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@lilypad7
1 answer, 13 votes
 • 4 years ago •
Admissions Advice

Should I retake the ACT?
Answered

I live in a state with very strict COVID guidelines and just got to take the ACT. Rising senior. I scored a 33 with 36R, 35 S, 32W, and 29M. I worry my math score is too low, I've had a fragmented math education so some of it is pretty old stuff for me. My GPA is a 4.29 UW out of 4.33, and I'm wondering how much of a difference raising my score by 1 point or so would make at T20 and Ivy league schools. Thanks for the help. I'm applying Political Science/Government if that helps.

ACT
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Accepted Answer
@CameronBameron
2,263 answers, 8,672 votes
 • 4 years ago

I was in a similar boat last summer with after getting a 33 the first time I took the ACT. Failure was not an option for me. I bought the Official ACT guide for the past 2 years and took a practice test once a week on Sat mornings and went over all the answers I got wrong and studied those. I also invested in the SuperTutorTV online ACT course. After 2 months of studying I got straight 35s across the 4 catagories. Its was clearly worth the time and effort. You need to do that. And sign up now for the next ACT test date. GOOD LUCK

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[🎤 AUTHOR]@lilypad74 years ago

Thank you for your input! I can retake the test in about two months. Do you have any advice on how to increase in the math section?

@CameronBameron4 years ago [edited]

Yes, get the supertutortv course, it's what worked for me. 2 months is not enough time to self-study books so you need to ask yourself how badly do you want a 35+ score. All the other comments about not re-taking it or that you don't need it are hogwash. I'm an undecided major, maybe gender studies, maybe film, maybe English. My college avg ACT was 35 regardless of major so I needed a 35. Also, I have to take their core curriculum which will require more Math and Science classes regardless.

@CameronBameron4 years ago

In a hypercompetitive college environment where the avg Ivy acceptance rate is 5.5% across all 8 Ivys (3.43/3.66/3.98 for the top 3), no smart applicant is going to take anything for granted. If 95-96% of applicants are getting rejected, that means they are not making concessions for candidates who have lower than the 25% percentile ACT score. If the middle range was 34/35 for top Ivys last year, it was more like 34/36 this year and perhaps next year it will be 35/36.

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@ananyaxr
1 answer, 0 votes
 • 4 years ago

Honestly, I don't think taking the ACT again is worth it. If you are doing Political Science/Gov, your reading and writing scores are going to be more of interest to colleges. If you've done well on your math courses in high school (which judging by your GPA, I think you have), that should be enough to portray you as a well-rounded student even if you're not going into a STEM major. Hope this helps!

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Unweighted GPA: 3.7
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SAT: 720 math
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| 800 verbal
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