My D21 took the ACT in September this year and earned a 34, which was her goal. She scored 36 English, 35 reading, 33 math and 32 science. She plans to go into the humanities and on to law school.
She wants to attend a small Midwest, mid Atlantic or southern LAC, but is not concerned with being at a Top 20 LAC. We do want some merit aid as we would prefer to be around $30k and will not get need based aid at most schools.
Our family agreed that was a great score and if she was satisfied, we were satisfied. Not having to retake the test has really helped her limit her stress and focus on other things this year. The issue is that today was her first meeting with her school’s college counselor. The counselor told her a 35 would be better for merit and encouraged her to retake the test. My D21 is now anxious and is questioning her decision not to retake the test.
Do you think a 34 vs. a 35 will make a large difference in her merit opportunities?
A 34 is a great score (99th percentile) and there will be plenty of schools that will give her merit with that score, assuming the rest of her application is equally as strong. I personally would not bother with a retake, especially since you aren’t reaching for the tippy top schools.
If you’re not applying to the T20 LAC, a 34 vs. a 35 won’t make a huge difference. There’s also no guarantee that she’ll get above a 34 the next time. A 34 is an amazing score, and her merit chances won’t be drastically different if she gets a 35.
I would not retake, but might push back on the GC and ask which schools they are referring to.
Increasing her score 1 point is tough from a 34. Right now her score is 34.0 (136/4), so she needs 2 more points to increase to a 34.5 (which would round to 35). Getting two points, while maintaining the other scores could be difficult.
Another option could be to retake science and/or math in September (when subsection only retakes will be allowed), if it is looking like a 35 could matter at any of the schools on her list…of course those schools would have to superscore the ACT.
Are you saying that a 35 vs 34 would matter for merit at some T20 LACs ? If so, which one(s)?
@Mwfan1921 I wasn’t talking about merit or any schools specifically, but a 35 does look better than a 34. And at a T20 school, where it gets super competitive, one point could make a big difference in admission.
The super elite LACS where a 35 might possibly (but probably not) make a difference for admission don’t give merit aid. Schools that give merit aid (excellent but not super competitive LACs) will probably be thrilled to see an applicant with a 34 ACT, especially with a 35 and 36 in the areas most relevant for a humanities major. I, too, don’t see an advantage to retaking the test. Just make sure your daughter shows plenty of interest in these schools, so they know she is serious about attending and not just considering them safety schools.
Thanks everyone for weighing in on this topic. We are going to meet with the counselor to hopefully gain some insight to her thought process on this one.