Understanding Your ACT Score: A Comprehensive Guide

The ACT (American College Testing) is a standardized test used for college admissions in the United States. Many students and parents find the ACT scoring system confusing. This article aims to demystify the ACT score, explaining what the scores mean and how they are calculated.

ACT Scoring Basics

Each of the four required sections of the ACT-English, Math, Reading, and Science-is scored on a scale of 1 to 36. The composite score, which is the overall ACT score, is the average of the scores from these four sections.

Section Scores: Each section receives a score between 1 and 36.
Composite Score: The average of the four section scores, also ranging from 1 to 36.
No Penalty for Incorrect Answers: Points are awarded for each correct answer, and there is no deduction for wrong answers.

It is uncommon for someone to get a perfect score of 36 or a very low score of 1.

How to Calculate Your ACT Score

Calculating your ACT score involves a few straightforward steps:

Find Your Raw Score for Each Section: Use the answer key from your practice exam to count the number of questions you answered correctly in each section. This is your raw score.
Convert Raw Scores to Scale Scores: Use the ACT scoring chart provided with your practice test to convert your raw scores into scale scores (1-36).
Average the Scale Scores: Add the four scale scores together and divide by 4. Round the result to the nearest whole number to get your composite score.

For example, if you scored 26 on English, 33 on Math, 21 on Reading, and 26 on Science, your composite score would be (26 + 33 + 21 + 26) / 4 = 26.5, which rounds up to 27.

Read also: Retrieving Old SAT Scores

ACT Scoring Chart

The ACT scoring chart can help you estimate how many questions you can afford to miss on the ACT and still meet your target score. This scoring table was taken from the 2021-22 official ACT practice exam.

Remember that the conversions between raw and scale scores can vary slightly depending on the test. To calculate ACT scores with 100% accuracy, you must use the ACT scoring chart that accompanies your specific practice exam.

If your practice test doesn’t have an ACT score chart, you can use the table below to estimate your scale scores.

Scale Score	English Raw Score	Math Raw Score	Reading Raw Score	Science Raw Score
36	72-75	58-60	39-40	38-40
35	70-71	56-57	38	37
34	68-69	54-55	37	36
33	67	53	35-36	35
32	66	51-52	34	34
31	65	49-50	33	-
30	64	48	-	33
29	62-63	46-47	32	32
28	61	44-45	31	31
27	60	41-43	30	-
26	58-59	39-40	29	30
25	56-57	37-38	28	28-29
24	53-55	35-36	27	26-27
23	51-52	33-34	26	25
22	48-50	31-32	24-25	23-24
21	45-47	30	23	22
20	42-44	28-29	21-22	20-21
19	40-41	26-27	20	19
18	38-39	24-25	19	17-18
17	36-37	21-23	17-18	15-16
16	33-35	17-20	16	13-14
15	30-32	13-16	14-15	12
14	27-29	10-12	12-13	11
13	25-26	8-9	11	10
12	23-24	6-7	9-10	9
11	19-22	5	7-8	8
10	16-18	4	6	7
9	13-15	-	5	6
8	11-12	3	-	5
7	9-10	-	4	4
6	6-8	2	3	3
5	4-5	1	2	2
4	4-5	1	2	2
3	3	-	1	1
2	2	-	1	1
1	0-1	0-0	0-0	0-0

Understanding the ACT Score Report

The ACT score report provides a detailed breakdown of your performance on the exam.

Key Components of the ACT Score Report

Composite Score: The overall score out of 36, which is the average of the four section scores.
Section Scores: Scores for English, Math, Reading, and Science, each ranging from 1 to 36.
English Language Arts (ELA) Score: If you take the Writing Test, you'll receive an ELA score, which represents your overall performance on the English, Reading, and Writing tests.
Writing Score: If you opt for the ACT Plus Writing, your essay will be evaluated by two readers, and you'll receive a writing score.
College Readiness Benchmarks: These benchmarks indicate the scores at which students are most likely to succeed in college courses.
Score Ranges: These bands around your score lines show a score range.
Ranks/Percentiles: These show how you performed compared to other test-takers.
Subscores: These break down your performance by topic or question type.

Interpreting Your Scores

Composite Score: This is the primary score that colleges use to evaluate your application.
Section Scores: These scores provide insights into your strengths and weaknesses in specific subject areas.
Subscores: These can help you identify areas where you need to improve.
Percentiles: These show how you performed compared to other students who took the ACT. For example, if you score in the 74th percentile, you scored equal to or better than 74% of the students in the comparison group.

ACT Score Percentiles

ACT score percentiles are determined by comparing your score to the scores of a large, representative sample of students who have taken the test over a recent three-year period.

