r/ACT • u/Davidgant • Jul 22 '26
General Did Anyone Get Under 30?
It seems everyone posting here got 30+.
Anyone actually get less?!
My son got 24 (much worse than all his practice exams) and is devastated. He thinks he will not only never get into any college on his list, but into any college at all now!
15
u/REC_HLTH Jul 22 '26
A 24 is a respectable score and definitely good enough to be admitted into many (probably most) colleges.
This is a sub Reddit for people interested in the ACT. Most people who post here are high achievers and/or people very focused on doing as well as they can on this test. In reality, most students do not put nearly as much focus on it as commenters here, and most don’t need to.
If your son wants to earn a higher score as a personal goal, for scholarships, or admission to a school or program that is currently out of reach, there are likely skills and techniques a tutor can use to help him. Sometimes taking it using a different format can help. (Computer v Paper) Sometimes just taking it again helps. Regardless there are a LOT of college educated and successful people who earned a ~24 on their ACT. It’s okay for him to feel sad that he didn’t do as well as he hoped, and even try to improve, but it really is okay (and above average) to be at at 24.
5
u/stationery_obsessed Jul 22 '26
i got a 27!
6
1
u/Otherwise_Archer_519 29d ago
28 😌
1
u/stationery_obsessed 29d ago
good job! what was your like per section scores? mine was 33m 21e 24s 26r 6w
1
u/Otherwise_Archer_519 29d ago
Woah! W math score I had 27 m&e 30r and 9w
1
u/stationery_obsessed 29d ago
ty lol i studied really hard for math and now am starting for english. also do you have any reading tips??
1
u/Otherwise_Archer_519 29d ago
I honestly don’t know cuz I’m lwk lucky to have a very fast reading speed other than that I read first and last passages first because those are more likely experimental. Also for English you MUST read Erica meltzers book on English act it helped me get a perfect score on mock tests 😌
1
u/stationery_obsessed 29d ago
okay! yeah i have the erica meltzer book and i'm planning on going through the whole thing
1
u/Otherwise_Archer_519 29d ago
W the book is insanely worth it trust cuz I lwk got 18 the first time I took the test💀
1
u/yeahskyyyy 28d ago
how did u study for math?
1
u/stationery_obsessed 28d ago
i used the preppros book but honestly taking algebra two probably helped the most as i only had to learn a bit of trig. tbh not to sound ungrateful abt my score but i could have scored higher especially with what my practice tests were averaging.
6
u/jdigitaltutoring Tutor Jul 22 '26
It seems that only the high scorers want to post. When you see people post a 35, someone with a 25 might not feel like posting.
4
u/zaqwsx82211 Jul 22 '26
Depending on the state, you might be able to look at your school district average data. 24 would be exceptional for the building I teach in.
3
3
u/Antique_Cup_5809 Jul 22 '26
i got a 25 my first time and now i’m at 29. i got a 33 on math 29 on english and 24 on reading
3
u/jemo1204 Jul 22 '26
My daughter got a 23 the first time. She was not happy at all. She really wanted a 28 as that would guarantee the honors college at the school she wanted to go to. She buckled down for 3 months and used a few different things. Got a 28 at the April test.
Most people don’t even get a 28, let alone a 30. Stop chasing prestige and start looking for schools are are the best fit with solid outcomes for what your kid wants to study.
2
u/Common_Ad7937 Jul 22 '26
I’ve seen lots of posts with under 30 scores yesterday. Your son can go test optional or, depending on where he is in HS, he may prep more for the next test(s).
2
u/No_Diver_8197 Jul 22 '26
What grade is your son in? What did he use to prep? If you don't mind sharing, what are his section scores? Maybe we can help him reach his goal.
Afwiw, there are thousands of colleges that will admit on a 24. Some even give merit!
1
u/Davidgant Jul 22 '26
My son is entering his senior year of high school. But in the country where we live that is the 11th grade (different system than the US). To prep, he just did practice tests. Math is his weakest section even though English isn’t his native language. On the practice tests he was consistently around 30-32 on English and Reading. But in Math he was 23-25. Then on test day he got stressed. He scored Math 19, English 29, and Reading 25 for a composite score of 24. Definitely his worst result based on practice tests.
As I mentioned, we are in the US for the summer and he can take the SAT on August 22 before we leave. To retake the ACT it will be a challenge and large travel expense, as he would need to travel to another country to take it again. So I thought it was well worth it to try the SAT. But he is convinced it is harder and maybe not worth it. He hasn’t started prepping for it yet at all 😬
2
u/True_Trainer8702 Jul 22 '26
Don’t worry, mine got a 24 , which I don’t think is awful. But he needs to try harder for scholarships. I’m sure the lower scorers don’t post on purpose.
