I didn’t read the whole thread but if still a junior is then not really. She has a nice score. Since you had a tutor before and if you can afford one now they can pinpoint where she needs to improve. Going from a 31 to a 33 etc is really just a few questions more correct. Depending sometimes emphasizing her strength and improve her weakness is a good strategy. With my son it was improving his math score since that was his strength and it was the “speed” of the test.,not the actual math itself. Once he got the speed down that score rose dramatically. Act overall is a fast test for some students
With the English part there was like a few “rules” that the tutor pointed out that he claims he never learned. Once he learned them again his score rose.
My S19 took the early October ACT this (school) year and his score got to his Early Decision school on time. So no, June is definitely not too late. Even if your child decides to go ED or EA and the application deadline has passed, they will still accept updates. I would simply call to make sure they’ve received it, in this situation.
I would say back off. However, if there is scholarship money resting her ACT scores, then I would mention that to her. It’s hard because you don’t want to be too pushy, but when there’s money on the line, you can’t not mention that either…
Let her own the decision about additional ACT or SAT tries and preparation. You can let her know about scholarship thresholds and such that may depend on the scores, so that she has context about how worth it a retry is.
And if you have not had the college money talk with her, do it soon (but make sure that you have the financial plan first). If she knows the budget, that may also put more context into how worth it is to try for higher test scores for scholarships or admission to better FA schools.
You’ve received a lot of good advice here, and it’s nice to see that things seem to be working out. If she does want to try the ACT again, I would think she could probably even wait until the fall. I’m not that familiar with the ACT, but it looks like there are exam dates in September/October. Our son took the SAT and even his October score was in before the November 1 early action deadline (score didn’t go up, unfortunately!). It’s important to bear in mind that test scores are just one piece of the puzzle, and there are plenty of test-optional schools if you need them. Grades are more important, essays are more important, recommendations are more important, all the things that will show her as an individual rather than just a score. So this may be a good time to take your foot off the gas on testing/prepping and focus on what kind of a school she wants and how to present herself as someone they will see as a good fit, as well as hopefully having some time to enjoy this last part of her high school career.
If she is studying for AP tests the June test isn’t a bad one. My D19 took the June ACT right after the AP tests and killed it. I think she was just in a study mode.
OP, my D took an ACT prep class offered by an outside company held at her HS once a week at night (8 weeks, I think). While she is an excellent and motivated student, we thought the structure and practice that a dedicated class would help her get motivated about taking yet another test (because these kids are tested TO DEATH). She also did some studying on her own. She got a 31 the first time she took the test (high 20’s on diagnostic tests). We asked if, realistically, she could prepare more than she had the first time to make taking it again worth it (because of rounding, etc., she’d have to find several more points over the different sections to take her composite to a 32). With her wanting to maintain her GPA, AP tests, sports, EC’s, etc., she said no, she couldn’t. We did not push her to take it again. She’s now a junior at UC Berkeley and doing very well pursuing a STEM major and minor.
Your D has time. Maybe she’ll be a bit more motivated as she moves into her senior year. Just keep in mind that she may retake the test and get a better score, but the odds aren’t in her favor if she doesn’t plan to do more preparation than she did the first time. Something for you - and her - to think about.
Thanks so much for all your comments I have to keep reminding myself that a 31 is the 97 percentile and if that ends up being her best so be it. We made every resource available to her: private tutor and test prep books. We made sure she has the time to do the work. If she could bring her math and science score up a few more points she could get a 33/34. It really is up to her. She has all the tools she needs.
Just a little update. I have been trying my best to back off. DD was not able to do April ACT due to an EC that is really important to her. We had hoped she would take the June ACT but she says with APs and regents coming up she will not have enough time. She has not been prepping seriously. I am disappointed as I had hoped testing would be finished before senior year. She said she would do the one in September. She said she will spend time in the summer prepping for that. I am not going to bother asking her to take the SAT since she chose the ACT in the first place and seems to like that format better.Things are much better when we don’t push her. We have just decided to let things go. At this age she has to be motivated enough to do what she needs to do to get where she wants to go. I feel like we have given her all the tools and resources to be successful and it is up to her now.I just feel like she has so much potential and she is not living up to it. Any how, we can’t afford a $70,000.00 per year school any way, we would not qualify for anything but merit and she will probably end up going to a state school any way where a 31 on the ACT would make her a good applicant.
Given where she is now, it seems this summer may be a good time for her to focus on other things as well, including her college list and, really important, her essays. Also, if Cornell is still on the list, it seems she may need to take the SAT Subject Tests even if she is relying primarily on the ACT. We encouraged our son to work on his essays, in particularly, over his junior year summer, and even though the work was not “done” by September, having a thoughtful headstart made a big difference.
