Junior Reminder-IMPORTANT UPDATE
-Students should be aware that colleges WILL ACCEPT EITHER test for admissions purposes. If a student wishes to pursue taking The ACT in addition to The SAT they will need to register for a national test date (see below); fee waivers are available.
-All Juniors are required to test on Tuesday, April 12th. There is no cost. Registration for the test will take place at school.
ACT FEE WAIVERS
The U-46 School District will be offering fee waivers for the April 9th or June 11th ACT national testing dates. Waivers are available to any 11th grade student who wishes to test on one of these days. LIMIT ONE PER STUDENT. The fee waiver covers the cost of The ACT without the optional writing section. If your student wishes to take the writing portion the additional $17 cost will be incurred at the tester’s expense.
The process to obtain a fee waiver for the April 9th test date is as follows:
1) The student must begin the process of registering for the national test date. This must be done at www.actstudent.org. Please be aware that the process can take 30-60 minutes to complete.
2) Students should fill out the registration until they complete personal profile and interest inventory at which time they should save their progress. It is important that the students makes note of username and password.
3) Waivers will be available during two separate windows of time in February during all lunch periods.
- The first window will be Feb. 2, 3, 4
- The second window will be Feb. 16, 17, 18
4) To obtain the fee waiver payment information students can meet with a counselor during their lunch period in the senior lounge. They should be prepared to log directly into their registration in progress and will then be given waiver information. If students are not completed to the correct screen they will need to return on subsequent day to complete registration.
5) If your student does not have a lunch period they should contact their counselor directly.
6) If your student doesn’t obtain a fee waiver during the above time frames they will need to contact their counselor for information about the June test date.
7) Waivers will not reimburse if you have already paid for a test.
Differences between the SAT and ACT
THE SAT
The SAT is redesigned for the 2016 school year and has a format and content that now resembles The ACT much more closely.
- Reading: 52 questions, 65 minutes
- Writing and Language: 44 questions, 35 minutes
- Math: no calculator—20 questions, 25 min; with calculator—38 questions, 55 min
- Optional essay: 1 prompt, 50 min
Score System:
-Reading, Writing and Language and Math sections each are scored out of 800. Scores from these sections are combined for a possible final score range of 400-1600. Essay is not factored in to final score and is shown separately broken down into reading, analysis and writing.
-For more info on the SAT Essay and it's scoring please click HERE.
-For more info on Reading, Writing and Language and Math section scoring as well as we examples of types of questions to expect please click HERE.
Everyday math formulas provided: YES
Penalty for guessing: NO
THE ACT
Format:
- English: 75 questions, 45 min
- Math: 60 questions, 60 min
- Reading: 40 questions, 35 min
- Science: 40 questions, 35 min
- Optional writing: 1 prompt, 40 min
Score System:
-English, Math, Reading and Science sections are scored on a 1-36 range separately and then combined and averaged to create one composite score. The writing section is scored separately on a scale of 1-36 and will not be factored into a composite.
-For more info on ACT scoring please click HERE.
Everyday math formulas provided: NO
Penalty for guessing: NO
How do I prepare for The SAT?
Quick Questions and Answers about SAT and ACT
Since I am taking the SAT at school do I still have to take The ACT?
Short answer-no. It is up to you if you still want to pursue taking The ACT outside of school on a national test date.
Where would I take The ACT if I decide to sign up?
During registration you choose a test site nearest to your home.
Does this mean colleges don't use The ACT any more?
No. Most colleges will still require a college admissions test. Most colleges will accept either the ACT or SAT, through traditionally, in the Midwest the ACT is the most popular test and it is the one that you are probably most familiar with.
Do I need to take the optional ACT writing?
Depends. Not all schools will require it, but unless you are sure that your schools of interest don't need it then it is better safe than sorry. Please note that waivers provided by the District do not cover this cost. If you wish to do the writing you will need a credit card to cover the additional $17.00.
At the time I register for the ACT I can pick up to 4 colleges to send my scores to for free, should I do that?
Depends. If you are comfortable with your potential colleges seeing your score regardless of what it is then go ahead and take advantage of the free score reports. If you do not feel comfortable with this then put nothing and send the scores once you see them. There will be an additional cost if you send them later.
I think I qualify for ACT accommodations based on my 504 or IEP.
Contact your case manager if you have a IEP.
Contact your counselor if you have a 504.
Find info regarding accommodations processes and criteria click HERE.