ACT vs SAT

ACT

American College Testing Program
(knowledge and achievement)
2 hrs, 45 min (if kids take optional Science section)

2 hrs, 5 min (if kids do NOT take optional Science section)
Overall Composite out of 36

ACT Registration

English Grammar

  • 50 questions; 35 minutes

  • 10 questions thrown out at the end so that only 40 count towards the final score

  • 6 passages: each passage tests usage, mechanics, and rhetorical skills

Math

  • 45 questions; 50 minutes

  • 4 questions thrown out at the end so that only 41 count towards the final score

  • Tests all levels of Algebra, Coordinate & Plane Geometry, Trigonometry

Reading

  • 36 questions; 40 minutes

  • 1 full passage of 9 questions thrown out at end so that only 27 count towards final score

  • 4 passages 800-900 words in length; 9 questions/passage

  • Types of passages: Prose Fiction, Social Science, Humanities, Natural Science

  • Students need to comprehend information, retain details, and make inferences

  • Questions are factual and inferential

Science Reasoning

  • 40 questions; 40 minutes

  • 6 questions thrown out at the end so that only 34 count towards the final score

  • 5-7 passages; varying number of questions/passage

  • Types of passages: Data Summaries, Experimental, Conflicting Viewpoint

  • Sciences covered include Earth, Space, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics

  • Test consists of self-contained psuedo-science passages that rely heavily on logic, reasoning, and data interpretation skills; students must be able to read and interpret charts and graphs and make predictions and inferences based on experimental results.

Optional Essay

  • 40 minutes

  • Open-ended prompt where students must analyze and support multiple perspectives

 

SAT

Scholastic Aptitude Test
(aptitude, knowledge, achievement)
2 hrs, 14 min
Overall Score of 1600

SAT Registration

Critical Reading & Writing

  • Two modules: each module consists of 27 questions and each is 32 minutes long

  • 2nd module is Easier or Harder than the 1st module based on the number of questions students miss on the first module

  • Reading questions related to prose fiction, founding documents, social science, current events, and global conversations

  • Some reading passages will contain data that students must interpret (“Science” focused)

  • Writing questions cover basic grammar and punctuation, with a few questions related to rhetorical analysis

Math

  • two modules: each module consists of 22 questions and each is 35 minutes long

  • 2nd module is Easier or Harder than the 1st module based on the number of questions students miss on the first module

  • Questions cover numbers & operations, algebra, functions, geometry, statistics, probability, and data analysis