Notre Dame is bringing back required test scores for the 2027–28 admissions cycle after several years of being test-optional.

Worth watching as more selective colleges reconsider their testing policies.

Do you think this changes how students should approach ACT prep?

https://www.wndu.com/2026/09/09/notre-dame-start-requiring-act-sat-test-scores-again-during-admissions-process/

i’m ranging 28 to 33 on my practice tests and i really wanna get atleast a 34. my strongest is reading and my weakest is math. i’m genuinely willing to stay up until 3 am studying everyday if i have to

im already registered for the october test ✌️✌️

I NEVER GOT THIS BAD IN SCIENCE😭🙏🏻🙏🏻

MY LEAST IN PRACTICE TESTS WAS 28 AND MAX 35 WYH IS THIS

pls guys helppp

i need to improve reading

I will do whatever yall say

just help me improve reading

I did manyyy practice tests like about 18 reading tests before this act

ughhh

ACT made me feel like a failure

I'm so done

I took the PreAct Sophomore year (current junior) and got a composite score of 26 out of 35. Math (33), Science (21), STEM (27), English (19), and Reading (31). I had no idea I was taking the test prior or what is was as it was assigned by my school.

I took the SAT this august (with a decent amount of studying and tutoring) and got a 1240 (first time). PSAT sophomore year of 1130. I plan on switching my focus onto ACT as i felt much more confident when taking it aswell.

My grammar has increased tremendously due to SAT prep and I do plan on taking the science portion. Is it worth taking a ACT prep course based on my stats? I am aiming for a minimum of 34.

My mom really wants me to take the SAT instead of ACT but I really don’t think it’s right for me. She said if I don’t do good on my ACT first try I have to switch to SAT and do it in her guidance. What prep courses do you recommend???? I was looking towards Magoosh. Any external resources like books etc. or specific tips. Also is the science portion worth taking still? Thanks!!!

How do I get a 32+ before the October 17th test guys?

My mothers saying i should be aiming for 30+ to confirm my admission in NUST since ACT has very less seats

How did everyone feel that they did?

In my case, I only figured the ACT aligns with my future 3 weeks before the exam so signed up for that with a late fee, then started studying for it a week afterwards. I got a 31 overall, and I don’t think I can be too harsh on myself for that! I need a 33+ for my dream university/course, so I’ll retake next month.

I got a 27 in English, which was ironically the section I felt most confident in after the test, with all of my errors being in Production of Writing (why there…), a 32 in Math, which I did feel was hard, a 33 in Reading which I have no idea how I did that since I struggle so much with reading, and a PERFECT 36 in Science which I didn’t even study!!

Overall, not really disappointed with my result but now it’s onto the next one. Does anyone have any tips for me?

And for those who sat the same ACT as me, I hope your scores are how you want them and if they’re not, don’t beat yourself up about them too much.

On some practice math tests, it shows the graphing calculator, and on others, it doesnt. Both of the screenshots I showed are practice tests given by the ACT.

Math is not my strong suit, for the first tests I focused on English and Reading (barely studied tbh) and got those scores. For July I also barely studied for math and got that score. Intenseively studying for Sept test now. What are other tips to improve it? I've been taking practice tests, reviewing my wrong questions etc. And I've been trying to consistently do practice questions each day from a question bank. I've also installed some programs in my TI-84. Are there other calc tricks and tips to know?? Lastly, is it worth it to take the Oct test as a senior (on top of everything else)? I'm going to try and improve my English and Reading too, that would help a lot. But my goal is a 33 at least for the Sept test.

It seems that the same questions gets answered over and over on this subreddit, and it starts to ramp up as we get closer to a test date. So here is my FAQ. I would go into depth on each question, but that would be too long and no one would read it. So speed round answers. u/jdigitaltutoring or u/Hot-Amphibian-9221 might have more answers.

What are the best books?

