I took the ACT on June 11, and I noticed that the person next to me was looking at my answer sheet at the end of the exam. I took the ACT at my high school about a month earlier and I did horrible (23 composite). I studied thoroughly with 2 ACT prep books that totalled apporximately 800 pages, and I also did a lot of practice ACT exams by myself before the June 11 ACT. I could not afford a tutor, unfortunately. I got an average of 33 on the ACT practice exams that I took by myself. It was obvious that this guy that sat next to me during the June ACT (which was administred in a community college) and I knew no one in my test setting, which was a huge lecture hall and there was a lot of space between people. I thought about reporting it to the College Board after the exam, but I am afraid that they will cancel my score if I report it and require me to retake it. I have no problem with retaking it, but the problem is that the next test date will release the scores after the Early Decision deadline, and I plan to do Early Decision to my dream school. I talked to my friend after the exam who apparently knew the kid that sat next to me and they said that he is a really smart kid who got a 32 on the ACT.
I am afraid that if I report it they may cancel both scores and I won’t be able to take it in time for the Early Decision deadline. Yet I am also afraid that if I did really well (30s composite) and I do not report it, they will suspect me of cheating because my score jumped so high and his is within the same range.
What should I do?
I should also mention that my transcript supports my position if the ACT were to send me one of those letters I’ve heard about. I’m a straight A student in IB. I did bad on the first ACT because I had an anxiety attack. I also took ACT prep Cambridge classes beforehand.
I personally wouldn’t report it. I mean, you may not even be 100% sure he was copying your test; maybe he finished early and was looking around the room and happened to glance at your exam? idk. Also, if reporting it would put your score in jeopardy, then I wouldn’t risk it; let it be on his conscience. Also, I’m sure ACT has seen tons of score increases before, they wouldn’t single you out for cheating, especially if that’s their only piece of evidence.
PS: Collegeboard manages the SAT, not the ACT.
Hope this post was helpful, best of luck in this situation!
I wouldn’t worry about it, because the person sitting next to you might not even have the same score as you. @Darthjt is possibly right.
Your profile seems to support what your ACT score reflects, though I don’t know what IB is.
@gwh2016 IB stands for International Baccalaureate, which is an advanced curriculum that is on the same GPA level as Advanced Placement classes.
@Darthjt I know that he cheated because I noticed he was constantly looking at my paper throughout the exam. Then at the end, when they collected the answer sheet, I noticed that he had the same form.
Thank you for your advice! I hope I don’t get in trouble and everything works out well 
It will be pretty horrible if all of my work just becomes useless after all of that. I also heard from my friends that he goes to a one of the best public high schools, and I go to a pretty bad public school. I really don’t want my college opportunities to be ruined. I am afraid they might cancel my scores because his answers and mistakes will be similar.
Personally I’d just wait until ACT says something, and then if/when that happens, tell them that he was the one cheating off of you
What do you stand to gain by reporting him? Nothing. I also don’t think it will put your score in jeopardy. If you are truly worried about it, just don’t report. And as others have said, you don’t really know if he was cheating.
He may have been comparing but not cheating, just out of curiosity. Why would he need to copy off you? He may have wanted to see if you were tanking it or doing ok, or just seeing if you had the same test. Saying anything only raises suspicion on you. Do not say anything, you could get tangled up in ACT bureaucracy forever. They are nothing to mess with. You are making drama out of nothing. Move on.
Yeah, looking at an answer sheet can totally be attributed to “wanting to know if you were doing okay.” My god.
They were probably just seeing if you left a bunch of blanks or not, many kids don’t finish a lot of questions. I think that is what is is meant by if you were doing ok - not that they cared. I would be curious if the person next to me even finished the test. The smart kid that already has a 32 isn’t gonna chance cheating off of random kid. It is weird that you are worried about this.
Hahaha nice. He was cheating. If you’re not cheating, you know better than to look at other people’s work.
Looking at your answer sheet at the end of the exam? That’s it? Bored and looking around most likely. Why would the smart kid copy off of you? If done and a good sutdent, you do have the confidence to look around. Everyone knows there are different test packets, copying would be really difficult and obvious, not a simple “looked over at end of exam.” I think there is paranoia here.