ACT/SAT/Superscore? Take again?

[Matryoshka]

Oh wise Hive, please advise!  I'm from the coast, and ACT stuff still confuses me a bit!

 

Dd16 finally got her ACT scores back, and she did great overall!  But her math score could be better, I think?, considering she wants to go into Computer Science.  Should she retake it?  Do they look closely at the subscores like they do on the SAT (I seem to almost always see the composite with the ACT?)  Do they 'superscore' the ACT like they do the SAT, taking the best subscores from each retake? I know a bunch of people said their kid got a 32, so they're happy and done - but should she try to get the math score higher, or is there a risk?

 

I have to say that she did almost no prep for the ACT - she said that she just wanted to take it and see how she did compared to the SAT, and then decide which one to focus on.  One problem with the math section was that she ran out of time and didn't finish the last four questions, so I think if  she did some prep focused on pacing she could very likely do better.

 

But, if they only look at the composite, or if they don't superscore, is it worth it?

 

She did 32 composite, 35 on science, 35 on reading, 31 on English, and only 28 on math.  She didn't do the optional writing.

 

What say the Hive?  (She has decided to focus on the ACT - her SAT scores were high 600's in all three subsections - she thinks the ACT is much more straightforward) 

[clementine]

Only one college out of 4 that our dd looked at would take a superscore for the ACT.  

 

A 32 is great & would probably get the highest automatic scholarships offered at many colleges.  Does she have any idea where she'd like to attend college?  I have found all of our scholarship info and test score qualifications on their websites.  

[8filltheheart]

I think it depends on where she is planning on applying. There are schools which don't really look at the composite and only look at the English and math scores. GT is one: http://www.admission.gatech.edu/apply/freshman-application/standardized-test-scores

 

If she has to gain admission to a dept, what are the dept requirements?

 

Regardless, she did extremely well. If she isn't planning on applying to really competitive schools and 32 is the scholarship hurdle, I would call it done. (but we are not a pro-testing family. We just do enough to jump through hurdles.)

 

Also wanted to add that many schools are going to require the writing section bc it is used for the composite score for automatic scholarships.

[mumto2]

Agree, 32 is a great score. Would probably not test if it isn't required for the department. Might have her try one of the SAT math subject exams if want to prove skills separately. That way you keep the good composite.

[creekland]

Many schools told us they look at the English and math and ignore science and reading.  I'd look at those scores compared to where she wanted to go and make my decision.

 

These same schools use the best composite when considering for scholarships, but if they're competitive scholarships (rather than automatic), I'd still be concerned about "favorite" subscores.

 

Overall, whether those scores are good enough totally depends upon the school(s) you're looking at.

[KarenNC]

Many schools told us they look at the English and math and ignore science and reading. I'd look at those scores compared to where she wanted to go and make my decision.

 

These same schools use the best composite when considering for scholarships, but if they're competitive scholarships (rather than automatic), I'd still be concerned about "favorite" subscores.

 

Overall, whether those scores are good enough totally depends upon the school(s) you're looking at.

All of the schools we have looked at so far have only listed composite ACT scores, yikes! My daughter does extremely well in English and reading, but is 12 points lower in math than English at this point. I know that will likely increase as she does more math (in Saxon alg 2 currently), but this is concerning. Do they usually list this on their website somewhere? Do you know if they average the two subsets together and if there's a range for that or would it be the same range as the composite?

[Matryoshka]

Many schools told us they look at the English and math and ignore science and reading. I'd look at those scores compared to where she wanted to go and make my decision.

 

These same schools use the best composite when considering for scholarships, but if they're competitive scholarships (rather than automatic), I'd still be concerned about "favorite" subscores.

 

Overall, whether those scores are good enough totally depends upon the school(s) you're looking at.

Well, her two top picks at the moment are RIT and WPI. Do you think I should just call admissions and ask?

 

RIT lists general ranges for their general merit scholarships but they are not guaranteed and they don't list subscores, just composite.

 

There's nothing useful on the WPI website at all. Any merit scholarships they give seem to be completely nebulous without any score cutoffs. The only place ACT scores are listed is what their average applicant has for an ACT score.

[creekland]

All of the schools we have looked at so far have only listed composite ACT scores, yikes! My daughter does extremely well in English and reading, but is 12 points lower in math than English at this point. I know that will likely increase as she does more math (in Saxon alg 2 currently), but this is concerning. Do they usually list this on their website somewhere? Do you know if they average the two subsets together and if there's a range for that or would it be the same range as the composite?

 

I have never seen it on a website.  I tended to ask or e-mail (as a guidance counselor) admissions.  My concern at the time is the problem section with middle son was science and he wanted to be a science major.  That section was tough for him due to the speed needed.  He likes to understand what he is reading and takes time to do so.  It was impossible for him to just take a question and look for the answer (all one has to do for the science section).  Two of the three times he took the test he didn't finish that section.  Even on his final test he purely guessed on the last part.  He could max out (or nearly so) other sections, but get low 30s on science - his intended major.

 

I was relieved when they told me that section didn't matter a hoot to them... 

