ACT, SAT OR BOTH?
AGENDA 1 Truths, misconceptions and comparisons 2 Strategies and sample problems 3 How The Princeton Review can help TEXT YOUCAN TO 877877 to get a discount code and keep up-to-date on college admissions and testing 2
TRUTHS AND MISCONCEPTIONS 3
All schools accept either the SAT and/or the ACT. Colleges have no preference. You may take both tests, or just one of them. 4
ACT SAT TESTS Format Exclusively multiple choice Mostly multiple choice AT-A GLANCE Content areas Math, Reading, Writing, Science Math, Reading, Writing Scoring per section 1 36 200 800 Timing 2:55 (3:35) 3:00 (3:50) ACT is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc., which is not affiliated with The Princeton Review.. # of Questions 215 154 5
ACT SECTION-BY-SECTION English 45 minutes 75 questions Math 60 minutes 60 questions Reading 35 minutes 40 questions Science 35 minutes 40 questions Writing (optional essay) 40 minutes 1 essay Total with Writing 3:35 215 questions 6
SAT SECTION-BY-SECTION Reading 65 minutes 52 questions W&L 35 minutes 44 questions Math (No calculator) 25 minutes 20 questions Math (calculator) 55 minutes 38 questions Essay (optional) 50 minutes 1 essay Total with Essay 3:50 154 questions 7
WHAT DO THESE TESTS MEASURE? Admission tests.. True False measure intelligence? can be used to award aid? reflect your GPA in high school? predict your college GPA? can be prepared for? should be prepared for? test what you ve learned in HS? 8
SAT SCORING MATH 200 800 EVIDENCE-BASED READING AND WRITING 200 800 TOTAL 400 1600 ACT SCORING ENGLISH 1-36 MATH 1-36 READING 1-36 SCIENCE 1-36 WRITING (ESSAY) 2-12 COMPOSITE 1-36 9
WHAT IS A GOOD SCORE? 10
HOW DO THE SCORES COMPARE? 11
WHICH TEST IS FOR YOU? 12
SAT QUESTIONS REQUIRE MORE TIME TO UNDERSTAND AND ANSWER. ACT QUESTIONS TEND TO BE MORE STRAIGHTFORWARD. 13
BOTH ESSAYS ARE OPTIONAL. WE RECOMMEND TAKING THE ACT AND SAT WITH THE ESSAY. 14
Sample Essay Prompts ACT SAT 15
THE ACT HAS A SCIENCE SECTION, THE SAT DOES NOT. IF YOU RE A TRUE SCIENCE-PHOBE THEN THE SAT MAY BE BETTER. 16
ACT Science The following table represents the concentration of ions and dissolved gases in the sediment at the bottom of an ocean. A depth of 0 centimeters (cm) represents the top of the sediment. The concentrations are expressed in parts per million (ppm). The acidity of a solution is represented on a scale known as ph. A ph of 1 is very acidic, a ph of 7 is neutral, and a ph of 14 is very basic. Depth (cm) Temperature ( o C) ph SO 4 2- Concentration in sediment (ppm) S 2- CO 2 Fe 3+ Fe 2+ O 2 0 4 7.0 7.0 0.0 1.0 4.0 0.5 2.0 5 5 6.5 5.0 2.0 1.5 3.0 1.5 1.0 10 7 6.0 3.5 3.5 2.0 2.0 2.0 0.0 15 9 5.5 3.3 3.8 3.0 0.8 3.8 0.0 20 10 5.0 3.0 4.0 1.0 0.5 4.0 0.0 Table adapted from R.M. Atlas and R. Bartha, Microbial Ecology: Fundamentals and Applications. 1981 by Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. 1. If the trends continue, one would predict the ph of the sediments at a depth of 25 cm to be 2. The concentration of which of the following gases is constant for depths of 10 cm or more? 17
READING: THE SAT HAS 5 READING PASSAGES, THE ACT HAS 4 PASSAGES. MATH: THE SAT AND ACT TEST SIMILAR CONCEPTS. SAT HAS A NO-CALCULATOR SECTION 18
Sample SAT Math 19
STUDENTS OFTEN STRUGGLE WITH ACT/SAT Timing/Number of Questions SAT/ACT Designed so you can t finish or have to rush HIGH SCHOOL EXAMS Generous/Designed so you can finish Content Covers years Covers chapters Tests Ability to perform under high pressure/how well you take it Content knowledge Essay Limited time Hours & weeks Reading Under serious time constraints Read at home, untimed Writing/English Grammar rules Grammar has much less emphasis Math Intentionally hard and comprised of 4+ years; no partial credit Grading Machine Subjective Straight forward and generally focused on 1 year; partial credit given 20
PREPARATION AND PLANNING ARE KEY 21
PEOPLE ARE PREDICTABLE COWS PRODUCE MILK COWS DRINK WATER 22
STRATEGY: SAT PACING 26 correct 58 attempted 32 incorrect 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 58 38 attempted: 30 correct +4 20 guesses 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 58 23
WHEN SHOULD I TAKE THE TEST? October PSAT August SAT October SAT November SAT December SAT January SAT March SAT May SAT June SAT Summer Fall Winter Spring September ACT October ACT December ACT February ACT April ACT June ACT 24
THE RIGHT PREP MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE 25
GETTING INTO COLLEGE IS ABOUT MORE THAN TEST SCORES GREAT GRADES GREAT TEST SCORES GREAT APPLICATIONS Z 3.8 1450 26
TEST PREP WITH OPTIONS FOR EVERY SCHEDULE AND BUDGET 27
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