. Some colleges will accept an ACT score on a high school transcript, if so, her school score will work.</p>
<p>MiamoDAP ~ The reason that my daughter didn’t take the writing portion on April 24th is because they did not offer it. As part of standardized testing, all high school juniors in the state of Illinois take the ACT. This was the first year that they didn’t offer the writing portion of the test due to a cut in funding. I sure wish they would have allowed the students to pay for the writing portion themselves, so they would have at least has the option if they chose to take it.</p>
<p>^Yes, that would be much better. I suppose they did that so that more kids stay in-state, kind of clever for them. Too bad! I also wonder if your D. can take just writing seciton by itself, I kind of doubt it though. Well, my own D. has limited herself to in-state anyway (it was 5 years ago), it worked out just fine.<br>
I would research on each Big Ten website and/or contact adcoms. Knowing exact requirements will clarify everything and help with the plan. D. has applied to OSU and MSU, but as I said she had ACT with writing ans SAT with writing and it was 5 years ago. Good luck!</p>
<p>I just got off the phone with my son’s counselor, who frankly is rarely helpful but who was particularly discouraging today. His only response to the scores was “ouch” for the math score, but nothing about the composite. </p>
<p>My son took the April 14 ACT without writing; he’s a junior and was giving it his first try. He made a 32 composite (36 science, 33 Reading, 33 English, 26 Math) and from his response it would seem that these scores are just OK and the math score is a problem. Any thoughts?</p>
<p>My questions to the counselor remained unanswered: </p>
<p>(1) If he plans to attend a college which does not require the writing portion, is there any reason to re-take the ACT? </p>
<p>(2) Is there any reason to re-take the test to try and raise his math scores, given that he has an interest in the sciences and possibly engineering?</p>
<p>(3) Is there any reason to take the SAT?</p>
<p>I’d appreciate any opinions you’d like to offer. Thanks!</p>
<p>Sonmere ~ According to this site:</p>
<p>[ACT</a> Score Information: National Ranks for Test Scores and Composite Score](<a href=“ACT Test Scores | ACT Scoring | ACT”>ACT Test Scores | ACT Scoring | ACT)</p>
<p>with a composite of 32, your son scored in the 98th percentile. How is that bad? I do not know how closely schools look at the individual subscores, or if they just look at the composite, but even a math score of 26 is in the 84th percentile.</p>
<p>^I believe 32 is great. Yes, you S. could have done better if he reviewed his middle school math as many questions are form middle school material. But even with that “ouch” Math score, he is done great! My D. had about the same, with very low Reading score, which is impossible to improve. She knew that, so she prepared only math. to compensate for low Reading, and it worked as planned.
I would not retake it. My D. had 33 and was accepted to where she wanted, but she did not apply to top colleges. So, it depends on you kid’s goal. You S. shows that he is very well prepared for college and he could be up to awesome Merit awards depending where he choose to go.</p>
<p>I know that at my kids’ undergrad the essay is required BUT…the good news is that as long as you have the essay on ONE exam, they’ll let you use THAT essay score and put it with the ACT that doesn’t have the essay. </p>
<p>Many schools may allow this. They know that some states give the ACT without writing. </p>
<p>So, check with your undergrads.</p>
<p>Also…he may want to retest if you want him to be considered for merit awards. Some schools award them to the best students and an ACT 32 may not be high enough.</p>
<p>And, if he’s applying to top schools, then an ACT 32 may not be strong enough.</p>
<p>He’s not applying to top schools, in fact wants to go to a state university although I’d like him to consider some smaller LACs. Mostly he wants to be “one and done” and I’m trying to understand whether this is a possibility. His top choice doesn’t require the writing portion, and I can afford the cost (barely) without merit although that would be nice.</p>
<p>For schools that require the writing, I think you would be find to send both ACT scores, provided she gets higher scores on the 2nd. I think they would take the higher score plus the writing from the previous test. For those that don’t require writing (a lot of schools) I’d just send the highest score.</p>
<p>My DS took the SAT and then the ACT (without writing.) He did better on the ACT, so he sent the ACT scores to all the schools that did not require the writing, and to the couple that did require writing, he sent his SAT score.</p>
<p>sonmere,
My D. was on full tuition Merit at state public in-state. That allowed us to pay for her Med. School. But not all schools awarded the same amount, some were much better than others. It is worthwhile to check if you are interested. We could pay, but why if there is a free option? The most important though is to be at place that matches their personality and wide range of interests. So, Merit award was basically a bonus. I still do not see why your S. should re-take ACT, but it is his decision. Best wishes!</p>
<p>*Thanks!
I can afford the cost (barely) without merit although that would be nice.
