<p>Hello, all:
I took the ACT for the second time in June and got a 32 (35 English, 30 Math, 36 Reading, and 27 Science).
The previous time I took it, I got a 31. Should I retake it, or just go with the 32?
I am looking at the following colleges: UChicago, Yale, Brown, Dartmouth, UPenn, Grinnell, Macalester, Swarthmore, & Vassar.
Thanks! </p>
<p>You can try one more time. ACT 32 is border line for these colleges</p>
<p>Did your study habits change from the 31 and 32? If you studied the hardest you possibly could to get the 32 then I personally wouldn’t waste my time for the same score (or possibly lower). But if you know you can do better then go for it. </p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback! I didn’t really study for either, but I don’t have a lot of time or resources to put into ACT test prep.
Do you think a 32 would impact my application negatively? </p>
<p>If your scores are consistent, then all you need to work on is your science score. Study and practice for just that section should not take too much of your time. Just learning a few tricks from the study guides should bring that up a few points.</p>
<p>What’s your intended major? Engineering would want to see higher math scores, and English or other Liberal Arts would want to see higher english/reading. As someone who is interested in engineering, I got a 28 on math first time, 31 composite. Second time, 34 math and 32 composite. In general though, universities like to see fairly consistent scores - a 31 31 31 31 would be more ideal than 34 25 29 34.</p>
<p>As long as you are in the 25-75% percentile for the schools you are interested do not worry about it.</p>
<p>Just try one more time. Focus on your science and raise it to 30. Good luck!</p>
<p>Your score may not be competitive with those schools. It would be ideal if you retook the test and got 33-34 if at all possible.</p>
<p>@Ctesiphon: I plan to major in History and Political Science and/or Classics. I didn’t know, however, that colleges really look at the subscores.</p>
<p>I have heard from some people that as long as you get over a 30 or so, selective colleges tend not to really care about the exact number. Does anyone know whether there is any truth to that? </p>
<p>Sort of.</p>
<p>You really have to look at the schools you are applying to. Any score within the 25-75 percentile range is not really worth retaking, for purpose of admission to that school. A 30-32 wouldn’t go down so well at a college with 33-35 range or something, your test score would be less than the 25th percentile. Not many of those applicants get admitted.</p>