College Entrance Exams

American College Testing (ACT)

The ACT Assessment is a standardized college entrance examination that measures knowledge and skills in English, mathematics, reading, and science reasoning and the application of these skills to future academic tasks through multi-choice tests.

You will actually receive 12 separate scores on the ACT: 1 composite, 4 subject scores, and 7 sub-scores. The composite, or scaled, score is the most important. It ranges from 1-36. Nearly half of all test takers fall in the 17-23 range.

Test Registration
Contact your high school or guidance counselor for the necessary registration materials. If this isn't possible, call ACT at 319-337-1270—they will send the materials free of charge.

Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT)

Colleges use the SAT to measure verbal and mathematical reasoning abilities and to assess an applicant's readiness for college. It is a three-hour exam that is divided into seven sections: three verbal, three math, and one experimental which could be either math or verbal. The test is administered on paper.

The SAT is scored on a scale of 200-800 for both the math and verbal sections. The College Board sets the average at 500 for each section for all test takers. A perfect score on the SAT is 1600. In recent years, fewer than 20% of all test takers achieve a math score of 600 or better. Fewer than 10% score higher than 600 on the verbal section.

Test Registration
There are two ways to register for the SAT:

• Fill out the paper registration form in the College Board's SAT Bulletin. Get a free copy of this publication through your guidance counselor.
  Visit College Board to register online. Select your test date and test center then immediately receive registration confirmation.
• If these options aren't possible, contact the Educational Testing Service (ETS) at 609-771-7600.

Educational Testing Services

Educational Testing Service is the world's largest private educational testing and measurement organization and a leader in educational research. The company is dedicated to serving the needs of individuals, educational institutions, and government bodies in almost 200 countries. ETS develops and administers more than 12 million tests worldwide. To find out more about college entrance exams, visit their website.