Changes are coming to the ACT! Starting September 2020, high school students sitting for the ACT can retake individual test sections as opposed to the entire test. For example, a student who scored high on the math and science sections but low on the reading and writing sections will be permitted to retake just the reading and writing sections. Not only will this save time when retaking the test, it also decreases the retake registration fee if only sitting for a select number of sections Additionally, the ACT will now superscore, or average the highest scores from each section, even if they were taken on different test dates, to calculate the composite score. While some colleges manually superscore ACT scores, this change will enable students to submit their superscores to the college electronically.
Another major change with the ACT will be the option to take the test online. Students who take the test online will receive scores in just two business days as opposed to the minimum two-week score turnaround for paper and pen testing.
Test content and formatting will remain the same. The chart below indicates content included and pacing on the ACT.
| ACT | |
| Total Time | 2 hrs 55 min, or 3 hrs 25 min |
| Subjects Tested | English (Writing) Math Reading Science Essay (Optional) |
| Scores | Optional (last section) |
| Scoring | +1 for correct answer 0 for incorrect answer No penalty for guessing incorrectly |
| Reading Questions & Pace | 35 min for 40 questions 52.5 sec/question |
| Math Questions & Pace | 60 mins for 60 questions 60 sec/question |
| Writing Questions & Pace | 45 mins for 75 questions 36 sec/question 1 essay in 30 mins |
| Science Questions & Pace | 35 mins for 40 questions 52.5 sec/question |
| Reading Content | Passage Based Reading (100%) |
| Math Content | Basic Math-Precalculus/Trig More advanced math topics covered (compared to SAT) |
| Essay Content & Pace | Choose a Stance and compare to other perspectives. (40 mins) |