My S27 received his ACT score yesterday and while he was very pleased with a 32 overall, his Math score didn’t budge from a 26 (English was 36 and reading 35). This was his second sitting and he has already done an 8-week review session as well as private tutoring. He plans to apply to large public state schools (VT, Indiana, CU Boulder etc) so while not particularly competitive, I’m wondering if he should retake it if he plans to apply as a Business major. Thoughts? He really does not enjoy Math overall. His GPA is a 3.8 and he has not taken Calculus yet.
Not sure business is for him if he doesn’t like math - as it will be a ton of quant stuff. .
Now that IU has gone holistic, it could be seen. Even if he gets it up CU may put him in Exploratory. Va Tech not sure.
How many times has he taken ? Did the 8 week review come with an improvement guarantee where he can take again just for math?
Are all these affordable ( I assume or you wouldn’t be applying) - they’ll all be mid 50s and up.
At some, a higher score may mean more merit. Make sure it’s a full # - not rounded like 31.75 to 32.
So reasons to take again -
- more merit, depending on your list.
- Better chance at holistic.
- Only took twice and has the mental toughness to take again.
- Just loves these schools - but they are all different other than big flagships - and plenty of like schools exist. And maybe he needs safer direct admits - but yes higher would be better
- Willing to drill in math and math only b4 the next test (superscore)
Reason not to take
- Burned out on testing/focus on other areas like fun and school work
- I’ll add more schools, just in case - there’s boatloads of like schools
- I know I’ll be successful and enjoy whatever I go- so Colorado or Colorado State or Kansas - they’re all the same (and they are btw). Everyone gets annoyed when I say it but 32 single setting /3.5 for Bama - Culverhouse is outstanding - on par with CU/Va Tech gets you $28k so you’re under $23k. Even if little interest, seeing the $$ is a confidence boost to some.
Those are some initial thoughts
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Has he taken a practice SAT test? Some students prefer the SAT over the ACT.
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Looks to me like a 26 ACT in math is around the 80th percentile. I can’t imagine why this score should preclude a student from pursuing business. Business schools typically don’t require math past calculus. A number of b-school classes will have an analytical component but not pure math.
FWIW my S had an equivalent SAT math score – he graduated cum laude with an accounting degree from a T50 college, got a MS from a T5 college is his field, and is very successful in his career.
@COMom3 Agree that may be worth looking at the SAT if student willing. In terms of a third retake, what does the student think (needs to be willing to put in the effort if considering another retake). My kids both had enough after two rounds of standardized tests so we found schools that were fits for their academic stats. No one right answer for all.
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Not all business areas are quant-heavy. Business majors usually do not require math beyond calculus-for-business-majors (an easier version of regular single variable calculus).
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My comment was not based on the 26 - where he will get into plenty of fine schools and could pursue business.
It was based on this statement. I have an MBA (long ago) and know kids in business today - and it’s very quantitative - not saying advanced - but a lot of math vs. theory. The world today is data driven and apparently schools have adjusted/adapted. So math/quantitative skill requirements will be pervasive.
I don’t know the student, obviously, but that line stood out to me.
Of course, many go into college with one idea in mind and change to another - no matter the major. So that’s life too. They might start with one idea and switch to another.
I disagree with the notion that somebody with a 26 math ACT score isn’t a good fit for a business degree.
OP’s son could consider a school like University of Arizona, which has a really good college of business. It has a ‘preprofessional admissions’ process for all business majors. See BSBA Business Professional Admissions | Eller College of Management for details. This also applies to other majors in the college of business.
What this basically means is that you’re pretty much like a ‘pre-major’ and there’s some hoops to jump through in order to later get admitted to your preferred business major (whether it’s regular business admin, business management, finance, MIS, business analytics, etc.).
The freshman/sophomore (college student freshman/sophomore, not high school) math required courses are:
- MATH 116 - Calculus Concepts for Business. Prereqs to get into this class is…guess what? A 26 math ACT score.
- BNAN 276 - Statistical Inference in Management. Prereq is MATH 116.
- BNAN 277 - Analytic Methods for Business. Prereq is BNAN 276.
Your son absolutely can be successful in college as a business major with a 26 math ACT score.
U of A has out of state tuition scholarships which are based solely on GPA.
Regardless of whether your son decides to retake the ACT, take the SAT, or stick with his current score(s), in order to compare apples to apples of the different schools he’ll apply to, I’d recommend to pay attention to what the different major requirements are for each college he intends to apply to.
…because sometimes, there can be slight differences for the same major at different colleges. AND maybe those differences might end up being important to him.
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