Hi everyone,
So I think I’m placing my question in the right place but if not please forgive me. I just got my scores back for the ACT and found out that my scores were good overall, including my composite, except for the math score I received. I got a 34 on reading, a 34 on English, a 34 on science, but a 27 on math, averaging out to a 32 for my composite score. I realize that overall I should be proud of my scores but the reason I am somewhat worried is due to the fact that I am planning on applying to some more competitive universities (Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, Dartmouth, Cornell, University of Virginia, College of William and Mary) and planning to major in International Relations/Studies. I was just wondering whether or not it would be worth retaking and risking the possibility of my other three subject scores going down, as I was very surprised on how well I did on them, for the possible chance of improving my math score. As I’m not going into a math or science related field how much will the universities I’m applying to realistically weight my math score on the ACT in admissions?
I would also like to know if a 32 for the schools I mentioned would be a competitive enough ACT score to be in the running among the highly selective pool of applicants. If relevant my current weighted GPA at my high school is a 4.12 (unweighted comes to about a 3.87) and I have taken a very large amount of courses in foreign languages (four foreign languages throughout high school, including 3 up to AP level) and social sciences during high school, two things that I know admissions offices also look at carefully. Any feedback or advice is greatly appreciated!!!
It is definitely good enough to be competitive at these schools, however, if you want to maximize your chances, then I taking it again is definitely a way to do so. I would also take the SAT to see which you do better on.
How much realistically would my math score be weighted or payed attention to since it is so low compared to my other scores?
A few of those schools (you can check the rest) superscore the ACT. I.e., they take your highest section scores across all test dates. If you take it again and do better on math, it won’t matter what you get in your other sections.
If you don’t take it again, your odds of improving your score are zero. I say this all the time on this board… but the difference between a 32 and 33, or 33 and 34, or even 34 and 35, can put you further ahead in the line… and put you further in the front of the line for scholarships as well!
You would only need to raise one of those 4 section scores by 1 point to get a 32.5, which would round to a 33. I’d definitely try taking it again as long as you feel you can put in a little extra studying time (without sacrificing GPA). Doing the exact same thing you did to prepare the first time may not yield different results.
Definitely agree that taking it again could definitely help, especially in terms of an ACT superscore.
You may even benefit from trying to take the SAT and see which you do better on. (This is not necessary, it’s really just if you want options.)
best of luck!
OMG. I was on the same boat as you last year. I had a 32 and wondered if it was good enough. People told me that the ACT wasn’t everything. My advice is to take it again if you’re unsatisfied at least to a 33. Then, you’re good.