 

It's always possible they were just comforting a neurotic mom though, but our guidance office feels the same way about English and math being the two important subscores.

 

FWIW, he has a 4.0 GPA in his science classes and has been a TA for Chem, Organic Chem and one of his BCS classes.  His score on the science section really DIDN'T matter.

 

Well, her two top picks at the moment are RIT and WPI. Do you think I should just call admissions and ask?

 

RIT lists general ranges for their general merit scholarships but they are not guaranteed and they don't list subscores, just composite.

 

There's nothing useful on the WPI website at all. Any merit scholarships they give seem to be completely nebulous without any score cutoffs. The only place ACT scores are listed is what their average applicant has for an ACT score.

 

 

When I look at College Board's section of the ACT (under applying), RIT shows a higher percentage of those with composite scores 30-36 (40%) than they do for English (28%) and Math (32%).  This would make me think they don't care.

 

WPI has 56% in the 30-36 range for composite, but doesn't give breakdowns for English or math, so I would tend to think they don't care either.  It could always be worth asking just in case, esp since they have a higher percentage of composites in her range.

[snowbeltmom]

Well, her two top picks at the moment are RIT and WPI. Do you think I should just call admissions and ask?

 

RIT lists general ranges for their general merit scholarships but they are not guaranteed and they don't list subscores, just composite.

 

There's nothing useful on the WPI website at all. Any merit scholarships they give seem to be completely nebulous without any score cutoffs. The only place ACT scores are listed is what their average applicant has for an ACT score.

 

I looked at the Common Data sets for both schools because usually you can find more testing score data on the CDS than what is listed on the website.  While many of the schools I have researched for my boys provide a score breakdown for each testing subscore, that info was not listed for neither WPI nor RIT.  It looks like they are interested in the composite score for the ACT and the Reading and Math score for the SAT.

 

A 32 is a great score.  Congratulations!

 

[mjbucks1]

Is your dd in 10th grade?  I think I might have her test prep  and take it again.  A 32 is a great score, but she may be able to up her math and English score, especially since this is her first time taking it and she did no test prep! I would have her take practice tests without a time limit to start.  She should then go over ALL problems, even if she did not miss them, to make sure she understands why each answer is correct.  She should then take timed tests, but giving herself more than the allowed time.  After each test, she should review all the answers.  Then, she should slowly start to decrease the time until she hits the allotted amount of time for each section.  Also, she should wait to take the test again until she is almost finished with precalculus.  That will also help her math score.  If she takes it again and does not score as well you don't have to report the score, but I have a feeling her score composite may go one or two points and her math and English subscores will improve by more than that.  

 

My ds took the ACT last fall using the above method to study during the summer. His math score went up 5 points (from a 28 to a 33), and his composite went up 2 points.  He also used the Chalkdust SAT/ACT review for math.  Good luck to your dd and congratulations on a great ACT score!!

 

[Sunshine State Sue]

At the end of 10th grade, ds scored a 31 on his ACT.  Interestingly enough, although math has always been his best subject, it was his lowest sub-score.  We thought he was done testing.  At the beginning of 12th grade, he became interested in WPI.  Great engineering school with a great basketball team.  :thumbup: But, it is an EXPENSIVE school with no athletic scholarships.  Their mid-range ACT composite score is 28-32.  I wanted ds to be in the upper quartile if he applied.  At my request, he took the ACT one more time in hopes of raising his score for merit scholarship purposes.  He increased his score in every section and increased his composite score by 2pts.  But, his math score was still lower than reading and English.  Go figure!  I'll blame it on Analytical Grammar and the Well-Trained Mind. 

 

The basketball coach at Mines tells me that his reading and English scores are much better than the majority of the students there (he probably only knows a lot about the basketball players) and his math score is worse.

 

Now to your question.  I am not clear if your dd is a sophomore or a junior. 

 

If she is a sophomore, I would definitely have her take it again.  Many schools require ACT with writing.  I would have her take it with writing.  Therein, lies ds's real weakness.  He runs out of time.  His best score was a 7.

 

If she is a junior (and this is what I suspect because she is considering particular colleges and a particular major), I still might have her re-take it after some preparation.  I would double check about the writing section as well.

 

Good luck!

 

ETA:  Ds never did apply to WPI.  I sometimes wonder what the financial aid package would have been like.  I suspect it would have cost us a bundle.

 

ETA2:  I PM'ed you about your previous thread - women in engineering.  Not sure if you got it.

[MtnTeaching]

My ds also had a lower score on his first ACT math.  His English and reading were great scores.  He did the Chalkdust ACT/SAT review as other students have done here and tried the test again and brought it up. For the "fun" of it, he took it a third time and brought it up even more.

 

For him, those extra points meant not only the ability to receive a full-tuition merit scholarship, but also being able to skip all of the lower level English and math courses as he recently registered for his fall freshman college classes.

 

He talked to me about the fact that his first ACT felt more like a "practice test".  He got the timing down, the jitters out of the way, and was able to work through the parts of the Chalkdust review that gave him trouble.  For him, it was worth it to take the test a couple of times.