ACT Or SAT - Which College Entrance Exam Should College-Bound Students Take?

WHICH TEST SHOULD STUDENTS TAKE?

If you know a high school student who is planning on going to college, he or she will most likely have to take either the SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) or the ACT (American College Test). So you may be wondering which test would be better for a college bound student to take. You should consider which one the student is more likely to score better on along with which one the college or university is most likely to accept. The best way to determine which test is preferred by any given school is to talk with your counselor, go online, or contact the admissions office of the institution of higher learning you are interested in attending.

Which test a student should take really depends on which of the two tests is best suited to the student’s skills and abilities. The SAT is considered an   aptitude   test  with questions that concern problem-solving or reasoning skills while the ACT is more of a curriculum-based test, which means it covers information that students should have learned in high school. Often students will do better one test than another. But the best way to determine how any one student will do is to take both tests.

While the two tests do have some things in common like they both have math, reading, and grammar sections, there are major differences in the material on them and how they are scored. The ACT has a Science section that the SAT doesn’t have. On the other hand, the SAT has a fill in the blank vocabulary section and short reading passages that the ACT doesn’t have. The way the tests are graded is also different. On the ACT, students get credit for every question they get right whereas the SAT counts off a fraction of a point for each wrong answer.

ACT BREAKDOWN

The ACT is strictly a multiple choice test that always is given in the exact same order. The English Test comes first. This 75 question test has a 45 minute time limit and covers grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, revising and strengthening passages, changing words for style or clarity, and effectively stating a point of view.

The Math test is second and has a 60 minute time limit in which students are expected to answer 60 questions. The subjects the math test includes are pre-intermediate algebra, geometry, coordinate geometry, and basic trigonometry.

Third comes a 35 minute Reading test with 40 questions. Students will be expected to answer comprehension questions on four different types of passages given in the following order: prose fiction, social science, humanities, and natural science.

The fourth and final section of the ACT is a Science test. This section consists of 40 questions that must be answered in 35 minutes. The ACT Science test is broken down into seven passages: three of which require students to interpret data, three of which ask students about the results of given experiments, and one of which asks students questions about passages where scientist express conflicting viewpoints.

The ACT also offers an optional essay writing test that is 30 minutes in length.

SAT BREAKDOWN

The SAT always begins with a 25 minute essay section in which students are asked to write about their views on a given topic. The SAT always ends with a 10 minute multiple choice test where students are asked questions about the best way to improve given sentences. All the other sections of the test can be in any order and will vary not only from test date to test date but also from student to student.

Along with the two writing sections already mentioned, students will also have 25 minutes to complete 35 multiple choice questions over improving sentences and paragraphs as well as identifying sentence errors.

Students will also have two 25 minute critical reading sections that consist of a total of 24 questions that include both sentence completion questions along with questions over short reading comprehension passages. In addition, there will be another 19 questions that consist of both sentence completion and questions about a long reading passage that must be done in 20 minutes. All the questions in the critical reading section are multiple choice format.

Three math sections are interspersed throughout the SAT. One is a 20 question multiple choice test with a 25 minute time limit. Another has a 20 minute time limit for 16 multiple choice questions. The last consists of 18 questions to be completed in 25 minutes. Some of these questions will be multiple choice while others will be grid-in questions.

The SAT also includes a 25 minute experimental section. This test can consist of either a writing, critical reading, or math section. This experimental section doesn’t count toward the student’s final grade but does allow the makers of the SAT to try out questions on students to see if they are viable for future tests. Since students won’t know which section is the experimental one, they must treat this part of the test the same as any other section they would encounter on the exam.

ABOUT THE TEST SCORES

The ACT and SAT are scored quite differently. The ACT is scored on a scale of 1-36 while the SAT is scored on a scale from 600-2400. The average score on the ACT in 2008 was a 21.1 while the average score on the SAT in 2008 was a 1511.

How important these test scores are in determining whether a student gets into a particular school depends on the college or university. Bigger schools tend to weight these test scores more heavily in the admissions process than smaller schools do. Most colleges will look at a combination of grades, test scores, teacher recommendations, extra-curricular activities, and the student’s admission essays in determining whether they will admit that particular individual. Typically students with higher grade point averages (GPA’s) don’t have to score as well as those with lower GPA’s in order to meet the admittance requirements of many universities.

Although students are able to send their scores free of charge to colleges, this is only a good idea if the student is confident he/she will score well. Otherwise, students should wait and only send the scores they want schools to see. Colleges and universities have different policies regarding multiple scores on the SAT or ACT. Some take only the highest scores while others take only the lowest ones while still others average all the scores they receive. The best way to make sure that schools receive a student’s best scores is to pay the money to have a particular score sent to those schools.

WHEN STUDENTS SHOULD TAKE THE SAT/ACT

Ideally students should take the test during their junior year. If they take the test earlier than that, they may not have covered some of the Math the will need to know. Also, if students take the test during their junior year, if they have a weak area – like in vocabulary – then they have time to address it. But if they wait until their senior year to take the test, then they don’t have time to really improve on their weaknesses. Waiting until they are seniors to take the test also puts students under a great deal of pressure to do well, especially since only a couple of tests are offered in the fall, and colleges often have admission deadlines in December.

Students can take the test as often as it’s offered (one test per session), but they shouldn’t get carried away. It’s a good idea to take the test once as a junior and once or twice as a senior. “Of those students who took the test more than once, about 55% of students improve their scores on the re-test.”

Studying for the SAT and ACT is definitely a good idea. Students should get some books and take some practice tests in order to determine their weak areas. They should then focus on improving on their weaknesses. To do so, students can either study on their own, take SAT/ACT prep classes, or hire a tutor to help them.

ACT Or SAT - Which College Entrance Exam Should College-Bound Students Take?