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SAT |
ACT |
Testing time
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3 hours
+ 50-minute essay (optional –though we suggest it!)
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2 hours 55 minutes
+ 40-minute essay (optional –though we suggest it!))
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Registration
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Offered 7 times a year, register 4 weeks before test day, late registration closes 11 days before test day. Registration is online here.
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Offered 6 times a year, register 5 weeks before test day, late registration closes 20 days before test day. Registration is online here.
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Structure
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3 tests + optional essay
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4 tests + optional writing test
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# of Questions
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154
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215
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Time per Question
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1 minute, 10 seconds
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49 seconds
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Score Range
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Composite 400–1600
SAT Essay: reported in 3 dimensions, 2–8.
- No longer one score between 2-12. Instead: Three scores for reading, analysis, and writing, between 2-8.
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Composite 1–36
(section scores from 1-36 are averaged to create a composite between 1-36.)
- Writing domain scores: Now on a scale of 1–36 rather than 2-12 as before.
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Additional Score Information
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College Board will provide several subscores and cross-test scores, including:
- Analysis in History/Social Studies
- Analysis in Science
- Command of Evidence
- Words in Context
- Expression of Ideas
- Standard English Conventions
- Heart of Algebra
- Problem Solving and Data Analysis
- Passport to Advanced Math
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Similar to the new SAT essay, the ACT Writing section will have several subscores (scoring between 1-12), including:
- Ideas and Analysis
- Development and Support
- Organization
- Language Use and Conventions
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Test Length and Timing
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Reading Test
65 minutes; 52 questions
Writing and Language Test
35 minutes; 44 questions
Math Test
80 minutes; 58 questions
(20 questions in 25 min. with no calculator and 38 questions in 55 min. with calculator)
Optional Essay
1 prompt; 15 minutes
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Reading Test
35 minutes; 40 questions
English Test
45 minutes; 75 questions
Math Test
60 minutes; 60 questions
Science Test
35 minutes; 40 questions
Optional Essay
1 prompt; 40 minutes
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Breaking Down the Sections
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Reading:
- 65 min, 5 passages, 52 questions
- Types: 1 U.S. or World Literature, 2 History or Social Studies, 2 Science.
- Question categories: Main Idea, Vocab-in-Context, Inference, Evidence Support, Data Reasoning, Technique, Detail-Oriented
Writing:
35 min, 4 passages, 44 questions.
Includes:
- Standard English Conventions: 20 questions (45%), covering sentence structure, conventions of usage, and conventions of punctuation.
- Expression of Ideas: 24 questions (55%), covering development, organization and effective language use
Math:
80 min, 58 questions (20 questions in 25 min. with no calculator and 38 questions in 55 min. with calculator)
Categories:
- Heart of Algebra — 33%
- Problem Solving and Data Analysis — 28%
- Passport to Advanced Math — 29%
- Additional Topics in Math — 10%
Essay:
Optional
50 min. scored on writing, reading and analysis
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Reading:
- 35 minutes, 4 passages, 40 questions
- Types:1 Prose Fiction or Literary Narrative, 1 Social Sciences, 1 Humanities, 1 Natural Sciences
- Question categories: Main Idea, Vocab-in-Context, Inference, Detail-Oriented
Writing:
45 min, 5 passages, 75 questions.
Includes:
- Usage and Mechanics: sentence structure (20-25%), grammar and usage (15-20%), and punctuation (10-15%)
- Rhetorical Skills: style (15-20%), strategy (15-20%), and organization (10-15%)
Math:
60 min, 60 questions
Categories:
- Pre-algebra — 20-25%
- Elementary algebra — 15-20%
- Intermediate algebra — 15-20%
- Coordinate geometry — 15-20%
- Plane geometry — 20-25%
- Trigonometry — 5-10%
Essay:
Optional
40 min. scored on Ideas and Analysis, Development and Support, Organization, and Language Use and Conventions
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Which Test Should You Take?
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- Wide range of essay prompt topics on the Writing, whereas the ACT exam is more generally based on high school course concepts
- Known to have confusing question wording (more so than the ACT)
- If time is your issue, the SAT might be a better fit for you.
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- ACT is more fast-paced than the SAT; there are more questions to be done in a shorter amount of time (215 questions vs. the SAT’s 154)
- More closely correlated to your high school curriculum/classes than the SAT
- Less dependent on English vocab than the SAT
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Is Guessing Ok?
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Yes! No longer penalized by 1/4 point for every wrong answer.
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Yes! There’s still no penalty for guessing.
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Big Scoring Changes to Know About
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Essay is given 3 different scores and no longer affects the total score
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- The old “Combined English/Writing” score is the new “Writing” score, for those who sign up for the ACT w/Writing.
- Students who take the ACT w/Writing will have a separate “Writing” score along with an English Language Arts score (ELA–a composite average of English, Reading AND Writing) and a STEM score (average of Math and Science). Read more about the new rubric here: http://www.act.org/aap/pdf/Writing-Test-Scoring-Rubric.pdf.
- Key takeaway on ACT Writing = A student scoring 8/12 on the old scale for ACT scoring is given a 23 on the new scale, BUT a student with a 9/12 on the old scale is given a 30. The new scoring curve is very steep right at that point.
- The same scale score no longer represents the same rank order or performance level across different scores (*see table below).o For example, students need a score of 32 on ACT English to be at the 95th percentile, but a lower score of 30 on the ACT Composite, or 27 on ACT writing places them in the exact same percentile or rank order.
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