Should I retake the ACT?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Minnesota
1

Hi all, I took the September 2017 sitting with writing and my scores just came out.

Composite 30
English 32
Math 29
Reading 35
Science 25
Writing 9

I’m very worried about how poor my science score is; during the test I was having a lot of trouble with pacing because this was my first encounter with the ACT, and I had never even taken a practice test before that day. (Stupid, I know.) I know that my math and science scores could both go up into the 30+ range if I retook it. However, because I am a transfer student, I have a deadline of December 1st to get all my materials in. Though I am fairly confident that my multiple choice scores would have enough time to get to admissions if I were to take the October 28th sitting, I can’t say the same if I were to tack on a writing portion to my test.

So I guess my questions are:

  1. Should I take a gamble and retake the ACT with Writing, knowing that if those scores don’t seem to be coming in on time, I could always send in my September scores?
  1. Should I just take one without writing, then send in both scores, and hope they consider all scores?
  2. Would it be too outlandish of a request to email a transfer counselor and ask if it would be a possibility to tack on my writing score from September to my multiple choice score from October? ''
  3. Are my scores even good enough as a transfer student to UMN?

Thank you for your insight!

2

They will consider the highest composite score, but if you’ve already done the essay there is no need to re-do that - retake and send in both scores.

As to whether to retake - which college(s) are you considering applying to?

Edit/update: Also, are you sure you need ACT as a transfer student? Best to check the admissions website for transfers to see exactly what’s required.

3

I’m planning on applying to CLA. And yes, I have less than 30 credits, so they do need my ACT scores.

4

Your major is linguistics, correct? (based on your other thread). You are probably fine. As I said over there, trust the admissions counselor.