About The ACT Test -The ACT Test (or American College Testing Assessment), administered by ACT, Inc., is an alternative college admission test more commonly used in the Midwest, parts of the South and the West, but with increased frequency on the East coast. The ACT is a four-part exam that includes four multiple-choice tests. The sections on the test measure your knowledge in English, mathematics, reading, and science reasoning. The total testing time is three hours, and scores are reported on a range of 1 to 36. Most students will score at roughly the same level when they compare their scores from the SAT and ACT scales (assuming they prepared adequately for each test). More and more juniors are taking both the ACT and the SAT in the spring to determine which might be better to retake.

ACT Test Preparation - The Test Prep section of the ACT web site offers sample tests, an online test preparation program, test descriptions, informational booklets, tips and test day procedures to help students prepare for the ACT. Click here to go to the ACT Test Prep web site.

ACT Registration Information - The registration fee for the ACT test is $34.00. ACT + writing is $49.50 and if you have 5th and 6th college choices that you wanted your scores sent to, it is an additional $10.00 each. If you miss the registration deadline, you can still register for the test as long as you register within the late registration timeframe. The fee for late registration is an additional $21.00. For more information and to register online for the ACT test, go to the ACT web site www.actstudent.org.

NEW ACT INFORMATION FOR 2010-2011

The ACT has changed their National Online Registration flier to a "How to Register Online" brochure for 2010-2011 so that ALL the information students need to register online is included there in addition to what is already at www.actstudent.org. The ONLY students who will need a "Register by Mail" packet next year will be those who: 1. Cannot pay by credit card or serialized voucher/waiver, or 2. Are younger than 13 years old. All other students will have online options - including those applying for extended time for the first time and those wishing to test standby. These options will be explained in detail at www.actstudent.org under "Students with Disabilities" or by doing a keyword search for "Standby Testing."

For more information on the PLAN test, go to the ACT web site.

SAT I: Reasoning Test - The SAT (or Scholastic Aptitude Test), a program of the College Board and administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), is the required or preferred entrance exam for most selective colleges and universities. The SAT is a three-hour multiple-choice test designed to measure your verbal and mathematical reasoning skills. Along with the other academic information you provide to the college, the test is designed to predict your readiness for college-level studies and to predict your academic performance in college. The test is organized into seven sections: three verbal sections, three mathematics sections, and a section of equating questions. The verbal sections test your ability to understand and analyze what you read, to recognize relationships between parts of a sentence, and to establish relationships between pairs of words. Your vocabulary skills are tested using reading passages, sentences, and word-pairs. The math questions test problem-solving ability in arithmetic, algebra, and geometry. Most math questions assume you've had a year of algebra and some geometry. You will not know which is the equating section on your test: it is used to test new questions and to help make statistical adjustments in the test. The equating section is not graded, and your performance on it will not change your score.

The numbers on your SAT score report which are used for admission purposes are your verbal and mathematics scores. Both range from 200-800. Remember that SAT score reports are cumulative -- each successive report includes all of your previous scores. Taking the test twice or three times is the common practice; to take it more than three times is excessive and unnecessary. While some colleges consider your highest total score as your best, most colleges will use your highest verbal and highest math score as a composite, even if they were earned at two different sittings. Sometimes the military academies and a few other schools will take an average of your verbal and math scores; still other schools will use only your most recent scores.

SAT II: Subject Tests - The Subject Tests are administered by the College Board and are usually given on the same days as the SAT I. The tests are designed to measure your knowledge or skill in a particular subject area and your ability to apply that knowledge or skill. The tests are curriculum-based, and being such, it is much easier to study for them than it is for the SAT. Many of the more selective colleges require their applicants to take one, two, or even three Subject Tests. For a list of the SAT Subject Tests, click here. Some even specify the tests you must take. All of the tests except Writing take one hour and consist only of multiple choice questions. The Writing Test also takes one hour but includes a twenty-minute essay with forty minutes of questions.

