Many students looks to take the April 13th ACT in preparation for college applications

The ACT (American College Testing) is coming up soon for many juniors at Park looking to get into colleges. The test consists of four different sections: mathematics, reading, writing and science, in order to test a students academic ability in multiple different subjects.

Junior Owen Slater, who has recently visited multiple colleges over spring break, said the ACT is very important for students trying to get into colleges they apply to.

“I visited some colleges over spring break and most of the really nice ones had extremely competitive scores for students who were admitted in the past few years,” Slater said.

Slater has been preparing for the ACT by taking practice tests, enrolling in an ACT specific class and buying practice books. He said these three strategies have helped him become comfortable with test taking, and allow him to find out what subjects he needs to improve on.

Performing well on the test is important to Slater, who said it is a better reflection of him as a student rather than his grades during his past years in high school.

“It is really important for me to do well on the test, especially as someone who could have higher grades,” Slater said. “I think colleges know these scores do a good job of reflecting how well you do and are capable of doing as an academic student.”

Career and credit recovery counselor at Park, Kelsey Milne, said that the ACT and SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) are both extremely important for college admissions.

“Not every school requires a standardized test score for admission,” Milne said. “However, many four-year colleges do and it is necessary so students can keep their options open. Standardized test scores can be an important part of admission because they provide a way for colleges to compare students across the country.”

There are still opportunities for students to take the standardized tests this year. The ACT will be given again on June 8 (register deadline is May 3), and the SAT is given on June 1 (register deadline is May 7).

For more information about taking the ACT, as well as other tests including the SAT, can be found on the high school website under ‘Student Resources’ in the ‘Counseling Office Resources’ section.