My daughter bombed her ACT - move on to SAT?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She has been taking practice tests with composites ranging from 32-34. We were hoping she would be one and done. She ended up with:

English 35
Math 33
Reading 28
Science 24

Composite 30.

She is really upset. She knew she messed up Reading but Science is the lowest she has ever had. Does she try again or move onto SAT? We really can’t afford all these tests or submitting them to all the colleges. I had no idea how expensive all this testing gets.

My DD took the February ACT, and the Science section was surprisingly difficult. It required prior knowledge of the topic in order to answer the questions. It threw her (and countless others according to CC and Reddit) for a loop. Normally, the Science section is just about interpreting data and reading graphs. Not that time. In her case, she was able to superstore and a previous Science section was much better. She was able to raise the 2 sections that she needed. I would suggest she take it again.

That's interesting because my DS thought the Feb. ACT was the "easiest" ACT he ever took (compared the mock tests he had). Science in particular he got a 35. I attribute this to the private tutor we hired. There is a specific strategy to approaching the questions. I recommend OP explore with a tutor before having DD retake.

You people are oblivious. OP said money issues and you richies all recommend $70/hr private tutors.

#CLUELESS

[Anonymous]

This is a ridiculous post. This is not "bombing" the ACT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We took money out of the college fund we've been adding to for years to set our daughter up with 6 one-on-one tutoring sessions with an experienced ACT tutor for $150 per one hour session and I think it was worth every penny. The good ones book up way ahead of time so you'll need to look into this months ahead of time if it's not too late.

Also, a 30 on the ACT really is well above average. It may not get you into top schools but depending on what else you have to offer it won't automatically keep you out either.

$150 an HOUR????

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We took money out of the college fund we've been adding to for years to set our daughter up with 6 one-on-one tutoring sessions with an experienced ACT tutor for $150 per one hour session and I think it was worth every penny. The good ones book up way ahead of time so you'll need to look into this months ahead of time if it's not too late.

Also, a 30 on the ACT really is well above average. It may not get you into top schools but depending on what else you have to offer it won't automatically keep you out either.

$150 an HOUR????

np - yes, that's about right. i think we paid 125/hr. for high scoring kids, one-on-one tutoring is much more effective to identify specific weakness and learn strategies. DC got a 36 C and 36s on all 4 subscores so it was worth it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We took money out of the college fund we've been adding to for years to set our daughter up with 6 one-on-one tutoring sessions with an experienced ACT tutor for $150 per one hour session and I think it was worth every penny. The good ones book up way ahead of time so you'll need to look into this months ahead of time if it's not too late.

Also, a 30 on the ACT really is well above average. It may not get you into top schools but depending on what else you have to offer it won't automatically keep you out either.

$150 an HOUR????

Going rate. We did the same. It is the cost of entry in this day and age. #priviledge

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP: Some good advice here.

1) Have her retake. She can "superstore" her 2 tests. Have her work on her lower scoring sections.

2) Did she use the big red book of ACT tests? If not, have her take one every other weekend at the library before taking the test again.

3) Many schools don't even care about the Science section. Some schools outright only look at the Math and English sections.

4) Without extra practice, your DD may actually score *higher* on the SAT. They are very similar tests (after the recent redesign). But you won't know this if she never takes it.

You don’t a tutor to do the above OP. Just plain hard work by your DD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP: Some good advice here.

1) Have her retake. She can "superstore" her 2 tests. Have her work on her lower scoring sections.

2) Did she use the big red book of ACT tests? If not, have her take one every other weekend at the library before taking the test again.

3) Many schools don't even care about the Science section. Some schools outright only look at the Math and English sections.

4) Without extra practice, your DD may actually score *higher* on the SAT. They are very similar tests (after the recent redesign). But you won't know this if she never takes it.

You don’t a tutor to do the above OP. Just plain hard work by your DD.

Who said hiring a tutor wasn't hard work?