Scores for the Subject Tests are similar to those on the Verbal and Mathematics sections of the SAT, on a scale of 200 to 800. Some colleges use the scores as a part of the admission criteria, others use them for placement purposes for students who have been accepted. The tests you decide to take, when you take them, and the scores you receive can be very important factors in the admission formulas of the schools which require them.

SAT Test Preparation - The SAT Preparation Center section of the College Board web site offers practice tests, an online SAT course, math review and test-taking approaches to help students prepare for the SAT. Click here to go to the SAT Preparation Center.

SAT Registration Information - The registration fee for the SAT Reasoning Test is $49.00. The registration fee for the SAT Subject Tests are $11.00 per Subject Test (except for the Language Tests with Listening which are $22.00 each) plus a basic registration fee of $22.00 that is added to the total fee for the Subject Tests. If you miss the registration deadline, you can still register for the test as long as you register within the late registration timeframe. The fee for late registration is an additional $26.00. For more information and to register online for the SAT test, go to the College Board web site.

It is important that you register for each test you take from the College Board in the same way. Always use the same first, middle and last names, birth date, social security number, etc., or your scores could be delayed or lost. When registering, you need not complete the Student Descriptive Questionnaire, but about 90% of test-takers do. The questionnaire asks for you to provide information about your background, your school courses, your grades, your activities, and your college plans. The information is sent to the schools to which you are reporting your scores, along with your scores.

When you register for the SAT, you may select up to four colleges, universities, scholarship programs (ROTC, state scholarship program), or other programs (Congressman's Office for Academy nomination, private coaching course) to which your scores will be sent. If you want to send your scores to more than four recipients, you can do so in several ways by paying an additional fee. Since you will probably take the SAT again in your senior year, it is not necessary to be final about your reporting plans when you register for the test in your junior year. In fact, it is wise for some students not to have their first SAT scores sent to any college. If you're anxious to learn your score before you receive your score report, you can call ETS ten days after your test, pay a fee, and learn your score. There is also an "urgent" reporting service available, and the phone number and additional information for this service is available in the registration booklet.

You must check the Subject Test requirements for each of the colleges to which you are applying. Registration for the tests is the same as that for the SAT. You may take up to three tests at one administration. An informative booklet with sample questions from each test is available in your school counseling office. Remember that you can study for the Subject Tests, and it is generally better to take them as soon after the respective courses as possible, even before junior year.

When registering for the Subject Tests, you have the option of withholding your scores. By doing so, you are keeping any college from ever seeing the score until you give permission for that score to be released to your SAT score record. Withheld scores will not appear on the cumulative SAT/Subject Test score reports which your colleges will receive. When, and if, you decide to release certain Subject Test scores, they will then become a part of your cumulative test record. Remember that you must allow five to six weeks between the time you release scores and the time they are received by colleges. The score withholding process is described in the registration booklet. It is nice option to consider, especially when taking the Subject Tests before senior year.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Alliant Energy Center - Busses leave at 8:15 a.m. - See Counselor News for more information on sign-up.

The PSAT Test (or Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test) will be given to Juniors on Wednesday, October 13th at the Alliant Energy Center. The purpose for taking this exam is for students to gain experience taking the type of standardized tests used in college admissions. In addition, the score students receive on the PSAT in your junior year is used to determine your eligibility for competition in the National Merit Scholarship Program and other scholarship competitions. The PSAT does not play a role in the college admissions process.

For more information on the PSAT test, go to the College Board web site.

BASIC FEE FOR 2011-2012
ACT: $34.00
SAT: $49.00

CONTENT
ACT: English 25%, Mathematics 25%, Reading 25%, Science Reasoning 25%
SAT: Verbal 50%, Mathematics 50%

SCORING
ACT: Scores based on number of correct answers; no penalty for guessing.
SAT: Scores adjusted for guessing; penalty for most incorrect responses.

SCORE SCALES
ACT: 1-36 for each of four sections - Composite: 1-36 (average of four)
SAT: 200-800 on each of two areas - Total: 400-1600 (sum of two)