I’ve always been curious about this.
Practically all colleges clearly state “We have no preference over the SAT or ACT being submitted”. But do they actually?
I mean they really shouldn’t because it can be a matter of money. If your school administers the ACT as state testing, you don’t pay for it. So for those who can’t afford to spare +$40 for testing, it’s ideal.
However, it is practically inarguable that the SAT is harder than the ACT. That is definitely my experience. The ACT is much more straight forward–the SAT is more complex, and has harder reading and math passages. So if you did really well on the SAT, it seems more impressive, then (to me).
Just looking for opinions/actual knowledge. Sorry if I come off as a complete noob, but I think this is a subject that should be addressed.
For the statement of that colleges have a preference for or recognize the SAT to be a “better” test to be true, colleges would have to be openly lying on their website about their admissions policy regarding Standardized Tests. If they’re lying about that, how do you know they are not lying about the rest of the information on their website? Can you trust Rutgers’ website when it says it’s in New Jersey? It might be in Vermont! Or California!
It is most definitely not “inarguable” that the SAT is harder than the ACT. Perspective matters. That is your perspective.
And I find ACT Reading to be harder than SAT Critical Reading, and not by a little. Also the SAT does not have a section like the ACT does in science reasoning. That section is 25% of your composite score, and it ain’t no piece of cake.
If a kid from the northeast takes the ACT, it might be presumed that it is because they feel they are better in science than math. However, I don’t think that affects college’s perceptions.