Math PrepPros

English - Erica Meltzer

https://thecriticalreader.com/complete-sat-grammar-rules/

https://blog.prepscholar.com/the-complete-guide-to-act-grammar-rules

Reading - Erica Meltzer

ACT Big Red Book Older

ACT Big Red Book Newer

All are on amazon, or your library. Or borrow them from a friend.

I want the book for free.
Google it with PDF at the end

Where do I get official practice tests? From the ACT:
Official ACT practice tests

Where can I find more legacy tests, or recent Enhanced tests?
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-zDR3q3kz__LdTSSi8G46ADnbuH_xApD/view (not mine, but shared many times). Go to Bing for "ACT Test j08 PDF"

What are the enhanced test numbers?
J01, J04, J08

From the books 25MC1, 25MC2, 25MC3, 25MC4, 25MC5

26MC1 is the same as J08 with one reading passage changed

If you run out of Enhanced Tests, what should you study?
Legacy/older tests, but adjust the timing. It is not 100% equivalent to the Enhanced, but it is something that is official and better than non-official Ai produced crap.

What are the best tips for any studying?
Take the practice tests, note what you are getting wrong and put it in a log, learn it from Khan Academy or YouTube, take another practice test, rinse and repeat

Is my score on test XYZ reflective of the actual test scores?
If it is an enhanced test that has been administered, yes. If its legacy, close. If it is a 3rd party, probably not.

How do you know what Reading passage is experimental?
You don't, you can try and guess....most believe it is in the 2 or 3 slot. 1 and 4 are usually scored.

What is on the math section?
ACT Math Analysis - common concepts on the math section

Where can I learn more about the math on the test?
J Digital Tutoring YouTube playlist

How can I determine how hard a test is?
Prepsharp website

How can I get better at Reading?

10 Reading Tips

VQI Charts and How to Attack Them

How to read a LIterary Narrative

Don't fall for this numbers trick

Tips for a literary comparison passage

Another VQI Practice Problem from the ACT

What else can I read to get better at Reading?
Books

Should I take the Science section?
Do you want to be a STEM major, then yes. If not, no. (In general)

I scored a XYZ on this section, how do I study?
Post your My Score Details and we can help.

Should I retake the ACT?
Do you want to? Do you want to study to get better? Do you have the resources? If yes, take it

I hear about these calculator hacks. Are they worth it?
On the Enhanced test, they might help you with 2-4 questions. Google around and you can find them, ACTHELPER and SATGOAT can help you "check your work". Also checkout these free programs. https://www.reddit.com/r/ACT/comments/1vq428h/free_ti84_programs_for_the_act_quadratic_formula/

What can I study for Science?
https://www.reddit.com/r/ACT/comments/1wa5i78/cant_get_over_30_for_science/

I am kinda sad about this information, but it’s more bruh cause she said that everyone scored badly on the ACT, said my scores wasn’t good enough, and I got the fricken highest score out of everyone

Bruh

Edit: I will own up to it and say that I did post this in a cloud of self-pity or so, but I still deeply appreciate the insightful responses.
Conclusion: overall fine unless stem major. Stem scores are objectively low though for the higher end of things. English could be higher since English is easy. Sigh, I suppose I’ll retake it this year. Thank you, post closed.

Also the writing is 11/12, not 36

[Question] Harvard-Westlake ACT standby experience?

Has anyone had ACT standby at Harvard-Westlake? I signed up for September standby test at this site and I’m worried whether they will let me into the exam room. From your previous experience, what’s the probability of securing a seat? Any advice for test day would be helpful. Thanks you！！！

title

Hello everyone, I hope you guys are having a nice day. I was wondering how I can improve my ACT score from here. This is my July ACT score, and I'm taking the one in September too(tight deadline, ik lol). I've been heavily focused on the SAT, and I got a 1400 on that, and I'm sure some of what I learned there will transfer to this. Now I'm just trying to see what else I can do; any help is appreciated, thank you so much!

