Which One & Why?
This Article has been written by Ms. Renu Kaushik, Senior Trainer & Consultant for SAT & ACT with The Princeton Review at Gurgaon.
About Ms. Renu Kaushik: Ms. Renu Kaushik has over 30 years of experience in counselling and guiding students for ACT(R), SAT(R), GMAT(R) & GRE(R). She is currently employed with The Princeton Review and is heading the branch at DLF phase 4.
Why Do We Take SAT® or ACT®?
SAT® & ACT® are required when you wish your child to study abroad for his/her UG. So, simply out they act like admissions test for universities/colleges abroad.
Does any college prefer SAT® over ACT® or vice-versa?
No, this is absolutely not the case. All colleges/universities give same weightage to both SAT® or ACT® and none is preferred over the other.
Is SAT® or ACT® only for USA, as most colleges in Singapore & Canada do not require SAT® or ACT®?
This is partially true not completely. You do require SAT® or ACT® for UG admissions in USA, but they go a long way in securing you the admit in top colleges in UK, Canada & Singapore too.
Look at this way, SAT® or ACT®:
- Are admissions test
- Act a big profile indicator of the expertise level of the child
- Speaks volume about the child’s ability to handle a stressful test
So, though in most colleges in Canada & Singapore including NUS etc SAT® is not a requirement but it always helps to quote a good score as it surely speaks a lot about your child’s ability and increases his/her chances, especially in competitive admissions as that of NUS, UBC etc.
How do you decide which test is better for my child, SAT® or the ACT®?
It’s not that difficult, in our organization we speak to the child to understand the strengths/weaknesses and figure out which one he/she will be more comfortable at. We prepare for both SAT® and the ACT®.
Let me make it simple,
Both SAT® & ACT® require different skillsets to score high on each of them:
ACT®: It is a straightforward test but objectively more difficult. It is a test for those students who can perform better under time crunch as the amount of time available per question on ACT® is lesser than available on the rival test, SAT®. ACT® also tests on a section called Science Reasoning and this might seem to be good deal for science students but actually it is an English section with situations/inferences/data derived from science. Lastly, ACT is meant for those students who are little better on Vocab skills.
SAT®: It is trickier test but less difficult. It feels that questions in SAT® are made by Psychologists and answers have been created to trap the students. SAT® allows more time per question than ACT® and makes it easier for students who do not like the time crunch. SAT® is also relatively less high on vocab and students who are not very comfortable with very high Vocab skillsets prefer the SAT®.
Why do more students prefer SAT® over ACT®?
That’s simply because, SAT® is out of 1600 and it is easier to score an additional 50-60-100 points with some extra effort. Whereas, ACT® is out of 36 and with a smaller base it is possibly more difficult to score an extra 1 point.
Also, most top universities ask for SAT Subject Tests (also called SAT-II) and it is better to stick to one kind of testing platform. SAT Subject Tests are logical progression of SAT.
When should one ideally write the SAT®/ACT®?
SAT® / ACT® ideally should be written in Grade 10 or Grade 11, so that one can plan the SAT Subject Tests or even AP in Grade 12. Also, remember students needs to focus on GPA as well as profile for getting an admit from a top university so it is ideally suggested that one plans out this journey at the beginning of Grade 10 itself.
What is a good score on SAT(R) & ACT(R)?
It is all about percentiles, however to put it simply :
SAT : 1500+ is a great score & 1400-1490 is a good score.
ACT: 34 or above is a great score, 32-33 is a good score.