<p>Ok so my ACT score is currently a 33. I was pretty confident in this score and was not planning on retaking it again, but I am worried that a 33 might not be high enough for scholarships, both local and national. Even though a 33 is in the 99th percentile, is there really a competitive difference between a person with a 33 than a person with a 34 or 35? Or once you are in the 99th percentile does the decision boil down to other factors?</p>
<p>I personally believe that when you’re reaching the mid to high 30’s, it all boils down to luck. At that point, one question is literally one point in each section. With that in mind, I also believe that with the right ECs, essays, grades, etc, to supplement that ACT score, you can be competitive at most, if not all top schools.</p>
<p>I’m not exactly sure about scholarships though.</p>
<p>That’s what I figured for college admissions, but I am counting on getting some outside scholarships in order to help pay for college.</p>
<p>What schools are you looking at?</p>
<p>for merit money, higher is ALWAYS better, particularly if you seek the big bucks. A 33 won’t be competitive for a full-ride at Miami, for example, but a 34+ could make the difference. Ditto Richmond.</p>
<p>With score choice, there is no reason not to retake.</p>
<p>But remember that not all schools honor score choice. For this schools, if you take the ACT five times hoping to score a 36, you will have to submit all five scores.</p>
<p>^Good point. Especially when it comes to the Ivies, so it’d be nice to know where OP is intending on applying. </p>
<p>I think that there certainly IS a difference between a 33 and a 35/36 when it comes to these Tier 1 schools, but then again, you have to keep the score choice option in mind. If the schools to which you’re applying allow you to choose which tests to submit, I say go for the retake. Even if they don’t, I might take it again one more time (I barely got a 33 the first time around but got a solid 35 the second). I doubt one extra attempt would make or break your application. Those schools are just trying to weed out the applicants who study compulsively and take 6+ tests in an attempt to get that 36.</p>
<p>Just my two cents.</p>
<p>Well I have taken it three times so far. Does that make a difference? I would like to retake the test to get a higher score, but since I am the first kid in my family going to college my parents don’t see the value in paying 50 more dollars for me to take the same test yet again. </p>
<p>And I though that score choice only applied to the SAT. I didn’t think schools required all ACT scores because that would require 3 score reports (in my case) to be sent. But I am kinda confused in that arena of admissions.</p>
<p>And I am considering schools like Emory, Rice, JHU, WUSTL, Cornell, Duke, Tulane, and Notre Dame.</p>
<p>But I know some of them don’t have merit scholarships.</p>
<p>^I know that some schools do indeed require all SAT and ACT test results to be reported (UPenn comes to mind). So, yes, score choice applies to the ACT as well.</p>
<p>By “first kid in my family to go to college,” do you mean that you are the first of all your siblings to be attending college, aka the eldest? Or that you are the first person in your family PERIOD to be attending a college? If the answer is the latter, that’s a HUGE hook. I wouldn’t worry about a retake if that’s the case.</p>
<p>Regardless, a 33 is right on par with the mid 50% range at all of those schools. I think you’ll be fine with just settling (lol) for the 33. By the way, have you continued to improve each time you took the test? And do you think that you have a good shot at getting an even higher score? Those are some things to consider as well.</p>