<p>As a person, like may CC-ers, who have taken both the ACT and the SAT, I feel as if I should offer some general distinctions between the two, for those that are still wondering about which one would be better for them to take.</p>
<p>General Words to Describe the Test:
- The SAT: aptitude. That is, one's natural ability or ability to learn.
- The ACT: achievement. That is, in terms of this test, how much you have learned.</p>
<p>Total Amount of Time:
- The SAT runs for a total of 3 hours and 45 minutes. It consists of 10 sections, one of which is a mandatory essay.
- The ACT runs for a total of 2 hours and 55 minutes. It consists of 4 sections. An optional essay is also present, which will thereby increase the time of the test by 30 minutes.</p>
<p>Content:
- The SAT: Critical Reading, Mathematics, and English (includes an essay)
- The ACT: English, Math, Reading, and Science (there exists an optional essay)</p>
<p>Number of Questions:
- The SAT: 170 questions and 1 essay; Approximate # of questions per minute: 0.87
- The ACT: 215 questions and an optional essay: Approx. # of questions per minute: 1.23</p>
<p>Content Comparison:
- English: The Writing and English sections on these tests are pretty similar. The SAT tests you on ways to improve sentence structure and identifying grammatical errors in sentences. The ACT tests how to improve sentence structure and general high school level rhetorical skills. Overall, the difficulty of both of these is the same.
- Mathematics: Content-wise, the SAT includes less difficult information than does the ACT. The SAT caps at Algebra II, whilst the ACT caps at beginning trigonometry/Pre-Calc. However, the SAT does ask more complicated questions than does the ACT. SAT questions ask you questions similar to the following: "In an election, 2.8 million votes were cast and each vote was either for Candidate I or II. Candidate I received 28000 more votes than Candidate II. What percent of the 2.8 million votes were cast for Candidate I." A sample ACT question is as follows: "If tan A=a/b, a>0, b>0, and 0<A<pi/2, then what is cos A?". Overall, both of these sections are similar in difficulty.
- (Critical) Reading: Once again, both tests are unique. The SAT includes a vocabulary section that tests middle school to college level vocabulary. In addition, it's questions are more abstract, such as the one shown: "The discussion of limits in lines 74-81 suggests that". While the ACT does not have a vocabulary section, it makes up for this deficit, primarily, by enforcing a severe time restraint: 40 questions in 35 minutes. However, to offset this severe constraint, the ACT Reading section if full of simple comprehension questions, such as the one shown: "Without the last paragraph, the passage would contain no specific examples of:". Overall, these sections are also similar in difficulty.
- Science: This section is only present in the ACT. Contrary to it's name, this test does not, by far, test scientific knowledge. However, it's questions and passages are made much more understandable with ample science knowledge. This section is basically a "glorified critical reading section" as all it requires you to do is to read little paragraphs and charts. However, it's time constraints are similar to those found in the Reading section.</p>
<p>Overall, the two tests are similar in difficulty, but your choice may depend on what type of thinker you are. If you prefer more abstract work, lean towards the SAT. If you're more logical and do well in school, lean towards the ACT.</p>