On April 27, the Junior Class will take the ACT test, courtesy of the Rockwood School District, free of charge.
Junior Ab Sufi is glad for the opportunity to take the ACT a second time for free and also likes that Rockwood is offering the test to all juniors.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to ensure that everyone takes the ACT, or help people who may have financial difficulties in paying for the ACT,” he said.
Although Sufi admits the test is quite long and not exactly exciting, he says, “It’s something that you want to just get over with.”
Junior Diane Park agrees the free ACT is a great idea for all juniors.
“It gives our parents a break of paying for all tests and ACT prep-classes, but it can give us a taste of what the act tests are like, and gives everyone an opportunity to take the test, ” Park said.
Unlike Sufi, Park is excited to take the test.
“It kind of lifts a stressful burden, because even if you don’t get the score you are able to achieve, you know that you or your parent’s money didn’t go to waste,” she said.
College Admissions Specialist Chris Ramsay encourages juniors to take advantage of the free ACT and to also register to take the test more than once.
“The number of times a student takes the test can vary depending on a lot of factors, but two to four times is probably the average for most students. It will not matter to most colleges how many times a student takes an ACT/SAT, but I always caution students about ‘test fatigue’ and that taking the test every time it is offered on the national test dates may not be worth the time, stress and money. Most students’ scores plateau after three to four attempts,” he said.
Preparation for the ACT:
- Bring two #2 pencils and erasers
- School ID
- Scientific or graphing calculator
What exactly is on the test?
- English – 75 items, 45 minutes
- Mathematics – 60 items, 60 minutes
- Reading Test – 40 items, 35 minutes
- Science Test – 40 items, 35 minutes
