What's a Good ACT Score for 2023? Our Data-Backed Answer - PrepMaven (2023)

FAQs

What is a good ACT score for class of 2023? ›

Based on the data above, we can conclude that ACT scores of 21 or higher can be considered “good” ACT scores for 2023 as well since ACT score averages stay fairly stable year over year.

(Read our complete PreACT guide to learn more.) So what is a good PreACT score? Because it's scored on the same scale as the ACT, we can infer that average scores will hover around 21. Anything above average will start to distinguish you from the pack.

In general, a good ACT score is any score in or above the 75th percentile — at least a 24. Students should aim to hit or exceed the middle 50% of ACT scores at their chosen colleges. The ACT Writing section is optional and uses a separate scoring scale.

PreACT 8/9 scores of 23 or PreACT scores of 25 are considered the 90th percentile. Practice over the summer and fall. Take the OTC Grade 8/9 course or do lots of practice questions. Free practice tests are also available from ACT.

But for now, the short answer is that most colleges are not requiring SAT or ACT test scores for the class of 2023.

The PreACT is a slightly shorter, slightly easier exam designed to help students prepare for the official ACT exam by simulating the test and testing experience. The PreACT is a paper-and-pencil test comprised of multiple-choice sections for English, Math, Reading, and Science.

The 25th percentile score is 15, and the 75th percentile score is 24. This means that if you got 15, you'd have scored the same as or better than 25% of all test takers. Meanwhile, the 75th percentile means you scored better than 75% of test takers.

#1: PreACT Scores are Accurate Predictors of ACT Test Scores

PreACT scores are strong predictors of ACT scores. This is not surprising given that the PreACT measures the same knowledge and skills as the ACT, but at a level appropriate for students in grades 8–9 (PreACT 8/9) and grade 10 (PreACT).

Unsurprisingly, the highest potential comes with ACT scores 30+. With ACT scores in the 30-36 range, it's possible to win $10,000 or more in scholarship prizes.

Top colleges and universities usually look for ACT scores in the 32-36 range.

What ACT score do you need for scholarships? ›

The minimum requirements to receive a scholarship are a rank in the top 50% of your class, a GPA of 3.5 or over, and an SAT score of 1100 or an ACT score of 22.

The average ACT score is 20.

If you've scored 21, then you've scored higher than 50% of test-takers. That's pretty good, depending on your frame of reference.

The PreACT is a great way to learn how to manage your time, figuring out how much time it will take you to answer a certain section or write an essay in a real, test-taking environment.

To help you understand how great of a score this is, let's look at this from the angle of percentiles. A 33 puts you at the 98th percentile, meaning you scored higher than 98% of all test takers! Congratulations! You're also qualified for a sizable amount of merit aid, which can really help pay off college tuition.

We've compiled the most important updates for the new 2022-2023 season below! The SAT and ACT will still be compared using the same concordance tables; they have no plans to adjust these moving forward.

A 23 ACT score makes you eligible to apply at a good number of colleges and universities, and competitive to apply at many, too. You won't be competitive at selective schools quite yet, but you're certainly in a good place to be accepted at many decent schools.

Colleges That Accept Average ACT Score. In general, many US colleges and universities accept applicants with 16 or 17 ACT scores. In fact, an ACT score of 16 or lower is accepted by 33 schools.

Admission rates for 2022-2023 have not been announced but are expected to remain just as low. Given this competitive environment, admission experts say students shouldn't assume they'll be a 'shoe-in' at any school.

Both ACT and SAT scores are used for college admissions decisions and awarding merit-based scholarships. Most colleges do not prefer one test over the other. Neither the SAT or ACT is harder than the other. Different students tend to do better on one test over the other.

A GPA has always been an important part of the university admissions process in the United States. According to a 2020 study, high school GPA is a better predictor of college graduation than ACT scores.

Is the ACT test prep accurate? ›

The current 2021-2022 ACT practice test is the most accurate test available.

Taking the ACT with writing will not improve your composite score. If you are confident that you will score highly on the ACT multiple-choice sections, but are a weak writer, you may prefer to skip this section.

