Interpreting My 26 ACT Score

Hi people, I recently got my ACT score back, and it's a 26. I'm not quite sure how good or bad that is. How does this score rank in terms of colleges' average accepted scores? Do you think it's a decent score or should I aim to improve it?

Your ACT score of 26 is above the national average, which typically lies somewhere around a composite score of 21. However, it's important to remember that different colleges have different standards for what they consider a "good" ACT score.

For many colleges and universities, a score of 26 will be close to the middle 50% score cutoff, which means half of the accepted students scored above that number and half scored below. However, the numbers vary depending on the competitiveness of the institutions.

If you're looking at more selective schools - say the top 50 national universities - you may find that a 26 is a bit below the middle 50% score range. In those cases, it might be beneficial to aim for a higher score to improve your chances of admission.

On the other hand, at less competitive schools or for certain in-state colleges, a score of 26 may be well within or above the middle 50% range, indicating a strong likelihood of admission assuming your GPA and other parts of your application are in line with their standards.

Ultimately, whether you should aim to improve your score highly depends on the colleges you're interested in applying to. One suggestion is to look up the middle 50% ACT score ranges for the specific schools you're considering and see where your score of 26 falls.

Another thing to keep in mind is that, while the ACT is an important part of your application, it's not the sole factor that colleges consider. They'll also look at your GPA, class rigor, extracurriculars, and various other elements. So, if you believe you could invest time to potentially boost your ACT score or if you'd rather focus on enhancing other aspects of your application, that's a strategic decision you'll need to make.

Lastly, remember to check the testing policy of the schools you're aiming for. A number of institutions have remained test-optional for the 2024-2025 application cycle. Some of these schools include University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Wisconsin, Madison, University of Washington, Drexel University, and University of Southern California. But we also have a few notable schools like Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Purdue University, Brown University, Yale University, The University of Texas at Austin, and California Institute of Technology that have discontinued their test-optional policies and will require all applicants to submit an ACT or SAT score.