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I know school seems so far away still, but I need some answers and advice about taking the SAT and ACT. So I'm going to be a senior this year and I still have not taken the SAT. (I took the ACT for school but the score was not good, I did not prepare at all) So after years of procastination, I started to study during the summer, mostly focusing on the SAT. I took a couple of practice tests and got about 2100 range. However, is it also beneficial to take the ACT? My mom wants to sign me up for this tutor thing by Kaplan for the ACT but I don't know if I should try to focus on that test when I believe I'll do better on the SAT.
Also, do some schools prefer one over another?
I know that this year, you can choose which scores you want the colleges to see but the problem is I don't know if I should waste time and money (the tutor is almost $800) studying for a test I don't think I'll perform well on or not. Either that, or I can do the same tutor by Kaplan except it's for the SAT.
Thanks
Edit: From what FragKrag said, yes I know I only have 1 or 2 chances; that is also a factor if I should study for both tests within such a short period of time. Even if I do bad on the ACT, I won't have a chance to retake it.
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Well, if this is your senior year and you haven't taken the SAT I, you only have 1 or 2 chances to do so before the deadline (if the uni is december deadline). Schools don't differentiate between the ACT and the SAT. Studying for the ACT will not help you with the SAT for the most part.
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Isn't there a thread exactly like this already?
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You should just tell your mom to give you the $800 and study more on your own.
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United States10774 Posts
if you are getting satisfactory scores on the SAT, there is no reason to bother with the ACT. most west/east coast schools prefer the SAT anyway
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In SAT, English counts as 2/3 of your score.
In ACT, English counts as 1/2 of your score.
Depending on how good your English is, it may be advantageous to take one over the other.
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Just take them both man. I actually studied for the SAT didn't do to well and only got a 1900 or something. I took the ACT without studying and got a 32, which is the equivalent of a 2130 or something on the SAT i'm not sure of the exact translation. I personally thought the ACT was much easier, and the fact that you don't get penalized for guessing is always a confidence booster
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3861 Posts
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SAT's are and will be for a while (imo) the standard for many school even though *they say that there is no preference, also many prestigious institutions prefer SAT's over ACT.
Personally the I think the act is easier just because of the things that were tested on it and the essay is a lot easier than the sat. Overall the act is just a little bit easier but it depends on what you personally are good at and what colleges you want to attend
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I seem to struggle on the science even though alot of people say it's easy.
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On July 06 2009 13:04 il0seonpurpose wrote:
I seem to struggle on the science even though alot of people say it's easy.
awesome 5000th post
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I took many classes for SAT for a long time. Yet I couldn't reach my goal. After three tries I decided to give ACT a try.
With no practice I managed to get a way better score. Apparently I was an ACT person xD
Also when I took it, Science was really hard. I kind of panicked too, but managed to chill out at the end and finish it. I got a nice score on it too ^^ Maybe the 'curve' helped me out
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On July 06 2009 13:04 il0seonpurpose wrote:
I seem to struggle on the science even though alot of people say it's easy.
If this is the case, take the SAT. The science section is really the largest difference between the two I feel. It's boosts your score for some people and kills it for others.
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Yeah I found the science section to be the stupidest piece of shit ever because it had nothing to do with science but more of data analysis, which is weird cuz this is supposed to be a standardized test not an engineering exam >.>
Hardest part about the sat however is probably the critical reading it requires that you have a lot of knowledge of literary analysis. Basically if you haven't been reading a lot of english it's hard to get above a 750+
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not sure what scores you're looking for but getting 2100 after just a few practice tests is pretty good. forget the ACT, study the SAT some more, and bring it over 2200, and you're good to go in the SAT portion of the college app process
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I haven't yet taken the SAT, but ACT was ezpz. Not a minute of studying and I did good.
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3861 Posts
On July 06 2009 16:11 LeperKahn wrote:
I haven't yet taken the SAT, but ACT was ezpz. Not a minute of studying and I did good. well.
We all have different standards. 
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United States10774 Posts
On July 06 2009 18:06 lilsusie wrote:Show nested quote +On July 06 2009 16:11 LeperKahn wrote:
I haven't yet taken the SAT, but ACT was ezpz. Not a minute of studying and I did good. well. We all have different standards.
hahahaha
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On July 06 2009 18:06 lilsusie wrote:Show nested quote +On July 06 2009 16:11 LeperKahn wrote:
I haven't yet taken the SAT, but ACT was ezpz. Not a minute of studying and I did good. well. We all have different standards.
owned so goddamn hard, A+
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Look up the schools your planning on applying too then just see if they only take 1 or if they take both. I only had to take the ACT because all the schools I applied to only took ACT or both And yes the tests are not hard at all. Only hard if you are one of those people that just has a hard time with tests.
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The ACT is "easier" in the sense that the test questions are not as hard. It has 4 sections of math, writing, critical reading, and science although science is just scientific critical reading (for 99% of questions, some odd ones)
However, this easiness also results in your score dropping with each question you get wrong. The ACT is out of 36, with 4 sections of 36 each and getting 1 question wrong drops that section to 35/34, worse if its writing or math (i think).
A benefit though is that they average the scores and round up. a 32.5 = 33 = about 2200 on SAT 1
I took the SAT a few times and got 2160 high, took the ACT on the last possible chance and got a 33..
I'd suggest hitting the books and if desperate get a tutor. Kaplan, however, is a turd book that is overly easy and should not be used 95% of the time. If you take the actual SAT, use the official Collegeboard book, maybe Princeton Review, and Barrons, although Barrons is the opposite of Kaplan in that it's test questions are harder than actual SAT / ACT questions.
It depends on what college you want to go to, but a good number of colleges out there take either/or SAT or ACT or both. To me it's a great idea to take both because to me it's like getting another chance to do good.
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EPT