*</p>
<p>Then I would have him take the ACT again and have him take the SAT. Better scores can mean a nice merit award. What state school is this?</p>
<p>If you can “barely” afford the costs, then getting some merit will give you some breathing room. It’s highly unlikely you’re going to go all 4 years without several major unexpected expenses come up…major car repairs, new tires, dental work, major appliance replacement, home repair…these things seem to pop up every few months.</p>
<p>Plus, there are a number of unexpected expenses associated with college that aren’t included in the COA. Parents Weekend can easily be a $1000. If you help with move in, there’s often hotel costs. And, of course, all the expenses associated with getting a dorm set up.</p>
<p>First of all to posters above - 30 Act and 32 Act = Great scores. </p>
<p>As to which schools require writing, it is best to check the websites of each school for testing requirements. Less easily available is whether the schools superscore the ACT, and if they do, whether taking writing only once will allow that. In my own research for class of 2012 admissions, I found 3 schools that do not advertise super scored ACT, but if you asked admissions directly, they did. Others did not.</p>
<p>Also there is the issue of score choice. Very few schools actually require that you send all your scores (but also check directly with the schools so you know if you have any) and you can cherry pick test dates but not section scores. For many schools the additional test is at no disadvantage if you are not required to send the score.</p>
<p>ACT Science, in my opinion, is really tough to do well on, and is mainly about speed reading rather than science skills. However, for schools that might otherwise require SAT subject tests with SAT as the other testing method, you may often (BUT NOT always skip subject tests if you took ACT). A 36 science for someone interested in science is great.</p>
<p>I think math on the ACT is one of the easier subjects to improve on - for a strong math student. If your student is good in math, a review book which covers the topics that are on the test, and the practice tests can help a lot. The ACT came out with a new book recently with more tests in it. </p>
<p>My opinion is that reading and science are the hardest to improve upon for ACT.</p>
<p>I also think that some do better on one test than the other, and you won’t know much unless you at least try the practice tests (SAT had a book of 10).</p>
<p>FWIW, many kids take the test many times, even those going to to tippy top schools. I did not get into the SAT superscore discussion, but you can find that elsewhere on cc and also check with your colleges.</p>
<p>As painful as it seems to the HS kids to take the test more than once or twice, it is just another hurdle, and as much as many would like to argue that it is an aptitude test, it CAN be improved with practice - sometimes greatly improved. Depends on the student and the practice.</p>
<p>LadyHam–I encourage you (or your child) to check the websites of each college she is considering to make sure you have the correct answer concerning whether the writing section is required. People on CC are helpful, but sometimes they are wrong. Another way you can find out is by searching for “common data set” for each potential college, then looking in section C for admission requirements. This will be helpful as you check to see what other requirements each college has and the likelihood that your D will be admitted, because the common data sets reveal a lot of information about admissions.</p>
<p>I found that doing background research on potential colleges was one of the few ways that I could help my D (now a college freshman), who played a sport each season and was active in ECs while taking 10 AP courses. I made a chart for each potential college with admission requirements for each.</p>
<p>sonmere–
- I suggest that your son take the ACT with writing even if his current favorite doesn’t require it. This website is full of stories of students who changed their minds; the whole college search process is one of discovering what one really wants to do with one’s life and where one would fit in best. Just yesterday a friend told me of flying with her son to a faraway state for one last look at one college, and encouraging him to spend the night at another college so he could make a decision between the two–at which point he chose a third college! </p>
<p>2) Yes, he should try to retake the ACT to raise his math score, as it seems out of line with his other scores. While his original score is in a high percentile compared with other students, it would not be as good compared with engineering applicants. (My son just retook the ACT after a 32 composite with a 28 math score, and raised his score to a 35 composite with a 34 math score. Yes, it was worth reviewing math for a week and spending a Saturday morning taking the test.)</p>
<p>3) My children’s guidance counselor encourages students to try both, and then retake the one on which they did better if they aren’t satisfied. In your case, as your son has so much upward potential by concentrating on just the math portion of the ACT, I would recommend retaking the ACT first and seeing whether he is satisfied with it.</p>
<p>Schokolade, thanks for the helpful advice. I would add one thing to your suggestions to LadyHam: don’t rely on even the colleges’ own websites, as they can be out of date or not reflect future changes for students entering Fall 2013, as I discovered this month regarding out-of-state tuition waivers (the requirements were ratcheted up while the amount dropped, resulting in several thousands difference each year). Best, I would try to email to obtain important information.</p>
<p>Last, for everyone on this thread, you might want to consider paying the $18 for the ACT test results detail. I’m not sure how helpful they’ll be, but for that price something is better than nothing is my thinking. They do caution that the 3-4 week delay sending them means that they really can’t be used for the June test date, but certainly for the September and beyond.</p>
<p>mom2collegekids - wow, what a wake-up call. You are, of course, right. I am a single mom with no other financial resources but my salary and the prepaid tuition fund I set up when my son was a baby (will pay about $8k per year). You make excellent points. He;ll be re-taking the ACT in September after some tutoring! To be honest, I’ve been planning for “worst case” and now a score like this opens many doors.</p>
<p>anothermom2, MiamiDAP, familyof3boys - thanks for some fresh perspective from experience. This can be a bit overwhelming, and I feel like we woke up in a new world with different possibilities - like scholarship money or admissions to schools which looked out of reach (either admissions or cost.) </p>
<p>Glad I asked!</p>
<p>“ACT Science, in my opinion, is really tough to do well on, and is mainly about speed reading rather than science skills.” - I strongly disagree as while it is reading and by no means science, it is actually slow reading vs, very fast reading in Reading section. That was the reason for my D. (slow reader) to do very well in science without preparation.
"I think math on the ACT is one of the easier subjects to improve on - for a strong math student. " - Strongly agree and not needed to be strong math student either. The math section was the only one that D. was preparing (although math is easy for her, while math was not the best score, the best was English). The reason that it is so easy to improve is because most math on ACT is from middle school and just needs to be re-freshed. It is very easy to do by taking timed practice math tests and go over every error. There is nothing that resembles rocket scince in ACT math, it is easy math that simply got forgotten, few formulas here and there, few rules…</p>
<p>“My opinion is that reading and science are the hardest to improve upon for ACT.”
-Strongly agree since both of them are just reading. While slower reader will do poorly in reading section, there is a chance that such a reader will do greatly in science section (for references, it was 28 / 34 fomy r D. who took ACT once)</p>