ACT Prep: How Parents Can Help Students Reach Their ACT Goals
The ACT is a stressful, important exam because it can affect a student’s future. Parents or guardians should take time to talk to their student about the ACT, work together to set test score goals, and help put their student on a good path toward acceptance to their dream college. ACT test prep is hard work, but it gets a little easier when students have a support system to guide them through the process, keeping in mind the real-life implications of ACT test success.
Defeating the ACT is easiest when there is a group effort involved, all working toward the same end goal.
There are many ways parents and guardians can help students to reach their ACT goals.
1. Understand the test and its importance
The ACT has changed a lot over the last decade. Where the test used to be a simple college admissions exam that students took one time and that was included on college applications, it is now a monster of an exam that can seriously affect a student’s future.
A big way that parents can help students to prepare and perform to their full potential on the ACT is to be educated on why the ACT matters. There are two key reasons that students and parents should care about ACT scores.
Reason #1: Competitive Edge
The fact is, college and university admissions has become incredibly competitive. Students need to make sure that not only are their GPA and extracurriculars strong for their college applications, but they also need to make sure that their ACT score is appropriate for the schools they plan to apply to.
If their ACT score does not fit with the academic level of a certain college, their probability of getting accepted goes way down. Schools don’t want to accept students that they don’t think will excel with the academic level of the school. The ACT is a big way that they gauge whether you’ll be able to thrive at their school.
Furthermore, the ACT allows schools a means of comparing all student applicants from all different high schools and places. While things like the way GPA and course schedules are determined can fluctuate from one high school to another, ACT scores are a constant value that colleges can use to compare all applicants. It’s important to fit in with the crowd of applicants (or exceed them). If a student’s ACT score is much lower than the majority of other applicants’ scores, the student’s chances of acceptance are lower than if they fit in with the general range of scores.
Reason #2: Tuition Assistance and Scholarships
This is a newer concept that many families are still unaware of. Many colleges and universities now offer merit-based scholarships based upon students ACT scores and GPA scores. These are AUTOMATIC scholarships and tuition savings that could save students thousands of dollars on tuition. The prevalence of these merit-based scholarships can vary drastically from school to school, so we encourage you to do your homework and learn about the scholarship setups at specific schools BEFORE you apply to them. Similarly, we encourage you to know about and understand these programs and options before students take the ACT so you can set a goal score accordingly.
2. Collaborate with your student in coming up with a test prep plan
Junior year of high school can be incredibly overwhelming for many students. For students who excel at school, this is when higher-level and AP courses usually begin. This is also when students will be prompted to begin thinking about their plans for after high school. They’ll meet with guidance counselors to discuss setting up college visits and the entire admissions process. Furthermore, this is when students will be worried about and attempting to defeat the ACT exam.
We encourage students to take an ACT or PreACT exam prior to doing test prep to get a baseline of the student’s performance on the test. From there, you’ll want to talk to your student about determining what his or her goal ACT score should be.
Determining an ACT score goal depends on a couple of things:
What types of colleges is your student interested in?
Is your student only interested in private, competitive schools, or local public schools? If your student has a good idea of where they want to apply, do some research to figure out what standard ACT scores are for those schools. You can find out the average ACT score range of any school by doing a quick Google search. That is a good place to start. It is important that your student’s ACT score fit into the school’s average ACT score range in order for him or her to have a high probability of being accepted to the school.
How will the rest of your student’s college application fare?
Colleges will look at more than just ACT scores when they go through college applications and complete the admissions process. Other parts of a student’s application package that hold significant weight include their GPA, their essays and personal statements, and the level of difficulty of the courses they completed in high school. Take some time to consider your student’s situation in each of these areas. How will your student look to schools WITHOUT an ACT score? If your student has a great GPA and has taken all of the AP courses offered at their school, it’s likely that he or she can get away with a slightly lower ACT score than a particular college’s average range and still be accepted to the school. In contrast, if your student’s GPA is not quite where you want it to be, a higher ACT score could help make up some ground and give your student a higher chance of being admitted to the schools they want to go to.
Are there potential cost-savings associated with an increased test score?
As we already talked about above, there may be merit-based scholarships that your student could qualify for if they reach a certain ACT score. This generally applies to students who have a strong GPA, usually 3.5 and higher, with higher GPA and ACT score pairing receiving more scholarship money. Consider your student’s GPA and ACT score. Is it possible to reach the threshold for any merit-based scholarships available at the schools they’ll apply to? If so, consider this as you identify a goal ACT score, in addition to the points above. After all, we know that college is expensive. Any money your student can save on tuition will add up quickly.
The key is that there is a strategy to determining what your student’s ACT goal score should be.
Here is an example thought process for identifying a student’s ACT goal score:
You know that your student has his heart set on going to the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. You do a quick Google search and find that the average ACT score of students at UMN is between 26 - 31. Therefore, your student’s ACT score should fall between 26-3 in order to fit in academically at the school and give him a good chance of being accepted. You then consider his GPA, course schedule, extracurriculars, and everything that will be included in his college application. He’s a smart student, but his GPA is a bit low at 3.2, and he hasn’t taken any high-level courses offered by his school. Since these areas might be less impressive to admissions teams, a smart ACT goal would be to aim for the higher end of this school’s average ACT score. Since he’s not likely to stand out to the university with his GPA and course schedule, his ACT score can make up for some of that. You determine he should shoot for a 29+ score.