Contextualizes Performance: A raw score alone doesn’t tell you how well you did compared to others. The percentile gives that vital comparative information.
Informs College Admissions Strategy: If your score is below the 25th percentile, it means a large percentage of admitted students scored higher than you.
Helps Set Realistic Goals: Percentiles help you set realistic goals.
Identifies Strengths and Weaknesses (Subscores): While colleges primarily focus on the composite score, your score report also includes percentiles for each section.

What is a Good ACT Score?

What constitutes a "good" ACT score depends on your goals and the colleges you are targeting.

General Ranges:
- 21-23 (Average/Above Average): This range typically includes the national average and extends slightly above it.
- 31-36 (Excellent/Highly Competitive): Scores in this range place a student among the top performers nationally.
College Readiness Benchmarks: The ACT provides College Readiness Benchmarks for each section.
Target Schools: Research the average ACT scores of admitted students at your target colleges.
Scholarship Opportunities: A higher ACT score can qualify you for merit-based scholarships.

In general, a good ACT score puts you in or above the 75th percentile. According to official data, this means you’ll need at least a 24 composite score.

ACT and Class Grades

Many students wonder how ACT scores translate to the grades they are familiar with from school.

Mapping ACT Scores to Class Grades

The table below maps ACT scores to numerical and letter class grades, providing a rough idea of what letter grade or percentage you would have gotten on the ACT if the exam had used those types of scoring methods.

The table converts ACT scores to class grades based on percentiles. These percentiles were calculated based on scores of previous ACT exam-takers. The class grades percentiles were based on a large academic survey of grading trends in college (which typically closely match high school grades).

Read also: Accessing Your ACT Results

Interpreting the Results

Top of the Scale: At the top of the ACT scale, a 36 and a 28 are 8 points apart, yet, after the conversion, they all map to an A+. This is because classes often don't do a great job of differentiating between great students and truly stand-out ones.
Middle-of-the-Pack Students: Both class grades and ACT scores do a good job of resolving middle-of-the-pack students.
Low Scores: Neither ACT scores nor class grades begin at zero because failing grades are given out less than 4% of the time for class grades.

Important Considerations

Different Tests: ACTs and school classes don't test the same thing. The ACT is a multiple-choice exam taken in one sitting, while classes require hours of learning and schoolwork over a long period of time.
Class Grade Rigor: Class grades aren't as rigorous as the ACT.

The Optional Writing Test

If you choose to take the ACT Plus Writing, your writing will be evaluated by two readers. Both readers score your essay on a scale of 1-6 in four different areas. The ACT essay score will appear on your score report on a scale from 2-12.

English Language Arts (ELA) Score

ACT also reports an English Language Arts (ELA) score out of 36, which represents your overall performance on the English, reading, and writing tests, but this value is NOT included in your ACT Composite Score calculation.

Why ACT Scores Matter

ACT scores are important for several reasons:

College Admissions: They provide a standardized measure to compare students from different schools and backgrounds.
Academic Readiness: They help admissions committees determine your academic readiness for college.
Course Placement: They are often used for course placement.
Merit Scholarships: They are often used for awarding merit scholarships.
Personal Benchmark: They can be used as a personal benchmark to assess your academic strengths and weaknesses.
Holistic Review: While ACT scores are important, they are rarely the sole factor in admissions decisions. Most competitive colleges employ a holistic review process.

ACT vs. SAT

Most colleges accept both the ACT and SAT equally, with no preference. While you can submit both SAT and ACT scores to colleges, it is recommended that you focus only on one test. Once you determine which test is better for you, you can work on achieving the strongest score possible.

Improving Your ACT Score

Improving your ACT score requires a strategic approach:

Start Early and Create a Personalized Study Plan: Take a full-length, official ACT practice test under timed conditions to identify your starting score and strongest and weakest areas. Based on your baseline and research into your target colleges’ average scores, set a realistic target score.
Utilize Official ACT Prep Materials:
Content Review:
- English: Review fundamental grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, rhetoric, and organization rules.
- Math: Systematically review algebra, geometry, and trigonometry concepts. Memorize key formulas. Practice specific problem types.
- Reading: Focus on active reading techniques to identify main ideas, author’s purpose, tone, and specific details.
- Science: Understand that this section primarily tests data interpretation, graph analysis, and scientific reasoning, not advanced scientific knowledge.
Practice Time Management: The ACT is a fast-paced test. During practice, strictly adhere to time limits for each section. Learn how to pace and guess strategically.
Analyze Mistakes Thoroughly: For every question you get wrong (or even guessed on), don’t just look at the correct answer.
Consider Tutoring:
Take Multiple Practice Tests: Aim for at least 3-5 full-length practice tests before the actual exam.
Prioritize Well-being: Get adequate sleep, eat healthy, and manage stress in the weeks leading up to the test. A clear mind performs better.

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