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Course: College admissions > Unit 2
Lesson 4: Standardized tests- Official SAT Practice on Khan Academy
- Facing the standardized tests
- Official SAT Practice on Khan Academy
- How to register for the SAT
- Deciding whether to retake the SAT
- Overview of the ACT
- Deciding whether to retake the ACT
- Preparing yourself for success on the tests
- Student story: Standardized tests
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Deciding whether to retake the ACT
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Is it appropriate to take the ACT again if you got a really high score the first time?(9 votes)
No. If you received an excellent score and you are happy with it (like a 34) then there is not reason to take the test again.(14 votes)
I'm Neil Soman I am giving ACT on FEB. 6th. Where could I find preparation test on Khan Academy ?(6 votes)
I know it's after your February 6th test date, but I just noticed your question and maybe this response could still help you if you plan to take the ACT again.
1)
The ACT and the SAT are both testing for the same thing: college preparation. So, to a certain extent, preparing for one is also preparing for the other. So don't shy away from the SAT test prep on Khan Academy just because it's SAT. The practice you get there will still be helpful when you take the ACT. And vice versa.
2)
The ACT, the SAT, and really any other kind of similar test is testing your knowledge. So find the subjects where your knowledge is weakest, and study up on it.
3)
If you've taken the ACT or SAT once already, use those test results to guide your preparation. Did you get an almost-perfect score in one category? Don't burn yourself out trying to get that last point or two. Instead, find the category where you did the least well, and study that. The lower your score was, the more opportunity you have to do better the second time.(5 votes)
can you make an ACT prep video? or an ACT study guide?(4 votes)
Khan Academy will never have any ACT practice questions or study guides, because of the deal the made with The College Board.(5 votes)
if you score a 30 or above with 1900 and above on sats whats the best chance to get into stanford(2 votes)- Very slim; Stanford is one of the top 5 universities in the nation. You might get away with a 1900, but your ACT score is a no no; you need to get at least a 31. For the SAT score, you need at least a 680 in reading, a 700 in math, and a 690 in writing. Your GPA and class rank must be at least a 3.75 unweighted and within the top half of your class. Click here: https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/college-university-search/stanford-university
And remember, choose the college that is best known for your major.
Hope this helps!(10 votes)
- what is the highest score you can get?(4 votes)
The ACT is scored on a scale from 1 to 36. You can get a 36 if you get every question right, and probably still if you miss a question or two per section. The ACT is made up of 4 sections, which each give you a 1-36 score themselves. The average of this score, rounded to the nearest whole number, is your ACT score. So you could get a 35 in math and science, for example, but if you get a 36 in reading and english your composite score would still be a 36.(5 votes)
- Is it advisable to take both ACT and SAT or to just take one?(4 votes)
I took both, but that was in 1972. You can also find colleges that require NEITHER ONE. If you don't like tests, look for this kind of college. Stanford University is one of this kind of fine school.(3 votes)
- What in the WORLD is wrong with your website! I’m trying to comment on this video, as the comments are wrong, and it keeps advancing me to the next page and I can’t comment?! There is NO – ZERO – downside to retaking. I read comments from Admissions counselors from many universities, and I even called the Harvard one to confirm it. Also, a higher score may earn you a scholarship. My older son retook the SAT 5 times despite doing well the first time (over 2100), and though his 2nd-4th were slightly lower scores, only his 5th that finally got higher – 2200 – enabled him to get an automatic (along with GPA) scholarship to FSU.(1 vote)
I dont think anything is wrong with the website, Jack. The reason the website keeps advancing you to the next video is because you have it on autoplay. This means that while you are typing, a coundown begins, (Thats the white circle going around). When the white circle is complete, the next video begins, even if you havent finished typing your comment. Also, I do not see anyone on the comment section saying that retaking an ACT is wrong.
Next time you decide to complain, make sure that it truly is the website that is the problem, rather than your own unfamiliarity with how autoplay on videos works.(8 votes)
- When your first test result is for example 50 percentile then you want a better one but it's not as good as the one you first took. Do they count the better one or the later one(second one)?(3 votes)
- Can you take both the ACT and the SAT or can you only take one of the tests?(2 votes)
- Can you take both the ACT and the SAT or can you only take one of the tests?(1 vote)
You can take both.(4 votes)
Video transcript
- [Voiceover] Okay so deciding whether to retake the test or not. A majority of students do
improve their test scores when they take it a second time. In my experience, students relax a little bit more you've seen it once already, so you tend to do a little bit better on that second time through. So should you retake it? A couple questions you
may wanna ask yourself, and probably comes to maybe
four different points. First point is, look at how you did and then compare that
with some of the schools that you're really interested in. Let's use UCLA as an example. A 25 is in their 25th percentile score, and a 31 is in their
75th percentile score. That basically means
that 25% of the students score below a 25, and 75% score below a 31. So let's say you scored a 22 on the ACT. That's your composite score. And you wanna go to UCLA. Well, 22 puts you in the bottom 25% of students. So you may wanna consider
taking the test again to improve your chances at UCLA. If you scored a 30 on the ACT composite, then you are between the
25th and the 75th percentile. Meaning the score is very
competitive for UCLA. Another point to consider is, how high was your initial score? It typically is easier
to bring up a lower score than it is to get a few
extra points at the high end. Another point to consider is, how did you do on your, the test compared to what your expectations were? So if you've been taking
a lot of practice tests, doing a lot of studying, and you got about the score
that you thought you would get, you may be very happy with that. If by chance you were doing a lot better on your practice tests, you probably have some room to improve, and you may wanna consider
taking the ACT again. But the bottom line is, and probably the last point to make is, preparation is important. Make sure you prepare for these tests like any test you take in high school. The more you study, the better you're gonna do and you should take that same approach for studying for the ACT, to do the best job you can.