Should I Take ACT Again?

<p>I have scored a composite 31 last time I took the test, and I'm quite satisfied with it. I put it a lot of effort in studying and taking courses to achieve that score. However, I'm now registered for the September test, but I haven't been preparing much over the summer, so I'm expecting a lower score.</p>

<p>My question is, should I take the test? If my new score comes out lower, it's not gonna look good for college, right?</p>

<p>If you get substantially lower than a 31 on your second try. Say, a 27? It won’t look good. If you can stay within a 29-31, you’ll be fine. Try doing some study now, you still have 20-something days until the test. You can accomplish a lot in that time period.</p>

<p>I got a 27 the first time I took a practice test (i.e. without any knowledge of the test content) and I feel like that’s probably my score range right now. I highly doubt I will be able to stay in the range.</p>

<p>Should I try to take a practice test again and see how I do?</p>

<p>^It’s not advisable to take a test if you don’t think you will improve at all, especially if you haven’t been studying/reviewing.</p>

<p>Thank you all so much for your help and advices.</p>

<p>I have just phoned ACT to see if I can cancel my registration, and the answer is no. I was told to just not show up on the testing day. I somewhat doubt it but is my high school or the colleges going to receive this information (that I did not show)?</p>

<p>In my opinion, you’ve received incomplete advice. Many colleges do not require you to submit all scores. Check the websites of the colleges in which you’re interested to see. On her current list, my daughter has six colleges in four different states; some public, some private; some universities, some LACS. No college requires her to submit all scores.</p>

<p>You’ve already registered and paid for the test. Instead of taking time to see how to avoid the test, I suggest preparing for it and seeing how well you can do. Then you’ll never have to wonder whether you could have improved your score.</p>

<p>Depends on the college.</p>

<p>Thank you all so much for the fast replies.</p>

<p>@Schokolade:
The thing is, my school send out all the standardized testing scores on this “academic card” along with the transcipts, so there is no way in my knowledge to avoid sending all scores.
Good luck to your daughter!</p>

<p>^ Now I understand. Other posters have spoken on other threads about trying to get that information removed from their transcripts. Your school’s policy doesn’t really help you (as that information must be sent officially anyway) and it can hurt you (and defeats the purpose of score choice). As score choice is a relatively new concept, perhaps no student has discussed this with the school yet. Maybe you could ask your high school not to submit the academic card, as colleges don’t require it.</p>

<p>Here is perhaps a little bit of inspiration: my daughter had very good SAT and ACT scores, but was hoping for excellent scores for selective colleges and merit aid. She took the SAT the first week of June and the ACT the second week. As a result, she spent no more than a week working specifically on the ACT. She did the practice tests in the official red book and was able to bring her Science (worst) score up from a 27 to a 36, which also helped her composite score. We agreed in advance that no matter what her score was, she would not have to take it ever again, which I think helped her frame of mind, as she was tired of studying and ready for summer vacation.</p>

<p>One more consideration is that your chosen schools might have an impact on your decision. At some large state universities, I have heard (with no first-hand knowledge), a student employed by the admissions office notes your highest standardized test score in your file; the admissions officer making the decision might not ever see all your scores. </p>

<p>I encourage you to go for it. Good luck to you, and let us know how this all turns out!</p>

<p>I have asked my school, and the response I got for whether I can choice which test scores to be put on the card is “no.” I have yet to confirm if they can avoid sending in the academic card altogether. Thank you very much for the suggestion and I’ll make sure to find the answer out. </p>

<p>Your daughter’s story really is inspirational. I’m now considering going through with the test. Perhaps if I make the ACT my priority for the next twenty days I can achieve a better score than last time like what markzillyway said.</p>

<p>Thank you so much and I sure will!</p>

<p>Take it. you may do better…you never know. even if you did not study…its alright. you may get lucky!</p>