SAT destroyed my chances at top tier universities. Should I try the ACT???

Test Preparation
1

I’ve taken the SAT 3 times and my superscore is a 1870. It’s above average but I’m a 3.9 student, and have the profile of a guy who’s got a shot at ivy league schools.
Math is my strong point but I wasn’t able to go past 680 on the SAT. I was expecting a score of 750.
I’m not much of a reader and so my 610 is one part I’m at peace with.
Writing is a strength but my score is 580. every time they give me a 9 on the essay, and I can’t seem to improve.

I’ve come to the point now where it has kind of become a mental block and I’m not confident about taking it again.
For this reason people suggested the ACT.
I know nothing about it so if anyone can explain how it’s different from the SAT that would be great.

How long is it?
Is the Essay required for universities to look at?
what’s the best prep book to buy?

Really would be a grateful for a detailed response.

2

Go to the ACT website and try the practice problems. My son preferred the ACT as a test because he thought that the SAT was tedious and boring. He scored higher in the ACT.

The ACT Science section stumps some people. My son says to read the questions before you read the passages.

I’d recommend looking for schools that are not in the top tier.

3

ACT is a much “faster” test. So if you can do speed and stress, it may be better.

It is also less “tedious” and more specific answer wise. If you have the time left, you should totally try it.

4

@txstella yeah I feel kinda the same way with the SAT being boring
@HRSMom oh okay, so you have to go faster but it’s okay since the test doesn’t try to trick you. the answers are easy to find if you know your stuff?

does it requiring a lot or prep, like material wise?
I’ll take it in February 6th. That will give me about a month of studying if I start in the beginning of Jan.

5

Why wouldn’t you try it? You have a lot to gain, nothing to lose (well, except $40.00 of course). Take it without the writing, and if you like the results take it again with the writing, and you might see it bump up a few points. There is usually a few point increase between first and second attempt.

Most kids find the ACT test very straightforward, but fast-paced. Read some of the ACT tips that are all over the web and give it a shot!

6

Absolutely I think you should take the ACT. My D did much better on it than on the SAT. It’s a much more straightforward test in my opinion. But it’s a time crunch test. My D took it her first time as a sophomore and only got a 25 then she practiced speed reading & doing math very quickly and ended up with a 31 on the ACT test she took at the end of her junior year.

7

Also try the new SAT, some seem to think its easier.

8

Also make sure you realize some top tier colleges want the entire testing history. You might end up having to send in all scores.

9

Same! After being discouraged from the SAT with a 3.92 gpa and (hopefully) aiming at ivies, i looked toward the ACT. I found that personally, it is a much, much easier test. It’s so much more predictable with a lot more consistency. Only four sections (45 min, 60 min 35 min, 35 min) in the same order EVERY TIME. English, Math, Reading Science. No experimental or bizarre ordering. and even in the reading, four passages ten questions each. prose fiction first, then natural, etc etc This consistency is amazing. Also, on the math always 60 questions which a set number is trig, a set number is geo, algebra, etc. (im not sure how many tho). Also, i HATE memorizing vocab so that is a plus.Yes, it is a lot more fast-paced, esp. with the science. But I can handle that. I’ve decided to take the ACT on february 6th as well. (which is a scary decision, seeing that the old sat will be gone by then and my high school is an extremely sat-pro heavy school) the english is a joke, imo. and the reading the questions are super easy if you can do it fast enough (like, if i take the act reading untimed i’ll get a 36 for sure; if i take the sat CR untimed i prob still won’t make a 700)

in regards to the essay, they have changed it since sept 2015. instead of it being the old two graders out of 6 added gives you a score out of 12, now there are four sections they grade you on and you get something out of 12 on each section…blah, blah blah, it’s a scaled score out of 36 basically. And let me warn you, getting that scaled 36 is harder than getting a raw 12. and yes, most top tier schools do require the essay.

I’ve found that if you’re a math/science student, you’ll tend to fare better on the ACT than the SAT. Just my opinion, but somewhat true. As of right now, I’m using the red book and barron’s act 36 to prep. will probably get more as i go along.

I would recommend to buy the red book, go thru their explanations and intros of each section, take the first test, and see how you do. If it’s a 30+, my (opinionated) advice would be to say sayonora to the SAT and never look back. (just prep hard on those essay)

Realize that all this is said from the perspective of a person who enjoys the act much more. if you want a completely unbiased perspective, check out prepscholar’s article of the sat vs. the act. Let me know if you have more questions. (:

10

Not to discourage you, but SAT and ACT scores generally correlate with each other. For example, my SAT was 2260 and ACT 34. If you got a 1870 after 3 tries, you’ll probably end up with a 28/29 on the ACT.

Of course you can study your butt off and raise your score, but good test takers will get good scores on both, and bad test takers will get bad scores on both.