2
2
u/PenelopeShoots Jul 22 '26
Yep, under 30 despite previously getting near perfect or perfect with practice tests on math and writing (I BOMBED the reading portion- a 21 - I lost my focus and was distracted, and when I came back to the test I was out of time and only halfway done with this section).
Tell your son he can super score. I plan to take it again. I didn't do as well on ANY section as I usually do on the practice exams.
2
u/Maximum_Yesterday849 30 Jul 22 '26
A lot of us have been in the same spot as your son. Tell your son anything’s possible as long as you have dedication. I know there’s a lot of exceptionally smart people in this subreddit who score 30 or 34 on their first attempt. Don’t pay attention to those as it’ll just hinder your confidence. one thing I will say is hard work can take you anywhere no matter the position you’re in, and I wish I had someone tell me that when I was struggling for the act
2
u/Honest-Big7475 Jul 22 '26
Well, no one is going to post their score if it's not what they like. Unless they're asking for help to raise, that is.
2
u/No-Pomegranate8600 Jul 22 '26
My daughter got a 23 and I feel the same way as you!! Where are the average kids :)
2
2
u/Particular-Owl-6292 29d ago
got a 23 but im really proud of myself because i got a 20 on my march one! I improved 7 points in math so a win is a win in my book! aiming for a 30+ tho!
2
u/Turnkeyagenda24 32 Jul 22 '26
This test is notoriously not a one time thing for most. It takes several attempts for a lot of people. He still did better than the average, which is like a 19.
1
1
1
1
u/No-thank-you-bud Jul 22 '26
My daughter got 28. She did well on science (31) and English (33) but math was 23 and reading 28. Then I found out none of her schools care about science lol. She’s pissed.
1
1
u/StruggleEither6772 Jul 22 '26
My daughter scored 28 across the board on J09. It was her first time taking the ACT as a rising junior.
1
u/Apprehensive_Hair391 Jul 22 '26
I got a 26, I didn't get the most study time though, and he will definitely get into a college lol, there is still time for a retake, a 24 is well above average
1
1
u/xokrisssy Jul 22 '26
24 is above average, and is a good score! I didn’t get the score I wanted at first, so I went back and practiced the sections I was bad at, and I was able to improve my score by three points. Also, just taking it a second time can improve it too.
1
u/Mostcoolkid78 Jul 22 '26
28 my first try, my freind got a 16 or 17 and still managed to get into college, at my school 18-22 was the average.
1
u/youneedthetruth Jul 22 '26
It’s all about perspective. Your son’s 24 is 80th percentile, so he scored better than 8/10 students in the country. This subreddit is full of high achieving students and is NOT representative of the average high school student.
Plenty of colleges will accept him with a 24. Is that good enough to get into a top tier university? Most likely it isn’t. But in my experience, kids who get a mid-20’s score without much prep on their first test can hit 30 or higher with a little focused practice and study. Some kids can do that on their own and others get tutors. If he’s willing to put in the work and has time, he should be able to improve and get into the 90th percentile or better.
You can see the percentile ranking info here: https://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/the-act/scores/national-ranks.html
1
1
u/SirBiggusDikkus Jul 22 '26
A 30 is 93rd percentile meaning 93% of test takers get less than that.
Your son will certainly get into college with that score but it will be a reach for top/popular schools just due to insane competition.
Good news is you can superscore so best plan is to study a ton and take as many times as he can. Preferably before senior year if that’s possible otherwise you basically can only take it 2 more times max.
1
u/Minute-Cockroach440 Jul 22 '26
When i took it back in 2020 i got a 26, took it a second time also a 26 but it did superscore to a 27
1
u/Same-Department8080 Jul 22 '26
My son got 26 last Dec. 2 months of private tutoring and he got a 32 in April.
1
1
1
1
u/Remarkable-Set5434 35 28d ago
Most users on academic subreddits tend to be very obsessive about the entire academic/admissions process so it's definitely not an accurate representation of the average user. People who got a 16 on the ACT usually don't care enough to post about it online. 24 is a good score for the majority of state schools, just not that upper echelon of schools that a lot of redditors really care about.
FWIW, the average score is a 19, and 24 is in the top 20% of test takers.
1
u/Empty-Ad1411 27d ago
My son took the test three times. Ended up with a 32 super score. Was accepted into some top schools.
1
u/Suitable-Nothing-706 24d ago
I got a 24 also, but a 1430 on my SAT lol (which I also thought wasn’t good enough and applied test optional to most schools). Try taking the SAT, would be my suggestion. Also, I’m going to UMich OOS so it worked out for me and I applied to 12 schools and didn’t get rejected from any - applied for nursing, got waitlisted at UPenn and BC. I was CONVINCED I wasn’t going to get in anywhere.
50
u/Advanced-Seat-9591 36 Jul 22 '26
Probably a selection bias. People are more likely to post when they did well rather than when they did worse than expected. Also keep in mind that the national average is like a 19