The average ACT score of Harvard-accepted students is 33. Although Harvard claims there is no minimum ACT score, if you apply with a 29 or lower, you'll have difficulty getting in. So, to get into Harvard, it is important to note the different Harvard University requirements for test scores.

There's no absolute ACT requirement at Harvard, but they really want to see at least a 33 to have a chance at being considered.

What percentile is a 18 ACT score? Earning an 18 on the ACT puts you at the 38th percentile, meaning that you scored higher than 38% of all test takers.

Among students who took the ACT twice, those who reported preparing for the second test earned on average ACT Composite scores about 1.4 points higher than their scores on the first test.

Cleveland Kids' Book Bank - Reading is the single biggest predictor of high academic achievement and ACT scores. #KBB #CLEreads | Facebook.

The PreACT is easier than the ACT: Because the PreACT targets 10th graders and the ACT targets 11th and 12th graders, the PreACT uses a slightly easier difficulty than the ACT does. Consequently, the maximum score on the PreACT is 35, compared with 36 on the ACT.

Overall, my research so far has been surprising in that there are a few schools that will offer full-tuition scholarships starting in the 22 – 25 ACT range, but most full-ride scholarships require a 28 ACT or higher.

Do colleges look at ACT scores? ›

College admission tests like the SAT and ACT are standardized tests typically taken in your junior or senior year. Colleges use scores from these tests to help them make admission decisions. Each college has its own admission processes and policies, and they use scores differently. Here are the facts you need to know.

30+ is a great score, but scholarships can be available for students scoring in the mid-20s or even lower—it just depends on which scholarships you're applying for.

When it comes to the GPA and the ACT, students often wonder which one is more important. Although college admissions officers often say that they give much more weight to a student's GPA, even they will admit that your ACT score is of considerable importance.

Generally speaking, you need a minimum ACT score of 31 to get into an Ivy League School. The minimum score is 32 at a few of these schools, including Harvard and Yale. The minimum SAT score to get into an Ivy League school ranges from 690 to 730 for the reading section and from 700 to 730 for the math section.

Though many four-year colleges and universities in the United States require ACT or SAT scores for admission, these days, many do not. Colleges that don't require ACT scores are known as "test-optional" schools. This means that you do not have to send in any ACT/SAT scores with your application but may if you want to.

The student has a top 10% class rank and a 3.9 unweighted GPA. Here, you can see that a student with a 21 ACT score gets zero merit money. A 25 gets the student $8,000 per year or $32,000 over four years. An increase from 25 to 29 would increase the scholarship by $22,000 over 4 years.

Meet the following criteria:

A minimum composite score of 24 is required for the ACT. A minimum score of 1160 is required for the SAT.

ACT test scores are a big factor in merit scholarships and awards, meaning awards based on academic achievement. On average, students who take the test more than once increase their score and can take advantage of superscoring - the average of your best scores from each subject from multiple test attempts.

5. Can Colleges See How Many Times You Have Taken the ACT? As is the case with the SAT, colleges only see the ACT score you choose to send them. However, you can not pick and choose between sections on different tests.

A perfect score is a 36, so that would be the highest ACT score ever recorded. The ACT is scored out of a total of 36 points — this is known as the composite, or total, score. The lowest possible composite score is 1.

How many questions can you miss on the ACT to get a 34? ›

English: 34 (miss no more than around 7 questions) Math: 28 (miss no more than around 16 questions) Reading: 34 (miss no more than around 3 questions) Science: 30 (miss no more than around 7 questions)

PrepScholar provides a robust and high-touch curriculum that should work well for most students. With hundreds of hours of lesson work, thousands of practice problems (7,100+ SAT and 4,300+ ACT), and 16 total practice tests (10 SAT and 6 ACT), PrepScholar definitely delivers on the prep volume front.

Cons of Preact

This makes the project large and slow. No Synthetic Event Handling: Preact is based on browser API and doesn't support synthetic event handling, which can affect app performance and cause maintenance issues while using React for development and Preact for production.

Preact is a 3KB but uses the same cutting-edge API and has the same support for ECMAScript. Its small size is due to the fact that it was created to function in a browser with the DOM, incorporating the virtual DOM like many frameworks. Additionally, it beats other JavaScript frameworks in terms of speed.