11

I have to diasagree @spkang2020. There’s actually a thread on college confidential that shows the difference between people’s ACT and SAT test scores, because of the fact that each test appeals to different strengths (of course, neither one measuring your intelligence). There are both, after all, standardized tests and raising your score is merely a matter of practice and understanding your mistakes. It’s just to me, practicing for the ACT is more enjoyable (or less painful, rather) than practicing for the SAT. I’d personally rather sit through 4 long sections than 10 short sections. Someone else may think the exact opposite and hence do better. If you take them both without any practice of course, then your score ranges will definitely be similar. As long as OP is able to and willing to practice and put in the work, I don’t see why he can’t score a 34+ on the ACT.

12

It would be a big jump to go from those SAT scores to an Ivy-worthy ACT. My guess is that your high school has serious grade inflation. Also, it is unusual for someone to be a poor reader but a good writer – the two are tightly connected. Again… it is possible that your school is telling you your writing is strong, when in fact a standardized validation of that says it isn’t so. The ACT still requires strong reading and analysis skills. Give it a try, but I wouldn’t give it multiple tries if your first attempt aligns with your SAT attempts.

13

My D’s ACT was much higher than her SAT, and she took the ACT blind. Give it a shot.

14

Try it. Some people do better on one over the other. The majority do not. But it’s just a Saturday morning.

15

Short answer: YES

Long answer
My nephew took the ACT eight times, and at first had trouble finishing some of the sections. His first time he made a 24. His eighth time he made a 34. So you can improve if time is a problem.

I think the ACT has a procedure by which you can delete a bad ACT score, so if colleges see “all” of your scores they will only see good ones.

Some on the CC board have said they believe elite colleges might be more willing to accept students with a lower ACT score than one with a similar SAT score, since the latter is the one that is reported for the college rankings. I have no idea if this is true, but given that the SAT clearly isn’t going to do it for you, you might as well hope so.

The ACT next test date is Feb. 6, and the registration deadline is Jan. 8. Go ahead and sign up now and do some prep over the holidays. The next test after that is April 9, 2016. You should have your scores back in time to know whether or not you should take it again. You should probably just plan to keep taking it until you get a 32 or application deadlines arrive.

Don’t select any colleges to receive you score report. You can send that once you know you have done well.

Good luck!

16

You don’t get 8 shots at tests in college --wondering how he is faring if he went to a top tier college.

17

@intparent He went to Georgia Tech. He has not had stellar grades, but he graduates in the spring. He really got burned out and took a semester off. They encouraged him to “skip” a math class when he started because of his high score on the ACT. It was a mistake.

My nephew is a slow worker. His high school classmates always thought he was taking a long time to finish him math tests just to be obnoxious. I’m pretty sure it’s a slow processing speed. My son has the same to some extent, but no bad ACT scores.

18

The 580 isn’t because of the essay. It is because of the grammar questions. You can get a near perfect writing score with a 9 on the essay. Before you take the ACT or another SAT, study grammar a lot.

19

I might be repeating stuff, but you’ve gotten a lot of answers that I don’t feel like reading through lol :slight_smile:

Like you, I did significantly worse on the SAT than I expected given my grades. However, I took the ACT twice before taking the SAT. I think my SAT score was almost identical to yours - it was in the 1800 range - yet I managed to score a 31 on the ACT, which I’m happy with. It’s a much higher percentile than what I got with the SAT.

For that reason, I would highly suggest trying the ACT. There was no difference in the amount of preparation I did on either test. I just have more of a knack for ACT questions, and I think this may be the case for you.

The ACT is slightly longer than the SAT, but it doesn’t feel like it because it’s 4-5 giant blocks of time, instead of 10 little ones. It goes fast, but as others have said, it also requires more speed and for that reason is somewhat more stressful.

Some schools require the essay, some schools don’t. I say take it, because why not? My school doesn’t even let us take it without because they say there’s no point. The only disadvantage is the small extra cost and the fact that you can’t drop your writing score from the rest of your report if you don’t like it. However, most colleges don’t look at it that much, and it has little effect on your score. The essay comes after the test, so it’s not as though it’ll burn you out like it might on the SAT. Plus, even if none of your top schools require it, you may decide later that you want to apply a school and they require the ACT with writing, but you don’t have a score on file so you can’t apply. That happened to someone I know. Don’t put yourself in that situation. Just go for it. :slight_smile:

I bought The Official ACT prep book along with checking out Up Your Score from the library. The two are meant to go together. UYS is a quirkily entertaining how-to (imagine Schmoop making an ACT prep book), and the ACT has actual full-length practice tests. Both helped, although I don’t think you have to buy the entire Official ACT book to find four practice tests haha.

Best of luck!

20

You only got a 1800 on the SAT? Scrub