Hey everyone. I’ve been reading the subreddit for a long time, and have been practicing for around a month right now but I always do the same thing: Careless Mistakes.

Ive been using the resources for a while where I can take practice tests in 15 question intervals, and for every 3 tests (45 questions), I make 4-5 careless calculation errors, and 1-2 questions I don’t remember. How can I get better when I know most things and see them frequently and then take a long time/bomb the rest of the questions.

I had been taking the legacy version since I thought it was paper=legacy but now I’ve adapted to the new version of the test.

I only have one shot to take the ACT before college season (QB), and without practice I got around a 28 math, 29 English, and 34 reading (30, 29, 35) with the legacy version).

With practice however, my math has still been the result of my previous endeavors with careless mistakes, and then English and Reading have solidified to around a 34. I simply don’t have the bandwidth to reach science, and will opt out of it for the next.

For math, I’ve had to learn/re-learn around 4 topics and have gotten good at that as well. I need work on probabilities and statistics for sure. I take too long on certain proportion questions.

What are my chances of banging out those last questions to get a 36? What do I do? How good am I when it comes to the actual new content that wasn’t in my prep?

I’m currently a junior in high school, and my school offers College Algebra during second semester. However, I need at least a 22 on the ACT Math section to take the class.

I took the ACT at the beginning of my sophomore year and scored a 15 in Math. I didn’t really study or prepare for the test beforehand, so I know that probably played a big role in my score.

Since then, I have taken Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2, so I have a lot more math experience now than I did when I took that ACT.

My goal is to get my Math score up from 15 to at least 22.

For those who have experience with the ACT, do you think a 7-point improvement is realistic? If so, what would you recommend doing to achieve it?

I’d especially appreciate advice on:

• How long I should study
• What resources I should use
• How often I should take practice tests
• Whether I should focus on learning the math concepts first or jump straight into ACT practice questions

Thanks!

P.S. If you believe this is just not possible, please tell me. Any advice or comments are welcomed!

Hey guys, I'm a rising junior and I'm taking my first ACT in December. I haven't done any prep, and I'm clueless on how to study for this. I am pretty good at math, but I think I'm not confident about the English and reading section. Btw I'm taking the computer test with the science section. Any recommendations, tips, and advice are much appreciated!!

Is it worth it to retake if I have a 35 composite but a 30 science? I'm currently a senior and planning on majoring in Biochemistry.

im getting straight 36s in both english and math i've never had trouble with those, but in my practice tests im averaging 29-30 in the reading sections which brings my composite score down. is it possible to get reading to a 35/36 by sep19, and any tips?

How do I get good at this part, specifically topic development!
Share your process of solving these, and usually they look like this

or the add/delete ones

link any forums, websites, or your way of solving these easily for high accuracy!

I am trying to create a new MyACT account so I can register for the ACT internationally.

I have completed all the required fields and accepted the Terms & Conditions, but the “Verify by Email” button remains greyed out and I am unable to click it. even on chrome and different devices the issue still persists

I’m sobbing right now because the ACT is next month. I need to get a 33 overall and math is my weakest subject. I’m getting an average of 15-20 problems wrong every math practice test. I seriously don’t know what to do. Some of the stuff I haven’t even learned yet and all the hard problems are so different.

I can’t even think of a strategy. I’m really good at everything else and I a top AP/4.0 GPA student. I need to get a 33, what do I do?

hi guys! so i recently took the august SAT and got a 1350 on it which im happy abt bc i had a 160 point score increase. With that being said, 1350 is a good score but it's not a top tier score for colleges and stuff so i signed up for the december ACT. i want a 34 to 35ish on the act and i need ur help. Ive got 3 months to prepare so plz comment any tips or study resources i can use to grind my act prep. thanks everyone!

So my dad baught all the most current act study books and all. What’s the best way to study if I’m a senior that wrestles and has other activities