I would love Cornell for her and it being a land grant college and in state for us it could potentially be affordable. However she felt it was “too intense “ so I don’t think it would make the list. She did two subject tests last year and didn’t break 700. I am not sure it’s worth taking another. We would have to invest in test prep for that.
As soon as school is finished we will formulate a list of schools, work on the essays, (the guidance counselor gave us the prompts from last year which he says will be the same this year) , start filling out the common AP when it opens and work on the ACT.
My ACT 34 class of 19 kid is going to a state flagship honors program. We are paying less than I imagined us paying and and my kid got the most personal attention from that school. He got into some higher end private schools that were 2-3x more and looking deeper into faculty, programs, etc in no way do I think it is worth it for a kid considering grad school. There are advantages to being a bigger fish in your pond. Malcom Gladwell has a great video out about that. “Meets need” schools don’t work financially for many families for many reasons.
She will have lots of great options and once on campus it’s about who is taking advantage of the wealth of opportunities every campus has to offer. Good luck going into senior year! All will be well.
You are fortunate to be in New York with so many public choices! Best wishes when the admission cycle begins in the fall. A test score is not going to make or break much of anything as there is more than one data point involved in college admissions.
HolyChild, test prep for subject tests is a very different beast than test prep for the SAT’s. You can pick up one of the review books on ebay for $5, or get it out of the public library. The content doesn’t change year to year all that much, so even a book from five years ago will be fine. Kids can allot 20 minutes a day to bio review, it does not need to be intense at all. A kid who did well in the course but not on the SAT 2 subject test, likely didn’t complete the curriculum which is covered by the SAT 2… so a few chapters of reading and underlining is all it takes to catch up.
This is not something which requires a huge investment- time or money. Obviously, a kid who hasn’t taken HS bio at all is not likely going to score a 710 on the bio test just from reading a review book for a few weeks. But a kid who did well in bio (or US history) in HS can likely raise their score significantly just by figuring out what their HS class DIDN’T cover, and reading those chapters.
A little advice here similar to what I said earlier in the thread. You still have time for late reg for the ACT in June. Do it. You student will be in test mode from finals and AP tests. It is worth a shot. My D19 nailed the June ACT last year. I talked to her about taking it or the SAT again. She had gotten a 34. Summer came and went and she was not interested in prepping. I don’t think she prepped all that much for the June test.
Lastly there is a difference between a 31 and 32-36 in merit money. Don’t get me wrong a 31 is a great score, but at the school my D19 will attend if she had gotten a 31 instead of a 34 the difference in merit would have been at min $15K a year. It won’t be that high at all schools, but money is money.
Sign up the for the test and see what happens. Just don’t send the scores to anyone. My D19 went from a 30 to a 34 all in her junior year.
@gpo613 I agree that if you are targeting schools that offer merit $ tied to test scores, definitely try to boost that score, because, yeah, money is money. My D’s college list didn’t include schools like that, so we knew we’d be full pay. Fortunately, she had some excellent in-state public school choices we were willing to cover.
At the end of the day, it’s up to OP’s daughter as to whether she will do another go-round. You can lead a horse to water…
She is already signed up for the test but it is on June 8 so three weeks away. I think she should take it but she has not picked up a ACT book since February and says she does not have time to prep. I don’t want her to take it if she is not prepared. Are you saying she can take the test but not send the score? what about super scoring? She would use her two best then, i.e. if she took it in June and August, she would use the two tests that are the best?
@holychild When you sign up to take the ACT or SAT you can send the scores to I think 4 colleges for free. I disagree with that idea because if you don’t do well the schools see those scores. Schools say they only look at the best scores or that they superscore etc. I just don’t totally believe them. Considering it is only $13 to send a score saving 4 or 5 schools to me is not worth it. Just wait and see what the score is and then send it.
One of my sons retook the SAT in June of junior year after a ton of AP/IB exams. Did ZERO prep – he was too burned out. We just told him to relax the evening before, get a good night’s sleep, we’d make him a good breakfast, and then let the chips fall. We were totally fine with that.
His first score was very good, and in the range where an attainable increase could net him better acceptances or merit $$. The second score went up 70 points (mostly in math, which was a huge surprise) and he decided he was done.
As I look back on it now, I embrace the “love the kid on the couch” theory even more. Just because a S/D has a top score and grades doesn’t mean a top school is the right place.
Your child does have the right to make certain decisions. You can lead the horse to the water but can’t make him drink it is the old adage.
You’ve said your piece. Laid out what is optimal for increasing the scores. The most supportive thing you can do now is start looking for schools that are affordable and likely to accept your D at her current score level. Any increase is all gravy now. Where you have the power is that of the purse. She can only go to schools that you are willing to pay.