[Anonymous]

I posted earlier recommending a tutor. The thing is, a tutor is necessary to figure out the strategies and to go over the wrong answers her so she can see what she did wrong. The tutor will provide your daughter with strategies on how to approach certain questions, and what to look for. My DS had a 33 in his mock tests as a rising junior. After a few months of tutoring, he took the test in February and scored a 35. The tutor will help your DD improve her score significantly, especially the lower scores. It is a worthwhile investment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We took money out of the college fund we've been adding to for years to set our daughter up with 6 one-on-one tutoring sessions with an experienced ACT tutor for $150 per one hour session and I think it was worth every penny. The good ones book up way ahead of time so you'll need to look into this months ahead of time if it's not too late.

Also, a 30 on the ACT really is well above average. It may not get you into top schools but depending on what else you have to offer it won't automatically keep you out either.

$150 an HOUR????

Going rate. We did the same. It is the cost of entry in this day and age. #priviledge

Pathetic. No wonder so many schools are accepting more FA kids, URM, and first generation. How do theses idiots handle college without tutors or mommy and daddy buying everything for perfection?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We took money out of the college fund we've been adding to for years to set our daughter up with 6 one-on-one tutoring sessions with an experienced ACT tutor for $150 per one hour session and I think it was worth every penny. The good ones book up way ahead of time so you'll need to look into this months ahead of time if it's not too late.

Also, a 30 on the ACT really is well above average. It may not get you into top schools but depending on what else you have to offer it won't automatically keep you out either.

$150 an HOUR????

Going rate. We did the same. It is the cost of entry in this day and age. #priviledge

Pathetic. No wonder so many schools are accepting more FA kids, URM, and first generation. How do theses idiots handle college without tutors or mommy and daddy buying everything for perfection?

Mine did very well in college. But thanks for your concern.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I posted earlier recommending a tutor. The thing is, a tutor is necessary to figure out the strategies and to go over the wrong answers her so she can see what she did wrong. The tutor will provide your daughter with strategies on how to approach certain questions, and what to look for. My DS had a 33 in his mock tests as a rising junior. After a few months of tutoring, he took the test in February and scored a 35. The tutor will help your DD improve her score significantly, especially the lower scores. It is a worthwhile investment.

This is a great example illustrating why the ACT and SAT are of limited value for colleges and why the Harvard lawsuit will fail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:30 means bombed?

Totally!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We took money out of the college fund we've been adding to for years to set our daughter up with 6 one-on-one tutoring sessions with an experienced ACT tutor for $150 per one hour session and I think it was worth every penny. The good ones book up way ahead of time so you'll need to look into this months ahead of time if it's not too late.

Also, a 30 on the ACT really is well above average. It may not get you into top schools but depending on what else you have to offer it won't automatically keep you out either.

$150 an HOUR????

Going rate. We did the same. It is the cost of entry in this day and age. #priviledge

Pathetic. No wonder so many schools are accepting more FA kids, URM, and first generation. How do theses idiots handle college without tutors or mommy and daddy buying everything for perfection?

We did none of that and we feel secure in sending our DC off to college. To each his own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I posted earlier recommending a tutor. The thing is, a tutor is necessary to figure out the strategies and to go over the wrong answers her so she can see what she did wrong. The tutor will provide your daughter with strategies on how to approach certain questions, and what to look for. My DS had a 33 in his mock tests as a rising junior. After a few months of tutoring, he took the test in February and scored a 35. The tutor will help your DD improve her score significantly, especially the lower scores. It is a worthwhile investment.

This is a great example illustrating why the ACT and SAT are of limited value for colleges and why the Harvard lawsuit will fail.

Yep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I posted earlier recommending a tutor. The thing is, a tutor is necessary to figure out the strategies and to go over the wrong answers her so she can see what she did wrong. The tutor will provide your daughter with strategies on how to approach certain questions, and what to look for. My DS had a 33 in his mock tests as a rising junior. After a few months of tutoring, he took the test in February and scored a 35. The tutor will help your DD improve her score significantly, especially the lower scores. It is a worthwhile investment.

This is a great example illustrating why the ACT and SAT are of limited value for colleges and why the Harvard lawsuit will fail.

Jealous much? Your kid’s 23 isn’t too bad either.