PreACT 8/9 scores of 23 or PreACT scores of 25 are considered the 90th percentile. Practice over the summer and fall. Take the OTC Grade 8/9 course or do lots of practice questions. Free practice tests are also available from ACT.

On the ACT, 34 and up is the 99th percentile.

So if you score 34 or higher, you're in the top 1% of test takers!

Admission to any of the eight Ivy League schools is highly selective, and ACT scores are an important piece of the admissions equation. Generally applicants will need a composite score of 30 or higher to be competitive although some applicants are admitted with lower scores.

The average score for the Evidence-Based Writing (ERW) section is 529, and the average score for the Math section is 521. A good SAT Score for 2023 will likely be close to 1050 as well.

Is 25 a good ACT score? A “good” ACT is one that makes you eligible to apply to a vast majority of colleges and makes you competitive, which a 25 ACT score definitely does. Make sure the rest of your college application is up to par with your great ACT score!

Generally speaking, you need a minimum ACT score of 31 to get into an Ivy League School. The minimum score is 32 at a few of these schools, including Harvard and Yale. The minimum SAT score to get into an Ivy League school ranges from 690 to 730 for the reading section and from 700 to 730 for the math section.

Is a 33 ACT good enough for Ivy League? ›

Because competition for elite schools is fierce, every extra point both on your ACT score and GPA will help. A 33 lands you solidly in the mid-range for average acceptance at places like Yale and Harvard, above their 25th percentile, which is 32, but below the 75th, which is 34-35.

Both the Math and English sections are scored on a scale of 200 to 800. The maximum possible score on each section is 800, so the maximum total score you can get on the SAT is 1600.

Many of the changes to the SAT's format and content are designed to make the exam more accessible for students. The digital SAT will be shorter, reading passages will be more concise, questions will be more direct, and students will have access to a wider range of digital tools.

Yes. Applicants may provide self-reported SAT and ACT test scores (including Subject Tests, Advanced Placement, IB, etc.). Admitted students who decide to enroll at Harvard College will be required to submit official test scores.

Average ACT: 34

The 25th percentile ACT score is 33, and the 75th percentile ACT score is 35. In other words, a 33 places you below average, while a 35 will move you up to above average. There's no absolute ACT requirement at Harvard, but they really want to see at least a 33 to have a chance at being considered.

At a minimum, an ACT score of 25 should qualify you for lower-level scholarship money. However, as the amount increases, scholarships become more competitive and the score ranges increase. Again, the barest minimum to shoot for is the 20-25 score range.

With a score of 25, you are in the 79th percentile of all test takers. More likely than not, with a score of 25, you'll often be in or near the commonly accepted range at selective colleges.

Overall, my research so far has been surprising in that there are a few schools that will offer full-tuition scholarships starting in the 22 – 25 ACT range, but most full-ride scholarships require a 28 ACT or higher.

The average ACT score of Harvard-accepted students is 33. Although Harvard claims there is no minimum ACT score, if you apply with a 29 or lower, you'll have difficulty getting in. So, to get into Harvard, it is important to note the different Harvard University requirements for test scores.

Harvard College is extremely selective with an acceptance rate of 4%. Students that get into Harvard College have an ACT score of 34–36. Regular applications are due January 1.

What is the easiest Ivy League school to get into? ›

Cornell is considered the "easiest" Ivy League to get into because it has the highest Ivy League acceptance rate. While it's easier, statistically speaking, to get into Cornell, it's still challenging. It's also important to remember that students apply directly to one of Cornell's eight undergraduate colleges.

A common myth is that prestigious schools, like the Ivy League (Yale University, Princeton University, Cornell University, Harvard University, Columbia University, Brown University, Dartmouth College, University of Pennsylvania) prefer the SAT. This is not true, though. Schools have no preference in regards to ACT vs.

ACT scores range from 33 to 35, with 35 representing the 75th percentile. Even though Harvard probably states that there is no minimum ACT requirement, if you apply with a 33 or lower, you will likely struggle to get in unless you have other extremely strong application materials.