ACT
What is ACT?
The ACT is a standardized examination that is widely accepted in the United States and a few other countries for undergraduate admissions. Many institutions require an ACT or SAT score as part of the application process. With a few exceptions, all universities in the United States accept both the ACT and the SAT. The goal of the test is to assess students’ college preparation and to assess all students under one roof.
Outside of the United States, the ACT is a computer-based test. The ACT consists of four primary tests: English, Math, Reading, and Science. The ACT also has an optional Writing (Essay) section.
Test Duration and Sections
The ACT consists of 4 tests (English, Math, Reading, Science) and an optional Writing test (essay). The duration of the ACT is 2 hours 55 minutes without the essay, and 3 hours 35 minutes with the essay. A short break is provided after the second test. The second break is after the fourth test and, of course, applicable only if you are taking the optional Writing test.
ACT English Test
The English test consists of five passages with 15 questions per passage. Most of the questions ask you to select the answer that is most appropriate in grammar and style; or the one that is most consistent with the tone of the passage.
Six elements of effective writing are tested in the English test, that fall under two categories:
- Usage/Mechanics – 40 Questions
- punctuation(10 Questions)
- grammar and usage (12 Questions)
- sentence structure (18 Questions)
- Rhetorical Skills – 35 Questions
- strategy(12 Questions)
- organization(11 Questions)
- style(12 Questions)
ACT Math Test
Approximately 14 Pre-algebra-based, 10 Elementary algebra-based, 9 Intermediate Algebra-based, 9 Coordinate geometry-based, 14 Plane geometry-based, and 4 trigonometry-based questions comprise the Math test. While the questions are arranged in ‘general order of difficulty – easy, medium, and hard you may see a few hard questions in the first 20 questions. Conversely, you may also find a few easy questions among the last 20 questions.
ACT Reading Test
Four passages belonging to four genres — prose fiction, social sciences, humanities, and natural sciences comprise the Reading test. As passages always follow this order, and each passage is followed by 10 questions this gives the test taker the advantage of working on those passages belonging to the genres he is most comfortable with first and saving the harder ones for the end.
ACT Science Test
The ACT science test does not test any ‘science-based knowledge; rather, it is a test of reading and reasoning based on science-related passages. In this test, you will see about 2-3 Charts and Graphs passages, about 2-3 Science Experiment passages, and 1 or 2 Fighting Scientists passages – the number of questions ranges from 5 to 7.
ACT Writing Test
The Writing test is optional and needs to be taken if the essay score is required by the college you are applying to. The essay task presents you with three perspectives on a debatable issue. You must explain and justify your position on that issue. in the context of the three perspectives.
