About ACT® Test

What is ACT?

The ACT is a standardized test that assesses your college readiness and considers your scores during the admissions process. This is one of the aspects of measuring your eligibility to get admission into a college or university. The ACT test has five sections: English, Math, Reading, Science, and the optional Writing (essay) section.

The ACT is managed by ACT, Incorporated. American College Testing is the full form of the ACT. It is a standardised test that students seeking admission to undergraduate programs in the USA and Canada must take. The ACT exam was created to assess candidates’ written, mathematical, verbal, and scientific abilities.

ACT Syllabus Highlights

Check section-wise highlights of ACT Syllabus

Quick facts about the ACT

• All colleges treat SAT and ACT at par (with a few rare exceptions) for undergrad college admissions
• From September 2018, ACT has become a computer-based test for the outside US
• Official website for ACT test registration is https://www.act.org/
• Fees for test registration is With Writing – USD 166.50 and Without Writing USD 150
• ACT is conducted 7 times a year: February, April, June, July, August, September, October
• The test is of 2 hrs 55 minutes duration without essay and 3 hrs 35 minutes with essay
• The English test has 75 questions with a duration of 45 minutes
• The Math test has 60 questions with a duration of 60 minutes
• The Reading test has 40 questions with a duration of 35 minutes
• The Science test has 40 questions with a duration of 35 minutes
• The Writing (optional) test has 1 question and is of 40 minutes
• English, Math, Reading and Science tests are scored in a scale of 1 to 36 and the composite ACT score is the average of these four tests.

ACT Eligibility

Officially, ACT has not established any specific requirements for taking the ACT exam. As a result, the ACT has no age or grade requirements for taking the exam. This exam is mostly taken by high school students.

ACT Registration

International students who wish to take the ACT must register for the exam online exclusively.

Requirements for ACT Registration

• A computer or laptop with an internet connection
• Details about high school courses
• Credit/debit card
• Headshot photo
• The entire registration process will take approximately 40 – 50 minutes.

Online Registration

• Create an account on the official ACT website.
• Choose a test day and location that is convenient for you.
• Create your profile, fill out the application request, upload the needed papers, and confirm your registration.
• To finish your registration, pay the exam fee. You can pay the cost with a debit or credit card, or you can pay online.
• Registration deadlines are normally three to four weeks before the test date.

ACT Exam Pattern

The ACT exam pattern has MCQs based test with a total of 215 questions. The ACT exam is divided into four sections: English, Math, Reading, and Science. There is an optional section called the Writing section, which includes one 30–40-minute writing prompt that defines a problem, as well as two points of view on that problem. Students are not scored on this section.

Know more about the ACT exam pattern.

ACT Exam Dates

How Important Is the ACT?

ACT is the metric that colleges and universities use to measure your readiness for studying undergrad in college/university. ACT is not the only important factor in your college admission, however, ACT score is one critical factor for admissions.

Know more about the difference between ACT and SAT.