ACT Resources

Your Path to Ruling the ACT

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Know Your Test Dates

  • October 22
  • March 25 (Tentative)
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Know Your Deadlines

  • Taking the ACT is expected of all juniors and optional for seniors.
  • Juniors do not need to register.
  • Seniors will speak with their counselors to pay and register.
  • Registration closes one month prior to the testing date.
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Know Your Practice Test Dates

  • November 16
  • February 1
  • March 1

What's on the Test?

The ACT includes four mandatory sections and an optional writing section.

  • English: Measures standard written English usage and mechanics such as grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and familiarity with rhetorical techniques.
  • Mathematics: Areas of math students typically learn by the start of their senior year, including algebra, geometry, and trigonometry.
  • Reading: Students read passages from different disciplines to identify the main ideas, supporting details, and comparisons, and to demonstrate they understand complex relationships.
TUHSD pays for all juniors to test
  • Science: Assesses the interpretation, analysis, and problem-solving skills required in the natural sciences.
  • Writing: This optional section gives students an essay prompt that represents an issue and asks them to respond to it with a coherent, well-reasoned argument supported by persuasive writing.

*Information from Forbes Advisor

Test Break Down

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English Test

45 Minutes, 75 Questions
Measures: Ability to revise and edit short texts and essays in different genres.

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Science Test

35 Minutes, 40 Questions
Measures: The interpretation, analysis, evaluation, reasoning, and problem-solving skills required in biology, chemistry, Earth/space sciences, and physics.

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Reading Test

35 Minutes 40 Questions
Measures: Your ability to read closely, reason logically about texts using evidence, and integrate information from multiple resources.

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Math Test

60 Minutes 60 Questions
Measures: The skills you have typically acquired in courses up to the beginning of your senior year of school.

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Writing Test

40 Minutes 1 Prompt
Measures: This optional section measures writing skills equivalent to high school English classes and entry-level college composition courses.

Scoring the Test

How are scores calculated?

  • Correctly answered questions are counted. There is no penalty for wrong answers!
  • Those correct numbers are the “raw scores” which are converted to “scale scores.”
  • Your composite score and each test score (English, Mathematics, Reading, Science) range from 1 to 36. The composite score is the average of your four test scores, rounded to the nearest whole number.
  • Each reporting category includes the total number of questions in that category, the total number of questions in that category you answered correctly, and the percentage of questions correct. ACT reporting categories are aligned with ACT College and Career Readiness Standards and other standards that target college and career readiness.

Scoring:

  • A perfect score is a 36.
  • A proficient score is 19.
  • Scholarship consideration begins at 22 points.
  • In-state full-ride scholarship consideration begins with a score of 27.

Test Score Ranges:

  • Each section has a test score range of 1-36.
  • Below Average Score Range: 1-16
  • Average Score Range: 17-24
  • Above Average Score Range: 1-16
  • Average Score Range: 17-24
  • Above Average Score Range: 25-36

*Information from ACT.org

Who Should Take the ACT?

Taking the ACT Test is expected of all junior students and optional for seniors. The test can be taken multiple times, and YOU can choose which score is sent to colleges or scholarship programs. You can also “super score” by combining scores from different test dates.

The College Bound Student

The Military Bound Student

The Career Bound Student

  • Not all universities and colleges require the SAT, but taking it will give you the best odds of acceptance. Taking the test helps your application to stand out and gives you more scholarship opportunities.
  • Financial aid opportunities for trade schools and higher education.
  • ACT score reporting can provide additional academic guidance, including career path options, strengths, and weaknesses.
  • Explore how academic aptitudes align with different vocational pathways.
  • Use your ACT results alongside feedback from other diagnostic tools and your counselors to help pick a major or career.
  • Military-bound students take the ACT to discover career strengths and trajectory paths.
  • Students considering admission to West Point or the Naval Academy. Higher scores will increase your odds of being accepted to these schools.
  • Students who earn a certain ACT score on relevant tests may qualify to waive language testing requirements for admission.
  • Help you qualify for competitive, merit-based, or enrichment programs, undergraduate research fellowships, and study abroad programs.