ACT vs. SAT

By Kevin

On the advice of my unbelievably dedicated guidance counselor, I took the SAT and the ACT:

Most students will score about the same on both tests.
Uh, not me; I did not perform exceptionally well on the SAT -- even the math section --, but I nearly aced the ACT. (I cannot recall the exact scores for either). In fact, I think the ACT is what got me accepted at Columbia's engineering school.

My advice: Underachievers, take the ACT! It seems clear to me that many top-performing kids are hyper-stressed, and can't deal with another test. But those of you who find yourselves way down in the class rankings, and can't understand why high school is stressful for so many, may find the marginal benefit way higher than the marginal cost.

H/T: The other Craig Newmark.

-- March 7, 2005 5:05 PM |

Comments

Bryan wrote:

I had a similar experience with the SAT/ACT scoring at least 5 percentile points higher on the ACT.

Too bad there is no competition for the LSAT, I guess I'll actually have to study this time around.

-- March 8, 2005 2:04 PM ∞

Buzzcut wrote:

I seem to recall...

1240 or so on the SAT, like 29 on the ACT. Both taken in 1990 (that matters, the SAT has gotten easier and easier over time).

Oh, and 1310 on the GRE in 1998. I think they all translate into 120 to 130 IQ, depending on which web site you check.

The real key is to go to a non-selective school! I went to SUNY Buffalo (I was from New York). All they required was a 3.something GPA and like an 1100 on the SAT. Cake.

Be smart. Your major is more important than where you went to school. You're not going to be an engineer by going to Harvard. I work with engineers from all the big ten schools, they're not better educated than I was.

-- March 8, 2005 3:23 PM ∞

B wrote:

Umm .... i got 1800 on the new SAT and 36 on the ACT .... the SATs r jus retarded and i have like a 4.0 GPA in school :S

-- October 10, 2005 9:09 PM ∞

Tip wrote:

I'll be taking the ACT soon and I sure hope it's much easier than the SAT, the thing is, that by researching on both the ACT and SAT, I found out that half of the SAT was just math and I'm very good at math,but On the ACT, math only makes up 1/4 of the test, and has science, which I'm awful in.

-- October 14, 2005 3:44 PM ∞

Angie wrote:

I actually had a different experience. I got a 30 on the ACT but a 2110 on the (new) SAT.

-- October 15, 2005 11:25 PM ∞

Post a comment