Okay thanks. I think…I think that I’m going to stick with my 31. Perhaps I’ll take the SAT. I dunno. There are things other than test scores that define me, and I plan to showcase that in my application. I know my chances aren’t great, but neither are anybody’s chances. And for sure, I’ll have some safeties I love. Thanks for the advice everybody.
@NikkuWadde “There are things other than test scores that define me.”
That is a great attitude. The school you go to just does not matter so much as your major, and what you do there. It is great that you have the confidence to focus on your interest and just being you, and aren’t too worried about the name of the school where you end up. With the score you have you know you will have excellent options. You are doing great. Congratulations!
@NikkuWadde “There are things other than test scores that define me.” This just makes you a shit ton better than other applicants. Stay fabulous and you’ll achieve success because you’re willing to go beyond societal conventions and be an individual rather than many people who are so fixated on perfect scores. Colleges want leaders, not good test takers. There is no doubt you will be successful wherever you end up at. Good luck bud 
Thanks, @worhexiz, and congrats on getting into Princeton. Mind giving me a bit of your luck? (jk I know you worked hard to get in there)
@NikkuWadde XD Thanks. But I also want to emphasize that going to a school that is part of a stupid plant associated with itching does not necessarily define success. Even if you don’t make it to your top plant choices, you’re still self-motivated and nothing should change that. Most of the most successful people aren’t from a school that’s part of this plant. You will succeed wherever you go.
Honestly ACT do not require much prep (spent about 10 hrs total on ACT practice and got a 35 the first take), but most Ivies are gonna look for the 99th percentile (around a 33 or so) and the main difference between a 31 and a 33 is only two or three questions on the test. To me a $60 investment for a much better chance at an Ivy is too good of an opportunity to pass up.
From true stories from a family friend in charge of admissions at a large college, they will largely ignore ACT and SAT scores not on par with the prestigious-ness of the program. Not saying that Ivies will throw your app away after three seconds, but your chances would be so much better with a higher ACT score.
take it again. I didn’t study at all for my retake, and I moved from a 31 to a 33
Take it again, you don’t anything to lose other than a little money and a Saturday morning.
You see the thing with the ACT you can take it 40 times and colleges wouldn’t know. It is the SAT where you can’t take it an unlimited amount of times.
@NikkuWadde Don’t listen to the people who say don’t take it again. There is literally NO reason not to take it again. Unless you are scoring a 35 or above tbh it is always worth the retake. Regardless of the effect it may have, it is very measurable that generally people with 35’s get accepted more often then people with 34’s (for example) If you scored a 33 you would be moderately competitive at basically any school in the country ( at least by the metric of act) A 32 is a very strong score, you would be better than 98% of the students who took it that year ( again, at least by that metric). A 31 seems kind of weak for schools whose 25%ile is 32-33, but of course, doesn’t put you out of the running like a 27 would. I would DEFINITELY take it again, but don’t just take it again, study and take practice tests. I looks like you are too late to register for the june date (unless you already have, which I hope you have), but you can still take the september date, and even the november date for your non early action schools. (I’m not sure if there is an october date.) Anyway, the point is regardless of your scores effect and how great it is, another try is almost always worth it. It is almost indisputable that a better score WILL increase your chance of admission to any school you apply to. The fee to take the test pays for itself in my opinion.
@Multiverse7 I think you are misinterpreting those numbers, they don’t seem right. I think those numbers refer to the amount of students who scored that respective score OR ABOVE. I could be wrong, but It seems a little wierd that 100,000 kids got a 31 or above, give the numbers another check. (Only about 1.66 million take the test per year http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/04/education/edlife/more-students-are-taking-both-the-act-and-sat.html?_r=0
You may be a URM, and that certainly can help a lot with elevating test scores comparatively… but it seems like you are capable of achieving a higher score with some practice, and imo each point is going to matter when you’re competing against thousands of kids with 36, 35, 34, 33, 32s. You certainly seem like a smart kid, and I’d hate to think you didn’t get an opportunity at one of these amazing schools because you thought you could skate in on minority status. Your score isn’t bad, but if you want to genuinely be competitive for top schools you should want to try as hard as possible for a higher score.
Okay, thanks @novafan1225 and @ManaManaWegi, I thinking about taking the SAT instead, as I did miss the June date for the both. (I won’t be here anyways). I don’t think I’ll be able to skate by on URM status tho. I know that isn’t how it works. I simply added because I know some colleges take that into consideration. Tbh, think my ECs and life circumstances set me apart more than race. And yes, I’ll probably be taking another form of standardized testing to maximize my chances. Though, I feel as if a 31 is really the best I can do on the ACT. (Time killed me on math and science). Maybe I’ll try the SAT. I’m currently studying for the Math 2, Latin, and Bio Subject tests, in fact.
Most people do have a preference, so it doesn’t hurt to try the SAT to see if you like that test better. I do agree with many others in that I think science is really just reading comprehension, and as someone who also did perfect in the reading section I think your science could be higher. If you genuinely believe you have no room to improve don’t worry about it. I think you have a really good attitude and outlook on the process by focusing more on what matters and if these colleges don’t see it that way, their loss. Really refreshing especially on this board. Good luck!
@NikkuWadde Good luck. Man, I wish we could work out some sort of deal. I score a 36 basically every time on math, but score in 29-32 range for reading. If only we could do those sections for each other, we would have fantastic scores.
Ha, if only @ManaManaWegi
As people above have said, you should retake it. A 33 or 34 compared to a 31 will look much more appealing. Whichever college you apply to, you never want to be the middle 50%, or average - you always want to try to shoot for the top 25% of that college. Studying more is directly related to a score increase on the SAT, and the ACT isn’t an exception. It shouldn’t take that much longer to study in order to get a 2-3 point difference on the ACT.
Okay. Gracias @SomedayIwill. I’m just worried my score won’t increase b/c I studied for the second one too
Bump. Any other thoughts on the matter? Btw, I’m apply to all the Ivies except Dartmouth. Also apply to Gtown, Uchicago, Stanford and Vandy. Plus my saftey, OSU.
@NikkuWadde I wouldn’t recommend all Ivies… make sure you really know what type of vibe you want before diving in to save yourself some time. Some schools aren’t meant for you, and they can tell. Really try narrowing your options down.
Okay. Thanks @worhexiz. I’m gonna go visit a few places, so yeah. But I also realize that chances at Ivy Leauges are incredibly small, and chances diminish with each passing year. Really, Gtown is my dream school, but if I get into Ivies instead of Gtown, I ain’t gonna complain. Also, don’t worry I have a safety in OSU