This is just one example. Every student is different, and admissions teams DO look at more than test scores, but we know test scores are a critical factor in college admissions. There will, of course, also be essays and personal statements included on college applications, which give students a chance to stand out. This is a really important part of college applications, but even with a strong essay, if a student’s ACT score is significantly lower than the school average, the school will be hesitant to accept them.
Based on the ACT score goal that you pinpoint with your student, come up with a test prep plan that fits accordingly. This is when your student’s baseline ACT or PreACT score becomes VERY helpful. Take a look at that original score and consider the score increase that he or she will need to make to reach the goal score you’ve determined. The more points your student needs to raise their score, the more time they will need to spend on ACT test prep.
Here is our general formula for determining how much time to spend on ACT test prep:
1 ACT Composite Point Improvement: 8-10 hours
1-2 ACT Composite Point Improvement: 15-20 hours
2-4 ACT Composite Point Improvement: 30-40 hours
4-6 ACT Composite Point Improvement: 60-80 hours
6-9 ACT Composite Point Improvement: 150 hours+
Example ACT Prep Plans:
STUDENT 1:
Current Score: 21
Goal Score: 25
Points to Improve: 4
Approximate Hours Needed: 40
Time to prepare: 5 weeks
Study Plan: 8 hours per week for 5 weeks: For this student we would recommend two in-person private tutoring sessions per week, each two hours in length, and we would provide two hours worth of practice material between each session for the student to complete independently.
STUDENT 2:
Current Score: 21
Goal Score: 23
Points to Improve: 2
Approximate Hours Needed: 20
Time to prepare: 5 weeks
Study Plan: 4 hours per week for 5 weeks: For this student we would recommend one in-person private tutoring sessions per week, two hours in length, and we would provide two hours worth of practice material each week for the student to complete independently.
STUDENT 3:
Current Score: 28
Goal Score: 34
Points to Improve: 6
Approximate Hours Needed: 80
Time to prepare: 8 weeks
Study Plan: 10 hours a week for 8 weeks: For this student we would recommend three in-person private tutoring sessions per week, each two hours in length, and we would provide four hours worth of practice material each week for the student to complete independently.
3. Offer test prep options
Every student is unique, so every test prep plan is going to be unique as well. Some students will prefer independent test prep using books and videos, while others will need one-on-one tutoring support to reach their ACT score goal. There are so many different ways to increase a student’s knowledge of the ACT:
ACT Textbook
Online courses and videos
Practice tests
Classes through school
Private group classes
Individualized, one-on-one tutoring
The test prep options above are ordered from least individualized to most individualized. Some students will need no more than to peruse a couple ACT books and watch a few YouTube videos. It all goes back to student goals and the difference between a student’s baseline and their goal score.
For students hoping to make small improvements of 1-2 points, it’s very possible that independent preparation will suffice. However, for students looking to make larger jumps, more individualized test prep sees more results. Similarly, students who are aiming for very high scores in the 30’s generally require individualized prep, as well, even if they only are trying to earn an extra point or two. The reason for this is that, in order to score in the 30’s on all four sections of the ACT, you really CAN’T get very many questions wrong. Being able to answer almost all questions correctly is a difficult task. That’s where an expert tutor comes in: a tutor can help identify student weaknesses and pinpoint areas that need increased practice, as well as identify strategies that may help the student be more efficient or move more quickly through the test.
Consider your student’s baseline test score and the jump they need to make to reach their goal, and select a test prep option, or a combination of test prep options, that will help your student achieve their goal. We always recommend a combination of one-on-one, individualized tutoring and practice test to gauge progress. We have found that this sees the most significant, quickest results.
4. Research specific schools admissions information
As a parent, you know there are going to be things that come up in the college admissions process that your student does not understand well. One of these things will be MONEY.
College is expensive. That’s not a surprise. However, many people are surprised to find out that ACT scores above a certain level could qualify students for merit-based scholarships and tuition aid at certain schools.
Help your student by researching the tuition and scholarship setups at the schools they’re planning to apply to. It’s very possible that you’ll find a tiered structure for merit-based scholarships that is based on a combination of a student’s high school GPA and their ACT score.
If you discover that increasing your student’s ACT score by two points would save him or her $1,000 per year on tuition costs, communicate that to your student in a way that they understand, and help them come up with a test prep plan (as discussed above) that will help them reach that goal.
When I was seventeen I had no concept of money. It would have been hard to convince me that $4,000 over the course of four years would be a significant savings, but when you’re staring at piling student loans, every little bit helps.
5. Network with other parents - what worked for their student and what did not?
Over 1.6 MILLION students took the ACT in 2012, and that number has continued to go up. That means most high school students are taking the ACT and planning to go on and complete some kind of secondary education.
That also means that many of the students that your student goes to school with, plays sports with, and is friends with are going through (or have already gone through) the stress of the ACT exam. The same goes for their parents. Talk to other parents to find out what steps their students are taking to prepare for the ACT and the leap to college. What worked for their older children that are in college now? What do they wish they had done differently?
You can learn a lot from guidance counselors, college admissions teams, websites, and professionals in the industry, yet sometimes the biggest lessons come from people have already experienced what you’re going through.
At the end of the day, it will be your student who sits down to take the ACT early on a Saturday morning and strives to reach their goal score. However, ACT test prep is a team effort that can set your student up for success beyond high school and even college. Imagine that you help your student reach goals that help them get accepted to their dream school and save them thousands of dollars or even tens of thousands of dollars on tuition. I’m pretty sure that would make any parent happy.
Good luck, and happy prepping!
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